brockm
Active Member
I simply cannot agree with the notion that David Miller can take credit for the ascendancy of Toronto. It just so happens that his mayoralty has largely coincided with a bit of a golden age for Canada's stature in the world. It isn't surprising that Canada's most economically powerful city would benefit from this period. But let's be honest: this has been a gilded age for pretty much every urban centre in Canada over the past ten years, from coast-to-coast. And I'm sure all the respective mayors are all taking credit for it.
The truth is, a lot of Toronto's rampant building boom is the result of a long, drawn out over-correction for the disastrous rent control policies of the Bob Rae government in the early 1990s which brought new multi-family dwelling development to a standstill, coupled with a city council which was relatively anti-development.
The real end of this lull happened when rent control was ended, and the Ontario Municipal Board started ramming through development proposals against the will of Toronto City Hall.
Certainly, Miller has been a pro-development mayor and has largely helped kept the anti-development forces at bay within the city council. And this has been good for Toronto. Allowing Toronto to further urbanize and see the arrival of a true downtown culture again... and that's paying huge dividends as more and more people actually WANT to live in the city again. How much of that can be attributed to David Miller and how much of that can be attributed to external factors is certainly up for debate. But I'm inclined to believe he was in the right place at the right time.
The truth is, a lot of Toronto's rampant building boom is the result of a long, drawn out over-correction for the disastrous rent control policies of the Bob Rae government in the early 1990s which brought new multi-family dwelling development to a standstill, coupled with a city council which was relatively anti-development.
The real end of this lull happened when rent control was ended, and the Ontario Municipal Board started ramming through development proposals against the will of Toronto City Hall.
Certainly, Miller has been a pro-development mayor and has largely helped kept the anti-development forces at bay within the city council. And this has been good for Toronto. Allowing Toronto to further urbanize and see the arrival of a true downtown culture again... and that's paying huge dividends as more and more people actually WANT to live in the city again. How much of that can be attributed to David Miller and how much of that can be attributed to external factors is certainly up for debate. But I'm inclined to believe he was in the right place at the right time.