Next Mayor of Toronto?

[northstar]

Originally Posted by Automation Gallery View Post
City of Toronto is falling off the same cliff as General Motors

The workers enjoy perks that others can only dream of. The well-paid executives avoid making tough decisions. The organization has lost touch with those it serves and become a sprawling, self-perpetuating bureaucracy. The whole vast enterprise is drifting toward the rocks.

All of this was said of General Motors a year or two ago. It could just as easily be said of the City of Toronto today. Toronto is the GM of Canadian governments, heading for ruin, knowing it but lacking any credible plan to save itself.

The strike that started this week is only the latest sign of trouble. Mayor David Miller blames the city's worsening financial state on the recession. With revenues down, the city is trying to cut labour costs by wringing concessions from the unions.

But, as with GM, the recession is merely the straw that broke the camel's back. Like GM, Toronto has been storing up trouble for years.

More.........http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1197951/

Whatevs, because the idea of equating a city with a corporate structure is totally asinine!!!

"Whatevs" is a rather cavalier comment that dismisses Toronto's culpability in creating its own financial mess.

As was the case with GM, the article is suggesting Toronto could be managed better.

I know Toronto isn't getting as much money from the Feds as it once did, but explain how this is different from situations in other cities across the country? And then explain why Toronto should be treated as a special case, while other cities, many of which managed their finances well, should be left holding the bag?

As mayor, David Miller is responsible for seeing that the city is well run. I'm not sure that this city is being run as well as it could be.
The fact that Miller sulks about things "not being fair" gets childish after a while.

At the end of the day, the question is this: Is the city being run as well as it could be, or even as well as other cities?
If not, then is it time for a new mayor?

 

[adma]

She lives in Lawrence Park and is still actively involved in the Leaside Community and attends my church every Sunday. I don't know where Seymour pulled that out of.

The Place in Caledon is her summer home/cottage.

And for the record, when it comes to Pitfield and the Caledon Heritage Foundation, I know of other cases where GTAers are members in good standing of historical societies where they have summer homes, Muskoka et al...

 

[Paleo]

The fact is, the City of Toronto has been messed up since social welfare costs and transit were downloaded to the city in the 1990s'. Look at how much borrowing the city has had to do to keep TTC vehicles on the road.

Until the fiscal imbalance is addressed, nothing will change. You can change the faces at City Hall and save a penny here and there but until the core issues are resolved, the city will continue to falter. Neither Smitherman nor Tory can fix this without the senior governments at the table, sorry.

Other Ontario municipalities have had costs and taxes go up as high or higher than Toronto's but the media spin machine chooses to ignore it. (e.g. Mississauga) Or did you think those big tax increases across the region were imaginary?

Bottom line: more of the money being sucked out of the city by the province and federal government has to come back.

 

[Seymour]

The fact is, the City of Toronto has been messed up since social welfare costs and transit were downloaded to the city in the 1990s'. Look at how much borrowing the city has had to do to keep TTC vehicles on the road.

Until the fiscal imbalance is addressed, nothing will change. You can change the faces at City Hall and save a penny here and there but until the core issues are resolved, the city will continue to falter. Neither Smitherman nor Tory can fix this without the senior governments at the table, sorry.

Other Ontario municipalities have had costs and taxes go up as high or higher than Toronto's but the media spin machine chooses to ignore it. (e.g. Mississauga) Or did you think those big tax increases across the region were imaginary?

Bottom line: more of the money being sucked out of the city by the province and federal government has to come back.

Word.

 

[Mr.Colley]

I'm not sure what the exact rates for taxes are here in Windsor off the top of my head but we have some of the highest in the Provence for a lot of things. I believe property taxes being one of them. What is the property tax in Toronto right now?

 

[adma]

Hey, why not Shelley Carroll for mayor. Sarah Palin glasses, Kate Gosselin hair: she's got it all

 

[Mr.Colley]

Haha looks yes. But is there any brains behind those pretty eyes? I could care less if she looked like an old hag if she had the brains to do the what needs to be done. And not only the brains the balls as well, Im speaking figurativly of course. lol

 

[kEiThZ]

That cities in Canada (it's not just an Ontario problem) have had fiscal challenges is not an excuse for much of what Miller has done. He has received greater revenue generating powers than many of those other municipalities. Is Mississauga allowed to apply a land transfer tax or a charge on vehicle registration? And in Toronto's case, the neighbouring municipalities are forced to help out with social service costs and some transportation costs (GO). So to argue that Toronto is completely helpless is patently false. Miller has worsened Toronto's fiscal position by wasting away the extra revenue that was generated on raises for the unions and councillors. He refuses to contract out any service, even if it makes sense for the city not to provide said service. And he's about to squander billions in transit dollars on a plan to deploy trams across a city that barely has a functioning subway network.

If you want to imagine what the opposition would have done, just try and imagine what the subway network would like if Pitfield had been elected. The Sheppard subway would have reached STC (or be well on its way) by now. The city would have started planning a Kennedy-STC link to get rid of that blasted SRT. And have a few rough strikes, wages might have been kept in check....none of this 'no contracting out', 'fair wage' contractors only BS....and we would have a damn bridge to the Island airport.

Nobody is suggesting that a more fiscally conservative mayor be like Lastman. However, the suggestion that anyone the least bit more conservative than Miller would be a failure in running this city is an absolute falsehood.

 

[Seymour]

If you want to imagine what the opposition would have done, just try and imagine what the subway network would like if Pitfield had been elected. The Sheppard subway would have reached STC (or be well on its way) by now. The city would have started planning a Kennedy-STC link to get rid of that blasted SRT. And have a few rough strikes, wages might have been kept in check....none of this 'no contracting out', 'fair wage' contractors only BS....and we would have a damn bridge to the Island airport.

Miller ran and won on the island airport bridge, clearly the majority of people who voted in the 2004 municipal election disagree with you on the island bridge.

And you have NO WAY of knowing that Pitfield would have been able to raise the $$ to build subways, she would have faced the same issues Miller did. Subways are too expensive to build, light rail you get much more coverage which is what Toronto needs desperately.

 

[kEiThZ]

^ The bridge was only part of his platform. I am hoping somebody runs on this again. We'll see how it turns out now that a good chunk of the population has seen the benefit of the island airport.....maybe there's enough votes to counter his waterfront NIMBY base.

As for the transit funding issue...Pitfield would have the same resources Miller is getting for Transit City. Instead of streetcars though, she would have deployed those resources to build a sensible network. Do you think that it's sensible that Scaborough Town Centre is the only urban growth centre in the 416 without a subway connection? And it's likely to stay that way after Transit City is complete? I am not disputing the need for some LRT lines. But cutting off the Sheppard subway at the knees is absolutely ridiculous. That decision alone has cost him my vote. He effectively nullified a billion dollar investment because of his ideology.

 

[GraphicMatt]

Comparing someone's real-world political record versus another's campaign promises isn't really all that fair. There's no telling how many things would be different if Pitfield had been elected -- she may not have been able to secure the same level of political funding, for one. '2 km of subway per year' is political grandstanding.

Also, while there's a lot of grumbling about Transit City on this board, I'd imagine the average voter doesn't really care about the details and just sees "building more transit" as a positive for the mayor. For better or for worse, most people don't really get all that excited about alignments and headways.

Lastly, Keith, you do know Miller did not take any kind of pay increase this year, right? And that on issues like that he's just one vote in council?

 

[Eug]

Lastly, Keith, you do know Miller did not take any kind of pay increase this year, right? And that on issues like that he's just one vote in council?

That's not the point. Miller caved to the other unions, did not reign in spending, and did not push wage freezes for councillors.

One rather telling example is that he didn't cancel his office renovations until he lost a budget vote, despite the fact he was crying poor. No, it's not big money, but it's quite clear that for the longest time he really didn't care about fiscal responsibility. Now he and council are feigning it because they know just how much the public's view of their overspending has hurt their chances for the next election.

 

[GraphicMatt]

That's not the point. Miller caved to the other unions, did not reign in spending, and did not push wage freezes for councillors.

'Caving to unions' is kind of mythical, as the guy's been through two labour strikes now which assuredly would not have happened if he had just caved to their demands. He also froze wages for all non-unionized city employees, don't forget.

Unions are a sometimes unfortunate political reality that leaders need to deal with.

And, hell, he froze his own wage and left it up to ther councillors as to whether they take what amounts to a cost-of-living increase. The mayor certainly doesn't have ultimate power over council. In most cases, he's a single vote.

One rather telling example is that he didn't cancel his office renovations until he lost a budget vote, despite the fact he was crying poor.

This is a political red herring. The reality is that EVENTUALLY any political office needs rennovation. But it's never going to look good to be the guy who does those rennovations. Hell, 24 Sussex is practically falling to pieces because no PM wants to be the one to spend tax money on his own house.

All this said, I think Miller's lost some serious political capital between the streetcar funding mess and this strike so his re-election chances are assuredly less than they were a month ago. I still don't see a credible opponent emerging, though.

 

[OttoSchloss]

Enza!

 

[Eug]

He also froze wages for all non-unionized city employees, don't forget.

Yeah. How hypocritical is that?

And, hell, he froze his own wage and left it up to ther councillors as to whether they take what amounts to a cost-of-living increase. The mayor certainly doesn't have ultimate power over council. In most cases, he's a single vote.

If he really cared, he would have publicly admonished those who did take that increase. He didn't.

This is a political red herring. The reality is that EVENTUALLY any political office needs rennovation. But it's never going to look good to be the guy who does those rennovations.

It looks especially bad for a government who is crying... no SCREAMING... poor.

Enza!

I'd vote for her/him, just for the amusement value.