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14 Sep 09

See Span | Monday Mag

Added a comment to Monday Magazine's article on Victoria's Johnson Street Bridge debacle.

mondaymag.com/...see-span - Preview

johnson_street_bridge victoria blue_bridge infrastructure municipal_funding municipal_politics comments

06 Oct 08

"TEDCO gets whacked. Who's next?" by Christopher Hume (TheStar.com)

Hume rips into municipal politics, as well as provincial rights over cities, in a way that to my mind evokes parallels with Victoria, BC. The point of departure is Toronto's seeming inability to develop its waterfront with any sort of sensibility or vision. Sounds familiar (re. Victoria). See notes & annotations for more.

www.thestar.com/510714 - Preview

thestar toronto christopher_hume canada cities infrastructure municipal_politics tedco waterfront

the need for intervention has been apparent for years, if not decades. But in a city known for timidity and political cowardice, that means little.
From the moment the waterfront agency was set up, TEDCO treated it as a rival. Using the city-owned land it controlled as leverage, it commissioned parallel master plans and made deals for iffy projects such as the Corus headquarters building at the foot of Jarvis St. and the film studio in the docklands.
9 more annotations...
- the fact is that the governance structures of Canada, let alone Toronto, are so ineptly framed and out of date it's a wonder we manage to get anything done. Many would say we don't, that we lurch from crisis to crisis always reacting, always playing catch-up and rarely, if ever, leading.
  Perhaps that's why the quality of leadership at all levels has fallen so low. From the received banalities of Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper to the pompous inanities of Toronto City Council, the options range from bad to worse. We inhabit a nation where no leadership is good leadership.
  - That criticism applies broadly all over in Canada, unfortunately. - on 2008-10-06
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- The truth, however, is that Canada and Toronto have many TEDCOs, many governmental entities whose role, intended or not, is to block progress, maintain the status quo and generally serve as obstacles.
- Then, of course, there's Toronto City Council itself, overstuffed and underperforming, it desperately needs to be rethought. Because of its size and ward-based politics, it can no longer cope with the issues that face the country's largest city. Indeed, as far as our civic representatives are concerned, Toronto isn't a city so much as a series of small towns, each with its own boss. Little wonder leadership here no longer comes from city hall but the cultural, corporate and institutional sectors.
  - - interesting that Hume castigates the ward system, which Sue Woods (candidate for Victoria council) proposed as a possible solution to our amalgamation (or: avoidance of amalgamation) issues. Victoria is currently 13 municipalities, each its own fiefdom, each with its own mayor and council. But the city would benefit from a stronger provincial and national presence through amalgamation (which is fiercely resisted by Oak Bay and most of Saanich, however). But would a ward system really alleviate the feudal mentality? According to Hume, it hasn't done so in Toronto... - on 2008-10-06
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- Still, it's the provinces that provide the most glaring example of Canada's failure to keep up with its own evolution. Not only have they outlived their usefulness, these relics have become a divisive force that stand in the way of Canadian cities, which is where the future will unfold. Just look at Calgary and Edmonton, which despite being the most populous centres in Canada's richest province, are dull, dreary and decades behind the times.
  The fact is that the gap between Canada and its political system has grown into a chasm. Our leaders – civic, provincial and federal – no longer reflect or operate in the real world. Unencumbered by the demands of reality, they are free to devote their time to their own needs and inter-governmental squabbling. It's really all they are able to do.
- 1. Ontario Municipal Board
  The Issue: Created in the late 19th century, the widely despised OMB has had final say in civic planning decisions ever since. Unelected, unaccountable and unacceptable, the board has run roughshod over city plans and residents’ wishes too many times. Its powers also have a deadly infantilizing effect on city politicians and planners, especially in Toronto.
  
  The Gain: Abolishing the OMB would force cities to grow up and take charge of their own destiny
  - - happily, I don't think we have a BC equivalent of this organization, which sounds frightening in terms of its ability to interfere in municipal self-governance. - on 2008-10-06
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- 2. The Toronto Parking Authority
  
  The Issue: The TPA showed its hand earlier this year when it announced plans to buy Club Matador at Dovercourt and College to make way for a parking lot. The main users of this proposed lot would have been visitors to the nearby YMCA.
  
  The Gain: The 1950s are over and Toronto is trying desperately to redefine its relationship with the automobile. The city needs to focus on pedestrians and bike riders, not drivers. Its useful days are over.
  - - ditto, we don't have anything as asinine as this. - on 2008-10-06
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- 3. The Toronto Port Authority
  - - we do have this; we have probably about 5 levels of government owning and interfering in Victoria's waterfront: the Feds, the Province, the Port Authority, the CRD, the City.... the military (or is that the Feds again?, probably), and so on... - on 2008-10-06
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- 4. The Toronto Planning Department
  - - some parallel problems here in Victoria, insofar as Planning is routinely interfered with by councilors. - on 2008-10-06
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- 6. The Provinces
  
  The Issue: Established at a time when Canada was little more than its landscape, the provinces have failed to keep up with the country’s emergence as a post-modern, overwhelmingly urban nation. The British North America Act gives provinces control over cities and allows them to become major obstacles. Until they are eliminated or reduced, they will continue to stand in the way of Canada’s ability to realize its potential.
  - hear, hear. - on 2008-10-06
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See Span | Monday Mag

"TEDCO gets whacked. Who's next?" by Christopher Hume (TheStar.com)

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