MAYORAL ISSUES

[AndrewJM3D]

Scrapping Transit City 'short sighted': Miller

Criticizes provincial government
CBC News Posted: Jun 15, 2011 7:19 AM ET


Former Toronto Mayor David Miller says the repeal of his Transit City light rail plan is "remarkably short sighted" and "sad."

Miller made the remarks in an interview with CBC's Metro Morning on Wednesday one day after he was appointed the Future of Cities Global Fellow by the Polytechnic Institute of New York University, which is based in Brooklyn. He said his role there will be to help engineers understand their solutions to urban issues mesh with the public policy context in which they are operating.

Miller also broke from his self-imposed silence on Toronto political issues since leaving office late last year, and was blunt in his assessment of the decision to strike down the Transit City light rail plan, which envisioned a system of light rail lines crossing the city.

'As a resident of Toronto, if I want to go to Finch, I go to Finch. I don't go to Kentucky Fried Chicken.'
— Former mayor David Miller"That's one decision that I think is so remarkably short sighted," he said.

"The people know it. All the polls show across Toronto people understand that to take a transit plan that took 30 years to develop, that was ready to go, that had its environmental assessments done, that literally started construction in one place is not only sad, it's not very smart either."

Miller singled out the provincial government in particular for criticism.

The Liberals announced in their 2010 budget they would be delaying delivery of $4 billion to regional transportation agency Metrolinx, which was tasked with implementing the light rail plan. That move had the effect of pushing back the timeline for the construction of a number Transit City lines.

"And it's not just the city government. You know, the premier slowed [Transit City] down while I was still the mayor and if he hadn't, there would have been three lines underway, they all would have all been under construction, they all had approval, they all had the money," he said.

'I'm a citizen'
The Ontario government has agreed to go forward with a new transit plan put forward by Mayor Rob Ford in which the $8.2 billion allocated to construction of Transit City would be funneled toward putting the Eglinton Crosstown light rail line underground.

The city would then find its own financing for a $4.2 billion extension of the Sheppard subway line.

Miller also rejected the idea floated by the mayor's brother Doug of selling naming rights of subway stations to corporate sponsors in order to raise money for the TTC.

"As a resident of Toronto, if I want to go to Finch, I go to Finch. I don't go to Kentucky Fried Chicken," he said.

In another dig at the current administration, Miller also criticized Ford's repeated usage of the word "taxpayer" when describing residents of the city.

"No, I'm a citizen. I'm a citizen of this city," he said.

"Citizenship is a different relationship with government. It's not purchasing a service. Government is about us working together to build a city for the future."





After reading this do any of you think Ford will be asked by a large University in one of the worlds largest cities to teach engineers onsolutions to urban issues??

[AndrewJM3D]

Casa Loma may have to be sold: Mayor Ford



Mayor also 'furious' about Leafs practice rink takeover
CBC News Posted: Jun 15, 2011 10:06 AM ET Last Updated: Jun 15, 2011

Supporting Story ContentStory Sharing ToolsShare with Add ThisPrint this storyE-mail this story.End of Supporting Story ContentBack to accessibility links Beginning of Story ContentToronto Mayor Rob Ford says the historic Casa Loma property will eventually have to be sold, saying it's time for the city to stop assuming risk in business deals with service groups.

City council on Tuesday agreed to adopt the recommendations of a staff report that called for the city to regain control of Casa Loma from the Kiwanis Club, which has operated the historic castle since 1937.

"I'm definitely going to be reviewing that. Casa Loma is something that I think we are eventually going to have to sell. That's the bottom line," he said Tuesday.

The Casa Loma decision isn't the only takeover Ford now opposes.

On Monday a staff report recommended the city assume operation of Lakeshore Lions Arena, a four-pad rink in Etobicoke that the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Marlies use as a practice facility.

Along with that takeover comes $43.5 million in debt accumulated by the current operators of the arena.

The city has guaranteed $35.3 million of its debt, and if the operators default, the city would be on the hook for that amount. As an eventual default appears likely, one of the few options left is to assume control of the facility, the report said.

"I'm furious about that. It's completely mismanaged. I voted for it and I regret doing that," Ford said.

The recommendation will be debated at council's executive committee on June 20.

[Taller, Better]

not smart.

[Filip]

Originally Posted by AndrewJM3D

Scrapping Transit City 'short sighted': Miller

Criticizes provincial government

Haha! BITE ME EX MAYOR MILLER!!!!!!!

[jje10001]

Originally Posted by Filip

Haha! BITE ME EX MAYOR MILLER!!!!!!!

Actually I'm pretty happy the Transit City got cancelled. We now have the Eglinton subway and with no improvements in transit in the suburbs (hopefully cuts to the far-flung suburbs)*, hopefully the worsening traffic conditions can push other modes of transportation like bicycling and shift the population towards the downtown core/inner city.


* Sheppard doesn't count, since it won't get built.

[Filip]

Originally Posted by jje10001

Actually I'm pretty happy the Transit City got cancelled. We now have the Eglinton subway and with no improvements in transit in the suburbs (hopefully cuts to the far-flung suburbs)*, hopefully the worsening traffic conditions can push other modes of transportation like bicycling and shift the population towards the downtown core/inner city.


* Sheppard doesn't count, since it won't get built.

I don't know if you're trying to single me out here, but I don't live in the suburbs. I'm a 20 min bike ride from Union Station.

All that's going to do is further make the suburbanites resentful. Remember, there's more of them than there are of inner city hippie dippies; which means more people like Ford will get elected.

[jje10001]

Originally Posted by Filip

I don't know if you're trying to single me out here, but I don't live in the suburbs. I'm a 20 min bike ride from Union Station.

All that's going to do is further make the suburbanites resentful. Remember, there's more of them than there are of inner city hippie dippies; which means more people like Ford will get elected.

I'm not- I know you live in a relatively transit-accessible part of Etobicoke.

I'm pointing out the bright side of the consequences of Ford's decision. Resentful or not, that's what they might get for voting for him.

[AndrewJM3D]

Originally Posted by jje10001

Sheppard doesn't count, since it won't get built.

How true is that. But now we have no transit city (until Tory) and no new transit plan under our idiot mayor.

[AndrewJM3D]

Once again, feel free to post a glowing article about our current idiot at the helm. you can even use the SUN as it seems it's the only paper that supports him. It's at about his reading level, lots of pictures to.

I suppose City TV, the Globe and Mail, CBC News, the Star, and the National Post are all run by PINKOS.

[AndrewJM3D]

MILLER LANDS AT AMERICAN UNIVERSITY

It ain’t the United Nations or the Clinton Climate Initiative.





I went looking for a Pro Ford clip and saw this. What paper uses "ain't" ? Also while I had the Sun page open a coworker walked by and said "Andrew, tell me you don't read that garbage do you?" LOL. I am in the CBC building though so should have expected that.


To Sun media - No it ain't the United Nations or the Clinton Climate Initiative, but it's a lot better then Ford will ever do. A person needs vision to get a job like that.

[Marcanadian]

Just some of the childish crap that goes on at city council:







Stop wasting time and get things done. This council is so embarrassing. Worrying about a lost pig? Maybe it morphed into Rob Ford? Why are we spending time on this crap?

[AndrewJM3D]

When did Mammoliti wake up and decide he was going to be Rob Fords bitch? This guy is the biggest kiss ass with no spine that I've ever seen in city hall. No other Italian would let somebody call him a Gino Boy then grovel at his feet after, nobody.

[Filip]

Originally Posted by jje10001

I'm not- I know you live in a relatively transit-accessible part of Etobicoke.

I'm pointing out the bright side of the consequences of Ford's decision. Resentful or not, that's what they might get for voting for him.

I've been getting more and more annoyed with some of Ford's ideas such as scrapping Waterfront Toronto, selling Casa Loma and selling naming rights of subway stations, but my main reason for initially supporting him was to torpedo Transit City. Now that it's done, I'm feeling underwhelmed.

His electorate is mainly middle class suburbanites. They couldn't give a rat's ass about better transit in their far flung suburbs. It's the poorest of the poor living on the outer rims of Toronto (Rexdale, Jane/Finch, Scarberia) who will feel it. Ford doesn't care about them, and I can tell you neither did Miller or anyone before them. Words are great and all, but until there's tangible work being done, it remains a lot of hot air.

[jje10001]

Originally Posted by Filip

I've been getting more and more annoyed with some of Ford's ideas such as scrapping Waterfront Toronto, selling Casa Loma and selling naming rights of subway stations, but my main reason for initially supporting him was to torpedo Transit City. Now that it's done, I'm feeling underwhelmed.

His electorate is mainly middle class suburbanites. They couldn't give a rat's ass about better transit in their far flung suburbs. It's the poorest of the poor living on the outer rims of Toronto (Rexdale, Jane/Finch, Scarberia) who will feel it. Ford doesn't care about them, and I can tell you neither did Miller or anyone before them. Words are great and all, but until there's tangible work being done, it remains a lot of hot air.

Ah, a single issue voter. You should really know that a mayor really is responsible for an entire city, not a single part of it- the relative prosperity of Toronto is not immune to Ford's tampering.

As for the suburbs, the middle class suburbanites will also suffer- road traffic does not discriminate against only the poor. In the next election, if Ford continues to ignore those in the poor, far-flung suburbs, they will vote against him, as they did with Miller.

[Marcanadian]

Why is there such an uproar about selling Casa Loma? The city just took it over literally a few days ago from the Kiwanis Club, which was doing an awful job at restoration and management. I agree the city should keep ownership, but if there's a company with a decent plan to fix the place up and make it profitable, I don't see why not to hand it over to them.

[Taller, Better]

Originally Posted by AndrewJM3D

[B][SIZE="5"]





I went looking for a Pro Ford clip and saw this. What paper uses "ain't" ? .

Well, that's the Sun for you!

[Гроф]

Originally Posted by Filip

I've been getting more and more annoyed with some of Ford's ideas such as scrapping Waterfront Toronto, selling Casa Loma and selling naming rights of subway stations, but my main reason for initially supporting him was to torpedo Transit City. Now that it's done, I'm feeling underwhelmed.

His electorate is mainly middle class suburbanites. They couldn't give a rat's ass about better transit in their far flung suburbs. It's the poorest of the poor living on the outer rims of Toronto (Rexdale, Jane/Finch, Scarberia) who will feel it. Ford doesn't care about them, and I can tell you neither did Miller or anyone before them. Words are great and all, but until there's tangible work being done, it remains a lot of hot air.

Ah, well, kinda, but... Miller did care a bit. Transit City did dickety-all for the old city, minus a small part of Eglinton, which is basically getting cut in the new 'edition', but is functionally the same line. TC was far from perfect, but we were never, ever going to have subways going through suburban arterials. It made zero sense. We replaced an imperfect, but implementable plan that had funding with no plan at all. It's not progress.

Overall, good luck to Toronto, I think it will need it. I'm generally disenchanted with municipal government in this country, though; it's incredible just how shallow the political talent bench is all over the map.

[Marcanadian]

Toronto: The 11th province.

[AndrewJM3D]

Originally Posted by Filip

my main reason for initially supporting him was to torpedo Transit City. Now that it's done, I'm feeling underwhelmed.

Ford doesn't care about them, and I can tell you neither did Miller or anyone before them. Words are great and all, but until there's tangible work being done, it remains a lot of hot air.

Funny, Millers Transit City plan that was 15 years in the making would have helped out a lot of poorer people in the outer burbs. They can just stick to crowded buses under Fords single subway system.

[AndrewJM3D]

Originally Posted by Marcanadian

Why is there such an uproar about selling Casa Loma? The city just took it over literally a few days ago from the Kiwanis Club, which was doing an awful job at restoration and management. I agree the city should keep ownership, but if there's a company with a decent plan to fix the place up and make it profitable, I don't see why not to hand it over to them.

I think most are upset because the Ford goons are looking to sell anything to keep their tax cuts and subway promise. He's selling it to cover his ass. As tax payers that building belongs to you and me. Not every thing has to be profitable, some things just cost money to run but give back in more ways then financial profits. Places like Boston are full of city owned buildings that are free to the public to use and visit.