He Can't Be Blamed for Everything...

In the last week, I think about half of my Facebook feed has been about Rob Ford. His image cannot be avoided, and why would you avoid such real life drama? He really does put the "reality" back in reality TV. In a lot of ways, though, he has become a symbol of what is not working in this city. And though I do not carry a passport from Ford nation, I will admit that the many things that block Toronto from becoming an amazing city-of-the-future has a lot more to do with the government of the city, those of us who elected them, and how our city is currently run. It's not just the fault of one faulty mayor.

Recently, urban guru Richard Florida made a similar point about Rob Ford. He felt Toronto has outgrown its system of governance that no longer serves the complex, cosmopolitan city we've become.

What does he mean by that? Well, Toronto is still run like it is a mid-sized, typical North American city where there is a viable commercial centre downtown and most people drive home to low density residential neighbourhoods at night. And 30 or 40 years ago, that may have been the case. Nowadays, not even close. Toronto has transformed and grown.

 As Florida points out:
1. The Greater Toronto Area's economy is a big as Sweden's
2. The GTA is growing at a rate of 100,000 people per year or more.
3.  The GTA accounts for 20% of the Canadian GDP making it the sixth largest government in Canada, larger than most provinces.

So, this current Toronto is a powerful and populous place, but simply does not have the political clout to show it. The city has changed, but how it is governed has not. The city cannot launch large projects because the citizens are divided, the city has little political power for its size, and the elected officials are not focusing on what this city needs 20 years from now.

The voters of Rob Ford live largely outside the city in areas that often resent the downtown, who are more focused on lower taxes for the individual and less on the improvements in the community or the city at large. That's why Ford's "stop the gravy train" message resonates with them through all of the drama, whether the gravy has been stopped or not.

Ironically, Toronto has one of the lowest property taxes in larger North American cities.  And we have put very little money into much needed, large scale projects in transit and infrastructure. From Oshawa to Hamilton, there needs to be more integration of goverments so that we function as a whole, and not a bunch of fiefdoms. They need a stronger planning department with a little vision behind it. They need better communication and integration on all transit forms from the TTC to GO transit to all the transit in other areas in the GTA.The forward-focused cities are able to invest in ways that see how their cities are changing.

Quite frankly, the GTA needs to flex its muscle a little. If cities are going to be the way of the future, they need more power to make their own decisions and raise funds.  If you live in suburban Etobicoke, and you never come to the city, you are still going to suffer if this city doesn't improve. Alternatively, if you live in the city, you cannot ignore the lower density suburbs.

So, let's hope that all this mess around Rob Ford shines a light on what need to be done once the curtain closes on Rob Ford. Until then, enjoy the show.

I Support Rob Ford! This One Time...

I didn't vote for Rob Ford. I don't think he has the chops to run a big, complicated city that's in a constant state of transformation. I do, however, believe many voters in Toronto had grown so cynical and hopeless about municipal politics around the time of his election that they decided to drop a bomb on the status quo, and go for some thing completely different. Sure, there wasn't much thought about what that "something different" may turn out to be, or how Rob Ford would run the city. Regardless, people wanted change in Toronto City Hall, and they got it.

Of course, the success of Ford's job as mayor has proven to be fairly disasterous so far, though entertaining at times. Who didn't enjoy the story of Ford's 911 calls when the fictional TV comic character, Marge Delunty, came knocking at his door? But I'm not here to talk about his gaffs or his inability to stop a gravy train, or if there is even one coming into the station.  But I do support one of Ford's election promises, and that's to ditch the land transfer tax here in Toronto.

The Toronto Star recently published an article expressing that Rob Ford is wrong in wanting to ditch the land transfer tax. The writer argues that land transfer tax has been a golden goose. It has injected hundreds of millions of dollars into the city's anemic accounts allowing for Toronto to grow a little autonomy. I certainly don't disagree with that. I believe Toronto should have a lot more power that it currently does. The Feds and the Province  have downloaded a lot of their costs on to us, and quite frankly, we really need to fix our infrastructure for this city, if we want to make this a livable place. Simply put, we don't have the funds to pay for them, even if some of the gravy can be cut.

So, let's get some perspective here. I agree, the city needs more money and a revenue stream and more autonomy. After all, it is the 6th largest government in Canada, but it doesn't have the kind of power you would expect considering its size.

When the Toronto land transfer tax came in, it almost doubled the amount a buyer would pay in land transfer taxes.  So, if you bought a property worth $500,000, you would pay $6475 in land transfer taxes for Ontario. With the Toronto land transfer tax, that is only 5 years old, you would pay an additional $5725. So, before 2008, a buyer would pay a total of $6475 in land transfer tax. After 2008, a buyer would get a total bill of $12,200. That's almost twice as much, nearly a 47% increase in this one time tax.

In addition, the land transfer tax places the burden of raising funds for the city on the backs of buyers.  I don't believe this benefits the city of Toronto. It is a inconsistent tax that is disproportionately thrown at buyers at a time when they are paying lawyers, and home inspectors, and renovators and movers.  Also, if the economy ever goes south in this city or if there is a steep fall-off of in real estate transactions, then this revenue stream will slow to a trickle and  the city will make a lot less money. It does not provide a consistent level of revenue for a city to build budgets around.

I think, if the city of Toronto wants to keep the golden goose and keep the money coming in, they need to increase their property taxes. I know that won't be popular, but if we do need the money, and the revenue stream, then raising property taxes would spread out the burden more widely with all of the city's property owners. Plus, if there is a problem with the economy, the city still gets their taxes. It's a consistent way of generating money for the city. After all, according to a Toronto Star survey, Toronto pays some of the lowest property taxes in Ontario.

Now,  I don't think any of this is going to happen. There will be no raising of the property tax rates, and Rob Ford will not get rid of the land transfer tax as promised. But I do think he's on to some thing here. I don't agree with this guy very often, but in this case, I support Rob Ford!