City Council meets today! They’re still in the dull first-day morning part. Here’s @neville_park’s cheat sheet: https://nevillepark.ca/2017/05/24/the-cheat-sheet-may-2017-city-council/
Get back into my office, switch on council’s relief line debate, immediately hear Coun. Karygiannis demand a Sheppard subway. Fantastic.
Coun. Mihevc wants staff to take a look at these and other transit projects and prioritize ‘em.
Coun. Mammoliti is up now. He complains streets in his ward are dirty, playgrounds are falling apart. He’s represented the area for 20 years
After complaining at some length that his area of the city gets short shrift, Mammoliti calls downtowners “whiners” repeatedly.
If you live in Ward 7 and you’re looking for something fun and important to do in 2018, I’ve got an idea.
Coun. Pasternak makes his case for what he calls the “North York Relief Line” — a Sheppard West subway extension.
Coun. Shiner: “I was elected to make political decisions, not necessarily fact-based decisions. I could get a computer to do that.”
The “Feeling Congested?” process ranked Toronto transit projects way back in 2013. Here were the top performers.
Mayor Tory speaking now. He’s got subway maps from New York and Paris in hand. They make him weep, he says, because Toronto is so far behind
Didn’t some mayoral candidate have a scheme that was supposed to do this? In, like, seven years and without a tax increase? https://x.com/DavidNickle/status/867477896851599360
Tory ranks the “fruitfulness” of his discussions with provincial leaders on funding Toronto’s transit priorities. 1) NDP, 2) PC, 3) Liberal.
“There’s a lot of money in Bingo, trust me. Millions - millions!” says Speaker Nunziata.
Coun. Matlow’s motion to kill planning of the Yonge North subway extension FAILS 7-36.
Coun. Holland hit the wrong button. They’re re-voting.
Mihevc motion to consider building Relief Line North as an LRT up Don Mills PASSES 34-9.
Mihevc motion that Yonge North extension design come at no cost to the City PASSES 41-2.
Mihevc motion to request report on prioritization of Toronto transit projects PASSES 38-5.
Wong-Tam motion to thank planning staff for their work and direct ‘em to move forward with #1 priority, the relief line, PASSES 34-9.
Filion motion stipulating that the Yonge North subway extension cannot open until the relief line is open PASSES 32-11.
Colle motion requesting a report on plans to expand Yonge-Bloor station interchange PASSES 42-1.
The good news: the relief line subway is now closer to reality than ever before. The bad news: it’s still at least fourteen years away.
Budget report outlines cost of implementing range of council approved plans. Turns out doing stuff costs money http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2017/cc/bgrd/backgroundfile-104105.pdf (PDF)
Coun. Mammoliti wants city to send out a list of all councillors who supported property tax increases.
Not satisfied with a mere budget freeze, Coun. Holyday wants all departments and agencies to cut budgets by 2%. https://x.com/TorontoCouncil/status/867817519465336833
“Every year it feels to me like we are hamsters in a wheel,” says Coun. Janet Davis on the budget process.
Minnan-Wong says left-wing councillors are responsible for city’s budget position, citing free rec programs and opposition to billboards.
Coun. Perruzza on the Scarborough Subway: “If that isn’t just taking the CHEESE and then BURNING it, I don’t know what is.”
Layton motion to exempt anti-poverty and other programs from 2018 budget freeze FAILS 17-27.
Wong-Tam motion to exempt AODA accessibility costs from budget freeze target FAILS 17-27.
Mammoliti motion for a report on cost savings if TCHC was uploaded to province (good luck!) passes 27-17.
Mammoliti motion to report on cost savings if TTC was uploaded to province (good luck!) passes 25-19.
Mammoliti motion on cost savings if all child care were uploaded to province (good luck!) passes 27-17.
Mammoliti motion to report on cost savings if portions of Gardiner/Highway 27 were uploaded to province passes 38-6.
Mammoliti motion to report on savings if long-term care homes uploaded to province passes 28-16.
Mammoliti motion that city issue press release naming councillors who have voted for tax increases FAILS 15-29.
Layton motion to host public consultations on service levels in advance of budget fails 18-26.
Mihevc motion to use municipal inflation rate (instead of CPI) to set property tax increases FAILS 17-27.
Coun. Janet Davis motion to restore staff recommendations for a Toronto stormwater charge FAILS 17-26.
Mayor’s move to shelve Toronto stormwater charge passes council 27-16. I guess stormwater isn’t a pressing concern.
After some debate about the nature of time itself, council now set to debate Pride Parade item. Watch live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xbjpFsPRNI
The real travesty is that TIFF continues to get city funds even after their decision to open with Score: A Hockey Musical.
Here’s Coun. John Campbell’s don’t-fund-Pride-unless-they-let-cops-march motion. May it die a swift and decisive death.
Campbell says police won’t march in baseball caps and t-shirts, says it would put officers in dangers to march in street clothes.
Mammoliti wants the “Major Cultural Organizations program” renamed to the “Political Correctness Funding program.”
Pride took in $2 million+ from sponsorships last year. City’s grant is a mere $260K, plus an absurd amount of sanctimonious rhetoric.
Joe Cressy has repeatedly attempted to release the Richmond/Simcoe traffic light item. Deputy Mayor Minnan-Wong continues to hold it down.
I am learning a lot about police officers. They are unable to remove their uniforms at any time. They live in them. They don’t come off.
Coun. Chin Lee rises to say he won’t support defunding Pride. Defund motion doesn’t have the votes. Call the question and end this.
Coun. Stephen Holyday: “Either you support the police, or you don’t.” He’s tired of hearing negativity about T.O. police.
“We cannot have this conversation without knowing where power exists.” That was @NeethanShan’s best council speech so far.
Coun. Ford says he’ll support the defund motion. He’s displaying watermarked Getty Images photos of police marching in Pride from past years
Coun. Kelly says he hopes the police and Pride work things out, but he will NOT be supporting the defund motion.
Fletcher points out council has never had a day-long conversation about carding, but today had a day-long conversation about Pride funding.
Coun. Robinson has quietly put together one of the most conservative voting records on city council this term.
Pride first received Major Cultural Organizations Grant funding in 2005. Minnan-Wong one of three opposed. (via http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/2005/minutes/council/cc050517.pdf)
Mayor Tory is supporting Pride funding, as expected. He wants both Pride and the police to journey together to get to a better place.
Speaker Nunziata rules Mammoliti’s “Political Correctness Funding Program” motion out of order. “Not politically correct,” she says.
Coun. Campbell motion to make Pride funding contingent on cops in uniform marching FAILS 17-27.
Coun. Mammoliti motion that cultural grant recipients “be respectful” to city and police fails 10-34.
And the cultural grants funding program (which includes Pride Toronto) item as amended passes council 39-5.
Traffic signal for Richmond & Simcoe *still* hasn’t passed. Deputy Mayor holds things up for another month. https://x.com/TorontoCouncil/status/868246577953087488
TransformTO climate change report also deferred until July. Because, sure, what’s the rush?