Mayor Olivia Chow's Toronto

[Monarch Butterfly]

Will the City of Toronto copy the City of Brampton?

City of Brampton – Your Local Government

#DYK? You need to request a permit to display different signs. In #Brampton, signs are regulated to help keep the City safe and avoid clutter that can be distracting. Request a permit to display...

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[nstuch]

Will the City of Toronto copy the City of Brampton?

City of Brampton – Your Local Government

#DYK? You need to request a permit to display different signs. In #Brampton, signs are regulated to help keep the City safe and avoid clutter that can be distracting. Request a permit to display...

www.facebook.com

View attachment 678828

if they did it would be just another bylaw that's never enforced

 

[Jonny5]

Good riddance.

I cannot wait to drink the tears of Markham residents crying about the roads being closed for it and complaining about too much noise and how "they should move this downtown!"

The hilarious part is that of course none of the big spenders will be staying anywhere other than the top hotels in the core. They aren't partying at some shitty nightclub in a strip mall in Markham.
We essentially outsourced the road closures and the low-spend tourists, but will keep all the big money here. It's actually a financially genius move by Chow. Get rid of the worst of it and keep the best of it.

 

[PL1]

I cannot wait to drink the tears of Markham residents crying about the roads being closed for it and complaining about too much noise and how "they should move this downtown!"

The hilarious part is that of course none of the big spenders will be staying anywhere other than the top hotels in the core. They aren't partying at some shitty nightclub in a strip mall in Markham.
We essentially outsourced the road closures and the low-spend tourists, but will keep all the big money here. It's actually a financially genius move by Chow. Get rid of the worst of it and keep the best of it.

I feel like moves like this by suburban mayors is to try to justify an increased pay for them (look at what I've done!) rather than a benefit for their constituents. I will apologize if this materially improves Markham (but it won't)

 

[taal]

I cannot wait to drink the tears of Markham residents crying about the roads being closed for it and complaining about too much noise and how "they should move this downtown!"

The hilarious part is that of course none of the big spenders will be staying anywhere other than the top hotels in the core. They aren't partying at some shitty nightclub in a strip mall in Markham.
We essentially outsourced the road closures and the low-spend tourists, but will keep all the big money here. It's actually a financially genius move by Chow. Get rid of the worst of it and keep the best of it.

I’m not sure I agree with this perspective. On tourist spending, you may be right—most non-local visitors (say, those from outside Ontario) will likely still stay in the core and commute to Markham. But the concern isn’t about this one event; it’s about whether this signals the start of a trend where fewer large-scale events are held downtown. If the core ends up with fewer attractions and events, the long-term impact could be significant. What makes it more troubling is if these decisions are being driven by residents in the core who simply want to avoid traffic or noise—because if that’s the case, the broader implications are quite discouraging.

 

[junctionist]

Will the City of Toronto copy the City of Brampton?

City of Brampton – Your Local Government

#DYK? You need to request a permit to display different signs. In #Brampton, signs are regulated to help keep the City safe and avoid clutter that can be distracting. Request a permit to display...

www.facebook.com

View attachment 678828

This seems like terrible and regrettable government overreach. Lawn signs are easily accessible and benign forms of expression for the general public. What is it about Brampton and over-regulation? This is the "city" that once banned basement apartments and ice cream trucks.

 

[thettctransitfanatic]

https://archive.is/2025.09.05-090717/https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/new-poll-shows-how-olivia-chow-might-fare-against-possible-mayoral-contenders-including-john-tory/article_b01fc708-494b-47f4-94b2-c4541594f0a5.html

A new opinion poll suggests Mayor Olivia Chow would be the leading contender if she was seeking re-election now — but former mayor John Tory would be a real threat if he was attempting a political comeback.

Forum Research surveyed 1,000 adults across Toronto on Wednesday and Thursday, asking about their support for four potential candidates well ahead of the October 2026 mayoral race that already has local politicos planning and gauging support.
Asked “If the mayoral election were held today, who would you vote for?” — and, if undecided, who they were leaning toward — 36 per cent chose Chow, followed by 30 per cent for Tory, 18 per cent for Beaches-East York Coun. Brad Bradford and eight per cent for former city councillor Ana Bailão. Thirteen per cent of respondents were undecided.

In a head-to-head with Tory, the former mayor got 48 per cent support to Chow’s 37 per cent, with 15 per cent undecided.

In a head-to-head with Bailão, who finished a strong second in the last mayoral race, Chow got more support — 40 per cent to the former councillor’s 34 per cent, with 27 per cent undecided.

“When Toronto voters are asked who they would support among the four main candidates, Olivia Chow leads, with John Tory close behind,” said Lorne Bozinoff, Forum Research president.

“However, in direct head-to-head matchups, Tory and Bradford hold a slight advantage over Chow, highlighting a competitive race with no clear front-runner at this stage. With nearly a year to go, voter preferences are still fluid, and the dynamics could shift as the campaign progresses.”

The poll suggests that Chow’s support is strongest with younger voters and those in the old city of Toronto, East York, Scarborough and York. Almost 70 per cent of Chow’s previous voters said they would back her again.

Tory’s support was strong with middle-aged voters and those in Etobicoke and North York.

 

[evandyk]

I’m not sure I agree with this perspective. On tourist spending, you may be right—most non-local visitors (say, those from outside Ontario) will likely still stay in the core and commute to Markham. But the concern isn’t about this one event; it’s about whether this signals the start of a trend where fewer large-scale events are held downtown. If the core ends up with fewer attractions and events, the long-term impact could be significant. What makes it more troubling is if these decisions are being driven by residents in the core who simply want to avoid traffic or noise—because if that’s the case, the broader implications are quite discouraging.

This isn't the trend, though. The trend is that people and events want to be downtown. People want to be able to take transit and walk to events. The Indy is bucking the trend, but it's not setting a new one.

 

[Monarch Butterfly]

This isn't the trend, though. The trend is that people and events want to be downtown. People want to be able to take transit and walk to events. The Indy is bucking the trend, but it's not setting a new one.

There are currently trade shows being held at the "International Centre" in Malton, next to Pearson Airport. There is the Malton GO Station next door to it. However, I likely do not go there. Even with a car, the traffic congestion is not worth it.

 

[Jonny5]

This isn't the trend, though. The trend is that people and events want to be downtown. People want to be able to take transit and walk to events. The Indy is bucking the trend, but it's not setting a new one.

And there's probably backfill demand that can fill up that event calendar space downtown too, but also what you said goes really with the Indy being an inefficient use of our resources.
It's not Formula 1, which would draw international tourists for extended stays. Indy pulls in local people by the thousands, yes, but the Blue Jays are pulling in local people by the tens of thousands for a home game now around 12 times per month, and they don't require any roads to be closed. This is pretty low on the scale of value for money in Toronto.

The big money at this event comes only from the drivers' teams, sponsors, media, and Indy officials and workers at hotels and restaurants, but there's lots of events you can pull in to replace that which don't require a swath of road shut down for cars to zip by at an impressive speed.

 

[taal]

And there's probably backfill demand that can fill up that event calendar space downtown too, but also what you said goes really with the Indy being an inefficient use of our resources.
It's not Formula 1, which would draw international tourists for extended stays. Indy pulls in local people by the thousands, yes, but the Blue Jays are pulling in local people by the tens of thousands for a home game now around 12 times per month, and they don't require any roads to be closed. This is pretty low on the scale of value for money in Toronto.

The big money at this event comes only from the drivers' teams, sponsors, media, and Indy officials and workers at hotels and restaurants, but there's lots of events you can pull in to replace that which don't require a swath of road shut down for cars to zip by at an impressive speed.

Yep, that’s fair — I agree that, among all events, this one doesn’t have much impact. It’s more about the sentiment of “no noise, no traffic” in my backyard — which happens to be downtown Toronto. I don’t think that sentiment should be placated in the slightest, because if it’s given any credibility, it could set the stage for a broader trend.

 

[zang]

Yep, that’s fair — I agree that, among all events, this one doesn’t have much impact. It’s more about the sentiment of “no noise, no traffic” in my backyard — which happens to be downtown Toronto. I don’t think that sentiment should be placated in the slightest, because if it’s given any credibility, it could set the stage for a broader trend.

And you don't think people in Markham—where 85% of all commuting is done by car, truck or van—are going to complain about the noise and traffic? This thing's gonna block off a part of the city for several days, if not a full week during preparation; specifically sections of Regional Road 3/Kennedy Road and Enterprise Blvd. Aside from the brief stretch of the Lakeshore (which for many is just a secondary route to the Gardiner), Toronto's Indy routed through relatively empty CNE grounds.

In Markham, it will be passing on what appear on both Google Streetview and Apple Maps to be relatively well used roads/stroads.

It's gonna be a pain in the ass for York University Markham students taking summer semester classes, as it blocks off ALL entrance to the school, and passes right by the 10 storey campus building (twice!). Students will definitely be hearing it, all near (August 11-13) the end of the semester.

Even the Unionville GO station will likely be closed off to all vehicle traffic, as the route runs right through its parking lot and thus will block off all access to buses. There are eight GO bus routes that stop there, and the YRT #8 bus. This will also affect the VIVA bus stops at the north end of the route.

It'll cut off all northbound exits onto Kennedy from the 407. All the subdivisions on the east side of Kennedy will no doubt hear it as well have to deal with the added traffic restrictions there. Someone living there and commuting via the 407 will be left having to get off at Warden or McCowan in order to get home.

There's a T&T Supermarket at the northeast kitty corner of the route, and in a city with an extremely high asian population, cutting off two routes to it means people are either going to have to deal with traffic or drive elsewhere. The YMCA there will also get cut off.

The idea that Toronto is the only place that complains about noise and traffic for events like this will no doubt be proven quite wrong come August of next year.

 

[SubHuman]

I still don't know what the situation is in Markham.
Edit: FWIW, Mayor Scarpitti mentions (8:26 into video) "all of Markham council", but it would seem difficult to believe there isn't some sort of municipal government process to go through for the race to be approved, as I don't think the general public knew anything about this before it was announced. Remembering the arena thing from a few years back, I would guess it's entirely possible that the over-excited mayor may have committed to spending far more of the city's money than others would find acceptable.
A street race using Exhibition Place had to be proposed three times, once each in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, before the last one finally succeeded.

... It's not Formula 1, which would draw international tourists for extended stays...

It was proposed in the 1970s, but rejected.

https://archive.is/mAW0v

Edit: Minor correction to an inaccuracy in the article -- the vote was not close, and was not expected to be by the time it happened. The writer may have got mixed up with the vote in the 1980s to approve the Indy race, as that was narrowly approved.

 

[Admiral Beez]

A new opinion poll suggests Mayor Olivia Chow would be the leading contender if she was seeking re-election now — but former mayor John Tory would be a real threat if he was attempting a political comeback.

The last thing Toronto needs is the return of a disgraced former mayor who trolls the staff room for young tail. Surely we can do better than creepy John? Put that on a lawn sign.

 

[Admiral Beez]

There are currently trade shows being held at the "International Centre" in Malton, next to Pearson Airport. There is the Malton GO Station next door to it. However, I likely do not go there. Even with a car, the traffic congestion is not worth it.

I go there for my own industry’s shows, plus the motorcycle show and that train is a godsend, especially now that it runs in both directions all day. My first job in 1995 was right next door, and I had to take the GO Bus from my apartment near Woodbine Station since the train was only for commuters, not reverse commuters from downtown.