This is the first meeting of the 2018-2022 term. After the chaotic municipal election that halved the size of Council, we return to a very different City Hall. Over the next several days, we must drastically reshape how Council runs and what councillors do in order to accommodate double the workload. Continue reading The Cheat Sheet: December 4, 2018 City Council
Category: toronto
Recap: The Nov. 2 Munk Debate Protest
You’re saying you can’t have a civil discussion with fascist? Yep. Yes I am . More importantly why can you ?
— Sydette is triggered beyond belief (@Blackamazon) November 12, 2018
Organizers No One Is Illegal:
We gathered to reject the narrowing of the political spectrum of action provided to us by institutions like The Munk Debates. Institutions like The Munk Debates—funded by notorious Canadian mining company Barrick Gold1—continue to tell us that the ideologies on either end of the spectrum are white supremacist/ white-nationalism-fueled by right wing extremism like Bannon, and extreme conservatism like David Frum. Continue reading Recap: The Nov. 2 Munk Debate Protest
2018 Municipal Election Postmortem
So after all the protests and petitions, court dates and emergency Council meetings, Doug Ford’s Thanos’ing of City Council went ahead. And it turned out the only way it could: a newly elected council even more homogeneous than the last one, and even less representative than the city it serves. I’m sure a lot of people are wondering, “Why even bother?” I know I am.
Anyway, I dashed off this quick summary of how everything shakes out, and a few remarks on what may happen this upcoming term. (Skip to Analysis if you want.)
Nightmare Rectangle Round-up: Municipal Finance, Black Widows, Migrants, and More
Header: This image from Lisa Jackson’s Biidaaban depicts a decaying Toronto City Hall surrounded by forest, on the edge of a flooded Nathan Phillips Square.
Trying a bit of a new thing. I occasionally do linkdumps via Twitter threads, but I felt like doing something more permanent. Title inspired by this ever-relevant @TechnicallyRon tweet:
2007: It's called a smart phone, it can do everything!
2017: Stare into the nightmare rectangle and watch society collapse in real time— TechnicallyRon (@TechnicallyRon) September 11, 2017
Continue reading Nightmare Rectangle Round-up: Municipal Finance, Black Widows, Migrants, and More
The Cheat Sheet: September 13, 2018 City Council
At this special meeting of City Council, there’s just one item on the agenda. Continue reading The Cheat Sheet: September 13, 2018 City Council
That Last City Council Meeting
I honestly haven’t quite recovered from that last City Council meeting. It was a fucking week long. Bullet points because there’s just too much for full sentences.
Does Anyone Else Have a Bad Feeling About This?
Okay, so. Top bureaucrats who have stepped down this term:
- City manager Peter Wallace (to the Treasury Board)
- TTC CEO Andy Byford (to NYC)
- CFO Rob Rossini (retired)
- Head of Transportation Stephen Buckley (to Philadelphia)
- Deputy City Manager John Livey (retired)
- Chief Planner Jen Keesmaat (to non-profits/think tanks)
A number of city councillors have also announced they’re not running for re-election:
- John Filion
- Janet Davis
- Mary-Margaret McMahon (who, admittedly, promised she would only serve two terms and is in favour of term limits)
- Josh Colle
I mean, like…does anyone get the sense they’re not running to something so much as running from something? 🤔🤔🤔
One possibility is that, after years of budget cuts and “kicking the can down the road”, the City has run out of road. And if MLTT revenue flattens or falls, which it’s bound to do eventually, we’d be well and truly fucked. As successive City Managers have said, there is no “gravy” left at City Hall. Serious cuts would have to involve mass layoffs, and the unions representing City staff would fight back. It could get unpleasant.
Or they’ve all realized that, deep down, Toronto is a potential NYC with ambitions of becoming, like…Akron, Ohio, and any forward-thinking bureaucrat or politician can make a bigger impact elsewhere.
Or some oracle has revealed to the elect that a massive sinkhole is going to swallow up Hellmouth is going to open up under City Hall some time in the next four years, but she’s not quite sure when, and everyone’s just decided to play it safe.
Or it could just be coincidence. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I’m just being a bit paranoid, right?
Subscribers & Toronto Election Stuff
So, some of the people who give me money are running for City Council in the upcoming election. Someone asked me about this yesterday and I’ve thought about it a bit, and I think it would be inappropriate for candidates to keep donating to me during the election period. (And obviously afterwards as well, if they win.)
I’ll be going through Patreon and Paypal to check who is running and message them individually, but this is just a heads up.
I’m grateful for everyone’s support, and wish candidates luck in the campaign ahead!
The Cheat Sheet: July 2018 City Council
It’s the last Council meeting of the 2014-2018 term. Whew. Here’s a rundown of the sizeable agenda, including addressing recent gun violence, end-of-term concerns, plastic straws, affordable housing of all kinds, planning studies, and the newest addition to the PATH.
The Cheat Sheet: June 2018 City Council
Welcome to this term’s penultimate Council meeting! There’s quite a lot on the agenda, including a slew of Integrity Commissioner investigations, laneway housing, improving deadly intersections, and more.
Warning: there are even more swears and opinions than usual. Lately I just feel civility is overrated, you know?