In case any of you in the GTA/surrounding areas have been living under a rock for the last few months, you may not have heard about the Toronto Mayoral Election that is taking place. For the rest of us, it has been all we've heard about for the last several months.
As the election is nearing voting day, the debates and press coverage has become more in your face than ever. You can't listen to a Toronto radio station, or open a newspaper without hearing or seeing something about the election.
Although to some people, this might be irritating or annoying, it really is rather interesting, and important in our society. Election time seems to bring out the best, and the worst in people. The great part about elections though, is hearing all of the interesting ideas and proposals that are planned for the city.
Coming in to the home stretch before voting day, I thought it would be beneficial for some people to go over the main policies and proposals supported by the three main contenders for mayor of Toronto.
Olivia Chow
ü
Create
3, 000 more child care spaces
ü
Expand
student nutrition plans to include 36, 000 more students
ü
Don’t immediately proceed with garbage outsourcing
ü
Reject Porter Airlines proposal
ü
Reduce
TTC cost for people on Ontario Disability Support
ü
Support ranked ballots
ü
Increase tax by 1% point on homes sold
for $2 million or more
ü
Keep
residential property tax “in line with,
or around” rate of inflation
ü
Allow
businesses to obtain licenses online, rather than only at single East York
office
ü
Ask
federal government to ban handguns
ü
Keep Gardiner Expressway
ü
Supports open streets (close some roads
to cars on certain summer days)
ü
Cancel 3-stop subway extension
ü
Build 7-stop, fully funded LR
extension
ü
Expand
bus service by 10% at rush hour
ü
Build DT relief subway
ü
Proceed with LR lines for Sheppard and
Finch
ü
Support Eglinton Connect
ü
Build 200km of bike lanes in 4 years
John Tory
ü
Outsource garbage collection east of
Yonge Street
ü
No position yet for Porter Airlines
proposal
ü
Spend
up to $7 million more on tree
planting
ü
Appoint
environment advocate
ü
Keep
residential property tax increases at or
below the rate of inflation
ü
Work
to double the number of companies participating in the partnership to advance
youth employment program
ü
Make
schedule public
ü
Annually
double the number of data sets made available through the city’s open-data
ü
No
handgun ban push
ü
Do
not tear down Gardiner
ü
Pursue hybrid proposal to reconfigure
ü
Build 3-stop subway extension to the
Scarborough RT
ü
Explore
the use of water taxis
ü
Create
a 53km, 22-stop, $8 billion surface rail line
ü
Proceed with light rail lines on
Sheppard and Finch
ü
Supports the DT relief line, but also
called it the “wrong line at the wrong time”
ü
Does not support Eglinton Connect
Doug Ford
ü
Outsource
garbage collection east of York
ü
Approve the Porter Airlines proposal
for jets, and an expanded runway at the island airport
ü
Cut
the tax by 15% at first meeting of council, then by another 15% each year for
the next 3 years
ü
Keep
residential property tax increase below
the rate of inflation
ü
Invest
in the auditor general’s office
ü
Preserve eastern Gardiner rather than
tearing it down
ü
Build the council approved, and
fully funded 3-stop subway extension to the Scarborough RT
ü
Build subways on Sheppard Ave and
Finch Ave W, instead of the LR line
ü
Build eastern portion of Eglinton
Crosstown LR line underground
ü
Cancel Eglinton Connects street
renovation project
This election, in my opinion is going to be hard on voters. In my opinion, none of the three major competitors are a shining example for what the mayor of Toronto should be.
For those of you voting in this election, think hard about what kind of policies and proposals you would like implemented in the city of Toronto, but also the kind of person you want to represent yourself, and your city.
Talk to you all soon!!
Bye :D
