Toronto City Council meets today! It’s been a while. Mayor Olivia Chow has set the debate about the island airport as the first order of business, so fasten those seatbelts. The meeting is streaming here. I’ll post happenings. www.youtube.com/watch?v=L73N...
For a preview of this agenda, which also features items about the vacant home tax and the traffic plan, check out this week’s edition of City Hall Watcher. The three hundredth issue! It’s got a special cover and everything. toronto.cityhallwatcher.com/p/chw300
Things kick off today with a presentation recognizing 150 years of firefighting in Toronto. It turned out to be a pretty good idea, fighting fires. A real improvement over the previous status quo. Kudos to whoever thought of it first.
Mayor Olivia Chow asks for a big round of applause to the firefighters in attendance. We get a standing ovation. And then a video tribute takes us on a trip down memory lane.
The order of the agenda is sloooowly taking shape. The congestion management plan debate is set as the second item today, after the airport. Per the mayor’s prerogative, Student Nutrition will be up first tomorrow. The St. Lawrence Centre item is set for tomorrow afternoon.
Gonna fly now. Council’s island airport debate takes off with a staff presentation. This debate is nominally about achieving compliance with a safety requirement to make sure planes don’t overshoot the runway, but Ports Toronto is pushing for a lease extension too.
Staff presentation, using some bold text, tries to make it clear this is not a debate about closing the island airport. Staff recommend the question about the airport's future should be settled in a separate airport master plan update process, later.
The recommendation to Council is to endorse "Option 1" for the runway safety areas. It's the cheapest, fastest, no-frills option. Ports Toronto prefers the other two options, which include some extras like service roads and a noise wall, but cost more.
Councillor Stephen Holyday wants to vary Council procedure to allow councillors to ask questions of Ports Toronto, the federal agency responsible for the airport. This involves going into the "committee of the whole," apparently. Is that even possible? Some seem wholly skeptical.
Chair Nunziata rules Holyday's request out of order. Apparently it's technically doable, but requires councillors to give advance notice, and Holyday did not do that.
Councillor McKelvie asks staff if there are any "technical objections" to Options 2 and 3. Staff say no, though there would be some details to work through. They chose Option 1 primarily because it's the cheapest and fastest.
Motions have started to get advance circulated. - Saxe wants a decision on lease extension by end of 2025. - McKelvie wants Council to not endorse any of the options for runway safety areas, leaving it to negotiation process. - McKelvie wants to speed up report timeline.
To be clear, McKelvie's motion would endorse installing a runway safety area but would leave the choice of options to the EA process and negotiation.
Councillor Brad Bradford asks the City CFO if securing financing for long-term capital projects generally requires a long-term lease. CFO says generally yes, but there are alternative ways to fund necessary projects.
Councillor Alejandra Bravo gets staff to confirm that there's room to add more daily flights out of the island, but there have not yet been any takers to use the unused slots. Director of Waterfront Secretariat David Stonehouse says airport is still working to recover from COVID.
The city seems to be having some intermittent IT issues. Not only is their live stream repeatedly dying, the server that hosts the council agenda has been cutting in and out too. Gremlins, probably.
Councillor Dianne Saxe points out the island airport currently serves "billionaire's private planes." She's concerned about the environmental impact. City Manager Paul Johnson says the later conversation about airport master plan would look at these kinds of issues.
Council takes an early lunch to allow more time for members to attend a Rosh Hashanah get-together being held by Councillor James Pasternak. Back at 2 p.m. to land this airport debate.
Council is back. But before they get back aboard the airport debate, it's time for Mayor Olivia Chow to introduce Toronto's first-ever Youth Poet Laureate, Shahaddah Jack.
Toronto's new Youth Poet Laureate Shahaddah Jack is here to take a photo with the mayor and share a poem. It's a good one.
Back to the airport. Councillors are still asking questions of staff, including Councillor Michael Thompson. He's attending this meeting remotely, the same week he's been in court facing charges of sexual assault. Background on his ongoing trial here: www.thestar.com/news/gta/cit...
Councillor Stephen Holyday asks why staff say options 2 and 3 will require an Official Plan Amendment while Option 1 does not. Staff say those two options go beyond the definition of "essential public work." Holyday suggests that's a matter of opinion.
Some councillors advancing argument that airport should go right to the more expansive runway safety options, and that lease extension is a must to finance them. City staff respond by saying there are other funding methods, and the extras in Option 2 & 3 can be added later.
Time for councillors to speak and introduce motions on the island airport item. Mayor Olivia Chow has a motion. "We are not closing the airport. I have no intention of closing the airport," she says. Today's debate is about safety, she says.
Chow says her motion sticks with Option 1, and allows for an island airport lease extension through 2045 if Ports Toronto can demonstrate it's necessary to finance the new runway safety areas.
Councillor Burnside asks if this means Chow is in favour of extending the airport lease under the tripartite agreement. She says if Ports Toronto needs a longer time period to secure financing for the safety add, she's giving staff the power to give them that extra time.
Burnside asks Chow if she has specific concerns about Options 2 & 3. She says those options require more lakefill and require an Official Plan amendment, which will take additional time and could make it harder to hit the federal safety deadline.
Councillor Saxe asks Chow if she'd be open to changing her motion so that Council would be required to approve any extension through 2045. Chow says no, she trusts staff to enter into negotiations and make necessary decisions re: the lease term.
Saxe asks how the city will get any improvements to airport operation if Chow is giving away the leverage that comes from council holding the lease renewal decision. Chow seems kind of swayed by this argument -- she says she'll check with staff about changing her motion.
"What's your long-term view of this airport?" Holyday asks Chow. "How do you see society's grandchildren using this? Do you see a future?" Chow says, "the airport is serving a function right now" but, "Should it have more flights? Should it have jets? I don't know about that."
"Why wouldn't we do everything we can right now to help this airport?" Holyday asks the mayor. Chow says again this is about safety. "It's not about the future of the airport." She doesn't think anyone has answers yet on airport growth in the future.
Bradford is up now to question Mayor Chow. He cites statements she made in 2006 in favour of shutting down the airport. He asks if she still holds that position. She says back then she was an MP, but now she's the mayor, and she supports the airport and is not shutting it down.
Bradford says there's a "poison pill" in Chow's motion, referring to the "within the existing Tripartite Agreement" language. Chow denies this. Bradford accuses Chow of running out the clock by giving long answers to simple questions.
"Are you aware that the tripartite agreement specifies the type of aircraft that are allowed to be used at the airport and that the main commercial aircraft flown from the airport is no longer in production?" Bradford accuses Chow of "putting nail in the coffin" of the airport.
(This debate is really getting into the weeds now with differing interpretations of the mayor's motion. It's possible making major changes like this via motion on the floor of council is generally bad practice!)
Chow has mastered the practice of making her answers to other councillors as long as possible to run out their five-minute clock. She's working those Shatner-esque dramatic pauses.
Councillor Jennifer McKelvie moves her pre-circulated motion, asking council to stay agnostic on the options for the runway safety areas and just defer to the EA result.
McKelvie also moves to speed up the report back on the airport master plan process. She wants it in Q1 2025, instead of Q2.
McKelvie says she prefers her motion to the mayor's motion, as Chow would preclude the extras included in Option 2 and 3. She says her motion could lead to a lease extension if it's deemed necessary to deliver the chosen alternative under the ongoing EA.
Councillor Pasternak says his understanding was there was a "social contract" created during the 2014 debate on jets at the island airport, where opponents of jets agreed the airport could continue to operate for generations under the status quo. That is... not how I remember it.
Pasternak: "We have 1,600 parks across the city. We have the largest ravine system of any major urban area in the world. We have one of the largest freshwater lakefronts. So to argue that we're potentially park deficient and we have to close this airport does not make sense."
Councillor Burnside on this island airport report: "I believe this is terrible advice we received. And I'm actually speaking to staff here, including some in the front row. It feels more like politics than policy."
"We're very fortunate to have such an economic driver in our downtown. And we're very fortunate it's so accessible," says Councillor Colle. He says people can walk to the island airport, whereas going to Pearson means getting stuck in gridlock. (There is a train, famously.)
"This is really too complex and convoluted for us, who are amateurs in trying to deal with operating airports, to make a decision on. I don't have that expertise," says Colle. He trusts city staff, Ports and the federal government to handle it, and will support Chow's motion.
Councillor Shelley Carroll: "Any time this chamber discusses the island airport, it's pretty much like that line of Joe Pesci's from JFK. The issues surrounding this little patch of the island, it's a mystery wrapped inside a riddle and still the whole darn thing is an enigma."
Noting their "energic lobbying effort," Carroll says Chow's motion gives Ports Toronto what they've been asking for: 20 years to take out a loan. She says they should "recognize the win." "So if that really is what it was about, then we're done! We're actually done."
Councillor Stephen Holyday moves to extend the island airport lease to 2073, a 40-year extension. "Right now, we are a rudder-less ship that is adrift," he says, calling for a strong show of support for the airport. He says his motion "rolls out the red carpet" for the airport.
Councillor Holyday: "The entire business world is looking at us and this council has nothing to show about the future. My motion says, 'Darn right! We want the airport there for another 40 years. I can't say what it's gonna look like, but I'm committed to it."
Councillor Brad Bradford has a motion too. He wants Council to state its collective commitment to a long-term lease extension and a renegotiated Tripartite Agreement for the island airport.
"This Council is screwing around, parsing out the language, and afraid to take the grown-up position and do the right thing to advance these negotiations, and it's disgraceful and it's got to stop," says Bradford.
Bradford says Chow's motion is a "trojan horse" because it extends the existing agreement instead of renegotiating it. He says the agreement must be renegotiated to allow for other types of aircraft and other changes to meet future needs.
"I'm also tired of the games," notes Councillor Fletcher. "I am also tired of being in a perennial mayoral debate in this chamber." She adds there's been a "full-court press" lobbying effort on this issue. She says there's no "secret motion" to close the airport.
Fletcher: "You've been lobbied. Let's agree to that. Grow up and admit it. It's the waterfront! Do you make decisions like that on the waterfront? Do you want a mega-mall? Do you want a Ferris Wheel? ... STOP IT. It's the central waterfront. It's a delicate place!"
"This has never been about meeting the federal regulatory requirement. It's never been about the safety of people flying into Billy Bishop Airport. It's always been about expanding the permissions for the airport," says Councillor Gord Perks.
"I challenge anyone in this room to give me a coherent explanation of what travel patterns on earth are going to be like in 2075," says Perks. I like to think I'll have a jetpack.
Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik has a motion amending Bradford's, stipulating that the tripartite agreement renegotiation happens after the runway safety area obligations are completed.
Time to vote. Chow's motion to pick Option 1 for the island airport runway safety areas and allow a lease extension through 2045 if it's deemed necessary to finance the safety improvement CARRIES 17-8.
Chow's motion to take overall waterfront vision into account when discussing the new airport master plan CARRIES 16-9.
Malik's motion to amend Bradford's motion so that the commitment to a long-term lease extension comes AFTER the runway safety areas are completed CARRIES 16-9.
Bradford's now-amended motion to express a commitment to a long-term lease extension after the runway safety areas are completed CARRIES 14-11.
Because Chow's first motion carried, Holyday's motion for a 40-year lease extension has been ruled redundant. Holyday wants an explanation. The Clerk says it's because Chow's motion capped any potential extension at 2045.
To recap: Council has endorsed Option 1 for the island runway safety areas — the no-frills option. Ports Toronto wanted a more expansive option. Council has potentially given a 12-year lease extension to allow for financing, if deemed necessary. Ports Toronto wanted 40 years.
I think it will be a while before we fully understand the ramifications of today's island airport vote. To be continued.
For those asking: my read of Chow's motion, which was adopted, is that it'll be up the City CFO as to whether the 12-year extension (or a lesser extension) is deemed necessary for Ports Toronto to secure financing for the runway safety areas under Option 1.
After a brief recess, Council returns for some quick items. Intriguingly, Councillor Paul Ainslie moves to refer a GFL contract award for garbage collection in District 2 back to committee. That CARRIES 23-2. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Council votes via show of hands to approve condo building at 214-230 Sherbourne Street. Anti-poverty advocates had been pushing for city to acquire the site for social housing. Moise passed motion to try to get an affordable housing component into the plan secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: an update to the congestion management plan. It includes a new "construction congestion levy" charged to companies that block lanes for construction. (Amounts TBD during the upcoming budget process.) secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Pasternak, noting lots of street protests over the last year, asks if there's anything city can do to enforce bylaws against these demonstrations and "allow our vehicles and pedestrians to get around the city." City Manager says city has to take a "risk-based approach"
Challenged by the chair on the relevance of bringing up protests during a debate on traffic congestion, Pasternak says, "This has frozen traffic on the downtown every weekend from mobs that have taken to our streets." Nunziata asks him again to stay on topic.
Before they sign out for the day, Council votes 22-2 to approve spending about $42 million on the chargers and other dockside infrastructure needed to operate the coming electric ferries serving the Toronto islands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
And that'll do it for today. Toronto Council shall return at 9:30 a.m. with 50 items left on the agenda. See you back here then.
Councillors are drifting in for the start of day two. This morning's schedule starts with a salute to Toronto Olympians and Paralympians, followed by a debate about student nutrition programs. Today's meeting stream is here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JLE...
Fifteen minutes after the bells started ringing, Council does not quite have quorum. "We're going to start having an attendance sheet," Chair Nunziata jokes. "If you're not here, you don't pass."
Mayor Olivia Chow takes the lectern to celebrate Toronto's Olympians and Paralympians who competed in Paris this past summer. There are athletes in the chamber with medals. "Look at all that hardware!" says Chow.
Up now: student nutrition. Expanding the school food program has been a major mayoral focus. Chow is asking council to support a report on a phased approach toward a universal program, where students at every school would get a mid-morning meal and lunch. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Holyday says his kid already gets breakfast before school and a packed lunch, so, "Why do I want my kid to have the extra calories?" he asks the Medical Officer of Health. Dr. De Villa says evidence suggests univeral programs do better at getting food to kids who need it.
"You actually see benefits in terms of academic outcomes, benefits in terms of health outcomes, benefits in terms of behaviour outcomes in the classroom, and you see an opportunity for community connection," says Dr. de Villa on the benefits of school food programs.
In addition to other benefits, De Villa is really highlighting to council the benefit school food programs bring by getting kids to eat together, "social connectedness." Notable angle in era we live in following school COVID closures.
Mayor Olivia Chow tells a story of Christmas Eve 1990, when, amidst the festivities, she and Jack Layton drafted a plan for a National Food Program. She's brought the original document. She's been at this a while, "but it's never too late."
Councillor Dianne Saxe has a motion on the school program. She wants the school food offerings to be consistent with Toronto's "Cool Food" commitment, which means foods that don't produce a lot of GHGs.
"My colleague Councillor Holyday is saying his kids are fed, so his kids don't need it, but we're not just building a system for his kids. We're building one for the classroom enivornment — for the health outcomes for generations to come," says Councillor Bravo.
Holyday says there are "a very small percentage of people that are so desparately poor, that they can't put enough money together to feed their kids" but there's a "whole span" of kids who aren't eating because of "parenting issues." "Is that the role of government, to parent?"
Councillor Stephen Holyday says, "A [school food] program like this teaches a generation to look to the government, and sets an expectation to look to the government for their human needs, whehther it's food, shelter or so on."
"I really do fear that is what's going on. That we are teaching an entire generation that there are others out there that will provide their basic needs of life, and they need not figure it out for themselves or learn those lessons," Holyday says, about school food programs.
Anyway, time to vote on school food program. Councillor Dianne Saxe's motion to work toward making sure the school program is consistent with the city's "cool food" (low-GHG) commitment CARRIES 23-1.
Mayor Olivia Chow's request for a report on implementing a universal school food program in Toronto CARRIES 23-1.
Switching gears, Council returns to their debate on the Congestion Management Plan. Councillor Stephen Holyday asks staff why it's not called the Congestion Reduction Plan. Staff say because it's about managing traffic. "There's no way to make cars disappear."
"Why is there is such a discrepency between the anecdotal things I hear in real life, versus the way we consider things at council and the information contained in reports?" asks Holyday. Director of Traffic Management says they capture lots of data, and have plans to capure more
Councillor Pasternak moves to develop a "code of conduct" for contruction activity. He wants an end to construction sites that sit blocking streets even while no work is taking place.
Councillor Bradford moves to ensure pavement markings are added simultaneously with new stop signs. He also wants councillors to get an annual summary of upcoming construction work in their ward.
Councillor Nick Mantas has a motion calling on staff to review best practices for managing "change orders" on construction projects.
Councillor Mike Colle moves for a report on the number of registered vehicles in Toronto, plus modal split trends on driving versus walking, cycling, transit, etc. He also wants to look at adding more signs explaining what's happening at construction sites.
Councillor Stephen Holyday has many motions. 1) Commit to reducing congestion 2) Rename Congestion Management Plan as Congestion Reduction Plan 3) Commit to reducing travel times for motorists 4) Integrate congestion reduction into every traffic-related report.
"Taylor Swift is about to have some concerts in the City of Toronto. Do you think we should tell her not to come because that will increase traffic?" Perks asks Holyday. "Well, I think if we had that decision before us, we would have had to answer to the public," Holyday says.
Bravo asks Holyday if he'd change his motion to include reducing travel times for other road users. Holyday says no. Bravo points out many people in her ward don't drive single-occupancy vehicles. "Well, then I guess you're in a tough position. You gotta choose," Holyday says.
Councillor Myers, pointing out Holyday is a TTC Board Member, asks if he'd change his motion so it refers to reducing travel times for everyone. Holyday says no, but: "You know what? TTC buses are in the category of motorists. So in fact, this is good," Holyday says.
That's the end of this episode of the Stephen Holyday Show. Moving on, Councillor Bravo moves for a report on planning in advance for parking changes during construction along TTC routes to reduce congestion.
Before they take a lunch break, Council votes 17-1 to APPROVE a zoning bylaw amendment for an affordable housing project at 35 Bellevue Avenue in Kensington Market. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Via show of hands, Councillor Bravo passes a motion calling for an independent review of the West Toronto Railpath project. The Metrolinx-delivered 2km extension was recently projected at costing an eye-popping $150 million.
And that's lunch. Back at 2 p.m. for member motions and to finish the traffic debate. There are 14 items left on the regular agenda, plus 31 member motions to be considered.
Council is back from lunch and adding a few more items to the agenda. Notably, Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik has a motion to install a new skating rink at Harbourfront Centre using Section 37 funds, in time for this coming winter season.
Mayor Olivia Chow has also added a motion related to the PayIt online payment platform — recently the subject of an AG report. We'll get more details soon.
Time for member motions. Councillor Dianne Saxe's motion for a report on increasing the maximum fine for bylaw offences like leaving a construction bin in a bike lane CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Jon Burnside's motion to support keeping the remaining Ontario Science Centre lands — the parts not covered by Housing Now plans — for recreational and educational purposes CARRIES 23-1. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Holyday has a motion to reduce the speed limit on parts of Bloor West. Councillor Perks points out this could be contrary to Holyday's motion to only do things that reduce travel times for motorists, so he holds it for debate. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Colle's motion requesting the provincial gov look at high-speed rail instead of a Highway 401 tunnel (and for the city to do cost estimate of the 401 tunnel) gets added to the agenda on a 19-5 vote. Holyday holds it for debate. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Moise's motion to request the province not close safe-injection sites gets added to the agenda, but is held for debate by McKelvie. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Bradford's motion requesting an audit of the West Toronto Railpath extension project CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Bradford's motion to report on speeding up the service standard timeline for dead-animal pick-up CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Josh Matlow's motion asking for a public inquiry to figure out what the hell happened with the Eglinton Crosstown project CARRIES 21-2. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
The second part of Matlow's motion, asking the Transportation Minister and the Metrolinx CEO to come to Executive Committee to explain what the hell happened with the Eglinton Crosstown project, CARRIES 20-3. Vote wasn't posted.
Councillor Nunziata's motion requesting the provincial and federal government do bail reform gets added to the agenda on a 21-2 vote. Perks holds it for debate. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Fletcher's motion to look at places that could host indoor pickleball CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Deputy Mayor Malik's motion to use Section 37 funds for a new skating rink at Harbourfront Centre CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Mayor Chow's motion directing staff to NOT add any additional services to PayIt until after council considers the recent audit and provides future direction CARRIES 24-0. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
After that flurry, there are 19 items left. Council gets back to the congestion management plan. Perks notes traffic is an indicator of success. "If you have a city that no one wants to be in, where there are no interesting attractions, that's how you get rid of congestion!"
Councillor Myers moves to amend Holyday's motion so it commits to reducing travel times for everyone, not just motorists.
"It is painful to drive downtown," says Councillor Lily Cheng. "And it shouldn't be painful. It should be something pleasant. Does it have to be at full speed? Maybe not .. but we have to acknowledge there are people in our city who do not have the luxury of taking transit."
Not a lot of debate about the substance of this congestion plan. Most speeches were more just like, "I am OPPOSED to bad traffic." But anyway, time to vote! Councillor Pasternak's motion to develop a code of conduct for city construction projects CARRIES 23-0.
Councillor Holyday's motion that council commit to reducing (instead of just managing) congestion in Toronto CARRIES 15-8.
Councillor Holyday's motion to rename the Congestion Management Plan as the Congestion Reduction Plan FAILS 10-14.
Councillor Myers' motion to amend Holyday's motion so it's about reducing travel times for EVERYONE, not just motorists, CARRIES 21-3.
The amended motion that council commit to reducing travel times for everyone CARRIES 17-7.
Holyday's motion that staff prioritize congestion reduction in every transportation-related report FAILS 8-16.
All other motions carry via show of hands, as does the Congestion Management Plan as amended. Construction levy charged to developers, etc. coming as part of the 2025 budget.
Earlier, in a blink and you'll miss it moment, Council voted for this Councillor Chris Moise motion related to the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts. It commits to an "enhanced state of good repair plan" for existing building, scrapping plan for new centre. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: the vacant home tax. The declaration and tax collection process went VERY badly last year, but the tax still brings in about $55 million a year. Staff have proposed a range of changes to improve things for next year. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Council has already approved an increase of the tax rate for the vacant home tax, from 1% of assessed value to 3%, which will increase the city's revenue take. But some councillors seem to be readying a push at this meeting to just scrap the tax entirely.
The City CFO says city’s best estimate is there were about 8,700 vacant homes in Toronto last year. That's down from 10,200 vacancies in the first year of VHT collection. CFO cautions it's too early to determine any kind of trend, though.
Councillor Shelley Carroll asks the CFO if he's confident this coming year's VHT experience will be better than last year. He says he is. Communication will be better and supported by real-time data.
Councillor Nunziata lets us know someone left their phone in the women's washroom. Is it yours? Go claim it at the Speaker's desk.
Councillor Myers asks why city can't just use utility data -- water and power use -- to determine vacancy. CFO says they can use utility data as part of audit process to determine whether a declaration is legit, but there are privacy concerns about using the data more generally.
Mayor Olivia Chow defends the existence of the vacant home tax. "Some of you may say, 'Why don't we just scrap this whole thing?' Well no, we're in the middle of a housing crisis ... it generates funds that builds affordable housing." "It's worth the effort," she says.
Councillor Stephen Holyday disagrees, apparently. He moves to cancel the Vacant Home Tax program immediately.
Councillor Holyday defends the rights of people to buy homes and keep them vacant if they want to. "What's wrong with accumulating wealth and investing it in properties?"
Councillor Brad Bradford moves to "pause" the Vacant Home Tax program for 2025, and instead report back on an "alternative program" that puts the onus on city hall and/or the owners of vacant properties to identify vacancy, instead of requiring declarations from all.
"I think at the end of the day, we need to be very thoughtful when we are adding more taxes on housing units in the most expensive city in the country," says Bradford, of his opposition to the vacant home tax as currently implemented.
Councillor Josh Matlow has a motion too. He wants to make sure the new call centre for the Vacant Home Tax is staffed in accordance with the current collective agreement. He also calls this year's VHT collection process a "hot mess."
Mayor Olivia Chow asks councillors if they want to finish this agenda tonight or come back on Friday. The will in this room seems to be to finish tonight. They're going to take a 30-minute break at 6:30, then come back and power through and get this thing done.
Time to vote on the Vacant Home Tax. Councillor Stephen Holyday's motion to cancel the Vacant Home Tax FAILS 4-19.
Councillor Bradford's motion to pause the vacant home tax for this coming year and come up with an alternative way to determine vacancies FAILS 5-18.
Other motions and the item as amended CARRY via show of hands. Toronto's vacant home tax lives. New — and hopefully improved — declaration process will start on Nov. 1.
Up now: the EV charging strategy. Councillor Stephen Holyday moves to establish a target ratio of private EV chargers to public chargers. He wants the "substantive onus" to be on the private sector for installing/maintaining chargers. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Here's a map the city got from a consultant on the ideal places for EV charging infrasructure. Uh, Toronto Island scores better than I would have guessed. (via www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis...)
Holyday's motion to set a target ratio of private/public EV chargers and to put the onus on the private sector to provide chargers for the public FAILS 6-16.
Up next: Councillor Saxe has a motion for a report on developing a policy to decline advertising from fossil fuel advocacy groups for city assets like bus shelters, etc, unless it's been fact-checked and is consistent with the TransformTO initiative. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor James Pasternak says he'll vote against developing this policy to decline fossil fuel advocacy ads. He says it'll take too much staff time and open the door to more bans on different types of ads on city property.
Councillors are not really digging this fossil fuel debate. Councillor Shelley Carroll moves to call the question. That CARRIES 16-4. They'll skip straight to the vote.
Saxe's motion to develop a policy to turn down fossil fuel advocacy ads on city assets unless they are consistent with TransformTO and their claims have been verified CARRIES 15-6.
Moving on, Councillor Stephen Holyday tries to refer this pretty technical planning item back to staff so they can make changes. He gets one other councillor to support him. His motion fails 2-18. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
With that, and with 15 items left on the agenda, council takes a 30-minute dinner break. Come back at 7 p.m. for an edition of Council After Dark.
Here we go. Pour a drink. Dim the lights. It's time for an evening session of Toronto City Council. The new meeting livestream is here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGLU...
Councillor Chris Moise's motion requesting the province continue to fund supervised consumption sites and consider permitting supervised consumption sites in the new HART hub centres CARRIES 18-3. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor McKelvie's motion to have council support the 'Solve the Crisis' campaign for better provincial supports for issues related to homelessness, addiction and mental health CARRIES 22-0. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: an annual report on the city's housing plan. Councillor Perks, the Planning & Housing chair, says there's been a lot of progress. "Just last year, we approved over 30,000 new units of housing. That's Orillia. We did that in one year." secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Perks on the city's housing plan: "A lot of people say we're not doing enough. And that's true. Some people say we're not doing anything. And that's not true. The City of Toronto made lives better for over 100,000 people with better housing just in the last year."
After a strong pitch from Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik, the local councillor, council votes via show of hands to approve a Traffic Action Plan for Liberty Village. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up next: Councillor Paula Fletcher has concerns about homeowners building garden suites that back onto Craven Road. She's asking staff to review whether these kinds of units should be permitted under the city's Garden Suite bylaw. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
"If we were to create a blackout zone for this specific street [on Garden Suite permissions], would you say that expands options or that removes housing options?" Councillor Bradford asks planning staff. "I would generally not recommend that that's a good approach," says staffer
(The staffer is Interim Chief Planner Kyle Knoeck. Apologies for not recognizing him. There have been a lot of chief planners of late.)
To recap: Craven Road is narrow and generally only has houses on one side. Residents along parallel Parkmount Road who back onto Craven want to build garden suites that front onto Craven. Some Craven Road residents aren't happy about this and asked Fletcher to change the rules.
Councillor Parthi Kandavel asks if council accepting this motion would create a precedent where councillors can ask for other areas to be made exempt from certain housing bylaws. The Chief Planner says that's basically up to council to determine.
Calling it a "little wee street" and an "anomaly" , Councillor Paula Fletcher shows off a map of Craven Road on the overhead projector. "Is it a Garden Suite? Is it a Laneway Suite? What kind of suite is it? What happens when it's on one of these other roads? Very complicated."
"This is a community conversation for a community solution. Because I think everyone believes that a garden suite is something that's in your backyard — in your garden!" says Councillor Fletcher. She asks council to give planning staff a chance to "see how this all fits together"
Councillor Brad Bradford moves to NOT proceed with any kind of review of garden suite zoning permissions on Craven Road. He says this would just be a return to "exclusionary zoning" and that Fletcher is "bending the knee to some NIMBY voices."
"Councillor Perks is beating his chest on all the progress we've made on the Housing Action Plan, but he did not highlight all of the items that have been delayed," says a fired-up Bradford. He says there's lots of work for planning staff to do, and Fletcher's motion distracts.
Councillor Pasternak moves to call the question on this debate. That CARRIES 13-6. They'll proceed straight to the votes.
Bradford's motion to not proceed with a review of zoning for garden suites on Craven Road FAILS 3-16.
Fletcher's motion to review garden suite permissions along Craven Road in her ward CARRIES 17-3.
Almost done now. Councillor Colle's motion to tell the province to build high-speed rail instead of a 401 tunnel, and to look at buying back the 407 too, CARRIES 18-2. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Last item is Nunziata's motion to urge provincial and federal bail reform. Councillor Bravo moves for a report on how municipal governments can "support more positive bail outcomes." This CARRIES via show of hands.
The part of Nunziata's motion calling on the federal and provincial governments to ensure bail reform changes are effectively implemented and resourced CARRIES 19-1.
The part of Nunziata's motion "to ensure that bail decisions take into account potential risks to public safety" CARRIES 19-1.
The rest of Nunziata's bail reform motion CARRIES 17-3. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Looks like we made it. That marks the end of Council's October meeting. If you enjoyed this thread and found it useful, consider supporting my work with a subscription to City Hall Watcher, my weekly newsletter about this sort of thing. It keeps me going. toronto.cityhallwatcher.com/subscribe