Earlier this week, Toronto City Council met to address the funding cuts announced by the Province of Ontario over the last several weeks.  These were made retroactive to April 1 this year.

Toronto’s City Manager has estimated that the tally of cuts the city is facing is about $178-million, including Provincial reductions for Children’s Services ($85-million), Toronto Public Health ($65-million) and Public Transit ($24-million).  As the City has already passed its 2019 budget – which must remain balanced by law – these cuts put the City …

Our city remains in a bad financial situation.  Though this month’s budget may have been the best we could do under the circumstances, there remain ongoing issues that need to be fixed.

City Council approved its 2019 tax and rate combined operating budget in March. This included a 2.55% tax increase for residential properties, 1.28% increase for commercial properties and no increase for multi-residential/apartment buildings as per provincial legislation. With additional levies, including 0.5% to the City Building Fund, the total increase for homeowners will be 3.58%.

The …

Dear Neighbours,

To look on the bright side of the province’s ill-timed decision to reduce the number of Toronto councillors to 25, we have yet another reminder that we should not take our democratic institutions for granted. In a country such as ours, where these are seldom threatened, we need to remember what we value about our political system: consultation, open discussion, and rational decision-making for the clear benefit of the public.

Much has been said about how difficult it will be for councillors to stay in …

The City of Toronto is implementing a four-per-cent Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT) on all hotel accommodations within Toronto as of April 1 and short-term rentals on or after June 1, pending the enactment of the short-term rental bylaw.

The MAT will be applicable to motels, hostels, private and fraternal clubs, condo hotels, short-term rentals, multi-use complexes used for transient accommodation, and all Toronto hotels, including full service, limited service and small hotels.

The short-term rental bylaw is under appeal at the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) and will only come into effect on or after June 1, pending the OMB …

Toronto City Council will debate the 2018 Capital and Operating budgets on Monday, February 12.  The proposed budget, as approved by the Mayor’s executive committee this week, calls for a 2.1% increase on residential property taxes, keeping with the recent trend of keeping property tax increases at, or below, the rate of inflation.

The budget calls for a near 0% increase of program expenses across all departments.  It expands funding in the 10-year Capital Plan by $1.1B overall and includes:

$4.5B to continue the state of good …