Council Updates

City Hall Update: May 2025

Bubble Zones Debated at Council   There was a difficult debate at Council last week regarding “bubble zones” - and the details matter. The concept is to establish safe access zones, otherwise known as bubble zones, around places of worship, schools, and daycares that have stronger limits on freedom of expression to ensure that people aren’t impeded from entering.   Unfortunately, the City Manager brought a report to Council that did not make sense. To make the infringements on rights charter compliant, Staff twisted themselves into knots with a ridiculous and bureaucratic application system that would have required proof that an incident occurred in the past 90 days within 20m of the site and Transportation Services’ officials acting as detectives just to establish a “bubble zone”.  Read more...

City Hall Update: April 2025

Important Progress on our Beautiful City Initiative

 

Last year, I brought forward a motion that asked City staff to accept that there’s so much more we can do to make Toronto a more beautiful city. I’m pleased to report that under the leadership of Jason Thorne, our new Chief Planner, there has been meaningful progress on this issue. A new report came to Council last week with a cross-divisional action plan to ensure better design of everything from libraries and parks to trash cans and sidewalks.

City Hall Update: March 2025

Taking Action to Improve Toronto’s Response to Major Snow Incidents

 
Toronto is a winter City. Over this past week, Torontonians endured extreme weather and heavy snowfalls with areas in our city receiving up to 50cm of accumulated snow. When it snows, our sidewalks need to be safe and accessible. The TTC needs to be operational, and our city needs to work.

Under the previous two mayors (Ford and Tory), I was successful in advocating for the expansion of sidewalk snow clearing for every Toronto neighborhood. However, I could not convince them to prioritize extreme weather responses. I wont stop pushing until this is done, and done properly.

Read more...

City Hall Update: February 2025

Taking Action to Improve Toronto’s Response to Major Snow Incidents   Toronto is a winter City. Over this past week, Torontonians endured extreme weather and heavy snowfalls with areas in our city receiving up to 50cm of accumulated snow. When it snows, our sidewalks need to be safe and accessible. The TTC needs to be operational, and our city needs to work. Under the previous two mayors (Ford and Tory), I was successful in advocating for the expansion of sidewalk snow clearing for every Toronto neighborhood. However, I could not convince them to prioritize extreme weather responses. I wont stop pushing until this is done, and done properly. Read more...

City Hall Update: January 2025

Show Your Support for a Charter City - Sign our Petition and Register to Depute At Executive Committee on Tuesday, January 28th, Councillor Jamaal Myers and I are moving a motion “Toward Municipal Autonomy and Effective Local Governance” and we need your help! Show your support for a charter city by signing our petition, registering to speak, and submitting written comments for the committee meeting.  Doug Ford’s recent and unilateral overreaches into areas that most people consider municipal jurisdiction is another reminder that Canada's constitution not only doesn’t provide cities like Toronto any powers, it doesn’t even mention cities at all. Back when it was written in 1867, Canada was largely an agrarian society and cities were an afterthought, left as “creatures” of the provinces.     Read more...

City Hall Updates: December 2024

Focusing on Real Solutions to Toronto's Traffic Gridlock

Every day, too many Torontonians find themselves stuck in traffic gridlock, this is unacceptable. While there are many reasons for this, such as a lack of much-needed transit expansion over generations, along with the continuing need to provide people with more options to get around. I am actively calling for change. Far too many of our city's curb lanes are occupied for 2 or 3 years at a time for construction staging. I don't believe this is acceptable and I am calling for change.

Please read this thoughtful Toronto Star story about this priority.

Read more...

City Hall Update: November 2024

Announcing Extended Hours at our Libraries Libraries are about books, but they’re also a place for learning and coming together in every neighborhood. It was a pleasure to join Mayor Chow at Wychwood Library to announce our plan to expand service to 7 days a week, 12 months a year, at all 100 branches! Read more...

City Hall Update: October 2024

Calling for a Public Inquiry into the Eglinton LRT Delays

The recent news that the Eglinton Crosstown LRT won’t open until 2024 is yet another disappointing setback for the many Torontonians that live and work along the line, which is a billion dollars over budget and years behind schedule. Communities across the line have endured over 12 years of hardship due to the endless disruptions from construction. Businesses have lost revenues due to lower foot traffic, forcing many to close, while residents have suffered incredible disruption and unmanageable traffic and safety issues.
 
Despite repeated calls by City Council demanding greater transparency and accountability, Metrolinx refuses to explain the reasons for the repeated delays. In fact, they won’t even provide a forecasted opening date. It is completely unacceptable that residents who need to make critical personal and business decisions be left in the dark and are still stuck waiting for the bus.

City Hall Update: August 2024

Save the Science Centre!

In 2022, the Provincial Government announced their intention to move the Ontario Science Centre to a much smaller location at Ontario Place. This announcement was done without consultation with residents of Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon Park who rely on the Centre for employment and education opportunities.

Recently, the Ford government used an engineering report that inflated the cost of roof repairs, and other maintenance needs, as a pretext to shamefully shutter the Science Centre down unnecessarily. That’s why it was vital that Staff reported back to Council last week on my motion to have the City take a lead role in saving this important cultural institution that is located on land partially owned by the City of Toronto.

We have an obligation to explore all possible means to keep the Science Centre at its current location. I’m pleased that my additional motion was supported to establish a working group with the province in the Toronto Region Conservation Authority (the other primary land owner) to review the lease agreement signed with the City stating the province would operate a Science Centre until 2064 and other matters.
 

Read more...

City Hall Update: July 2024

Save the Ontario Science Centre

Last spring, the Provincial Government announced their intention to move the Ontario Science Centre to a much smaller location at Ontario Place. This announcement was done without consultation with residents of Thorncliffe and Flemingdon Park who rely on the Centre for employment and education opportunities. Then, in late June, the government opportunistically used the pretense of roof repairs to unilaterally close the Science Centre for good - even though a closer inspection of the report shows that the roof could be fixed for a relatively modest cost. 

I doubt that there is anybody who has a child or has been a child themselves in Ontario since 1969 who does not love the Ontario Science Centre. This is a place that has spurred our creativity, our imagination, our sense of childhood, and our sense of wonder. It is an incredibly important place and an important economic driver for the local community as it brings visitors from across the city and around the world to Don Mills and Eglinton. It would be a real blow to this community to lose the Science Centre just as the opening of the Eglinton Crosstown’s “Science Centre” station is about to make the attraction more accessible to the entire city. 

Read more....

City Hall Update: May 2024

My Letter to Residents Regarding Necessary Action to Combat Antisemitism Throughout Our City Dear residents, The rise of antisemitism over the past few years has our city’s Jewish community feeling scared and vulnerable. Since October 7th, they’ve far too often been a target for anti-Jewish hate because of a war half a world away. Swastikas spray-painted on synagogues, some demonstration signs displaying hateful antisemitic tropes, and vandalism of Jewish businesses echo a history of religious persecution for many in Toronto’s Jewish community that are only a couple generations removed from the Holocaust.  The early morning shooting at Bais Chaya Mushka Girls Elementary School in North York over the weekend has further heightened the fear the community is feeling. Real and concrete action is needed to protect the Jewish community from hate and ensure that everyone feels safe in our city.  That’s why it’s critically important that my motion to develop a new action plan to protect targeted religious minorities and places of worship was supported at Council. The motion requests the City Manager, the City Solicitor, the Toronto Police Service and other relevant divisions to work together to ensure individuals and groups committing hate crimes are stopped. Read more....

City Hall Update: April 2024

Action Needed to Address Toronto’s Surge in Auto Theft Incidents & Home Invasions

The surge in auto theft incidents and home invasions over the past several months are significantly impacting our neighbourhoods. I know many of you are going to bed not knowing what you’ll find when you wake up and often fear that your families will be victimized by home invasions. Many believe auto thieves have the upper hand and that this issue isn’t being taken seriously enough. This has even led to, in some cases, residents hiring private security at their expense- personally spending tens of thousands of dollars in enhancing security measures for their own properties and those of their neighbours.
 
I’ve personally spoken with the Toronto Police Service and appreciate the efforts being made by the Provincial Carjacking Joint Task Force and the attention this issue has been given at the National Summit on Combatting Auto Theft and last week’s police chiefs summit held in Mississauga.
 
While there have been increased measures at our national borders and ports, and additional funding has been allocated and spent to help curb auto theft, there is much more that needs to be done.
 
Please see my letter to the Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic Leblanc and Minister of the Solicitor General Michael Kerzner.
 
To review my letter, please click here.