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Council Highlights
Archive
June 2008 |
 The
Council Highlights are provided as a service to
constituents in Ward 25. The following is a brief
summary of Council’s meeting held on June 23 & 24, 2008
1. Seeking a safer city - gun violence in Toronto (EX
21.2)
City Council approved the use of municipal authority to
reduce the availability of handguns in Toronto.
Amendments to a Toronto land use zoning bylaw will
restrict the use of guns and gun-associated activities
to establishments operated by the police. The
amendments will also restrict or prohibit establishments
that manufacture, assemble, warehouse or distribute
guns. The new restrictions will apply only to new
firearm-related uses. Existing businesses can continue
to operate until the property or establishment changes
to a different use or the use is discontinued.
Activities such as target practice by gun clubs in
City-owned facilities (e.g. Union Station) will no
longer be permitted.
These measures reinforce Toronto’s strategy of balanced
prevention and enforcement to deter gun-related
offences. The roots of gun violence are complex and
therefore need to be addressed through a comprehensive
approach (as outlined in Toronto’s Community Safety
Plan). The City is pursuing a strategy in which all
governments, police services, community agencies and
businesses work together to effect beneficial change and
break the cycle of hand gun violence.
2. Accountability Appointments at the City of Toronto
(CC22.2, CC22.3)
City Council appointed Geri Sanson the City’s new
Integrity Commissioner, effective September 1. The
Integrity Commissioner provides advice, complaint
resolution and education to Council members (as well as
to appointees of most of the City’s agencies, boards and
commissions) on the application of the City’s Code of
Conduct and other bylaws, policies and legislation that
deal with ethics in the local government. Ms. Sanson
takes over the position from David Mullan, Toronto’s
first integrity commissioner and the first municipal
integrity commissioner in Canada.
In
another appointment, Council named Linda L. Gehrke the
City’s new Lobbyist Registrar, effective August 1. The
registrar leads and manages the City’s lobbyist control
framework, including the lobbyist registry. Ms. Gehrke
will help to ensure that Council’s decision-making
process is transparent, open and accountable to the
public, and that lobbying activities are carried out
with the highest ethical standards. Ms. Gehrke takes
over the position from Marilyn Abraham, the City’s first
Lobbyist Registrar.
The
Integrity Commissioner and Lobbyist Registrar,
independent officers reporting to City Council, are two
components of the City’s accountability framework
required under the City of Toronto Act. The others are
the Auditor General and the Ombudsperson, whose
appointment is long, long overdue.
3. Toronto museum project on the waterfront (EX21.1)
City Council approved the continued development of the
Toronto Museum Project, an initiative dedicated to
chronicling Toronto’s history through the lens of
social, cultural and economic diversity with a strong
emphasis on the city’s post-Second World War
development. The plan recommends that a new, iconic
building be built on the City-owned former Canada
Malting property at the foot of Bathurst Street to house
the museum as part of the mixed-use redevelopment. In
addition to the museum, the new building will also be
home to the Global Cities Gallery, a hub for learning,
dialogue and research on the development of liveable,
sustainable cities. This project is aligned with
Toronto’s Agenda for Prosperity and promotion of a
strong tourism sector. Preliminary work on the project
has included extensive consultation with the public.
4. Taxi fares to rise
Council adopted motions to increase the initial taxicab
pick-up fee by $1, from $3 to $4, and raise the meter
per kilometre rate from 25 cents per 0.170 kilometres
(170 metres) to 25 cents for every 0.155 kilometres (155
metres) traveled. Under the new fare schedule, a 5-km
trip will now cost $11.50 instead of $10. The
recommended rate increases are intended to help offset
the cost for taxicab drivers of rising fuel prices.
5. New name for former Automotive Building (EX23.31)
City Council approved a 10-year sponsorship agreement
between Exhibition Place and MTS Allstream Inc. The new
conference centre being built within the heritage facade
of the former Automotive Building will be named
Allstream Centre - A Conference and Convention Centre at
Exhibition Place. The naming rights fees will be used
to convert the heritage building to a state-of-the-art
conference centre that is intended to achieve the LEED
(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver
rating design standard.
6.
No stopping on Bayview Avenue – new times (NY16.20)
Council adopted recommendations of North York Community
Council to extend “No Stopping” on Bayview Avenue from
Highway 401 to Kilgour Road, both sides. The morning
no-stopping provisions, previously 7am to 9am, will be
extended by one hour earlier and later, and now be 6am
to 10am. The evening no-stopping provisions, previously
4pm to 6pm, will be extended by one hour earlier and
later, and now be 3pm to 7pm.
Committee and Non-Council Items
1. Sale of Toronto Hydro Telecom
Toronto Hydro, a wholly owned subsidiary of the City of
Toronto, has decided to divest its Telecommunications
subsidiary, generating about $75 million to be used for
repair of Toronto’s public housing inventory. The media
release from Mayor Miller indicates that “The sale of
Toronto Hydro Telecom and the use of the City’s portion
of the proceeds are consistent with the recommendations
of the Mayor’s Fiscal Review Panel, which reported last
February that a review of assets be undertaken to ensure
that the City explores all possible funding options.” As
an initiative of Toronto Hydro, this may not be subject
to debate by City Council. In debate, I would ask
whether liquidating City assets is appropriate overall,
and specifically appropriate for this purpose. Since
some of the public housing stock was downloaded from the
provincial government, it would seem more reasonable to
seek provincial funding for its maintenance rather than
liquidation of an income-producing asset of the City.
2. Powers of the Mayor
You are invited to a public meeting in North York. The
third meeting in a series, to receive public input on
the proposal by the Mayor for new powers for his office,
will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, July 28 in the
Council Chambers at the North York Civic Centre. Two
previous meetings, held in Scarborough and Etobicoke and
sponsored by a group of seven Councillors including
myself, resulted in very large turnouts of residents who
expressed overwhelmingly their concerns about the new
powers sought from the provincial government by the
Mayor. In particular, the Mayor is seeking to have the
power to hire/fire the City Manager and to convene
secret meetings of his Executive Committee.
For more information on City matters, please see my
website
www.cliffjenkins.com, or call my office at
416-395-6408. If you wish to UNSUBSCRIBE to my Council
Highlights, please let me know by return e-mail.
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