In a letter to the Toronto & East York Community Council, author Margaret Atwood cites concerns about privacy, the health of six trees, and the city-wide precedent that will be set by allowing this development. If you live in a great neighbourhood, you ought to want to share it. That’s doubly true if you’ve been lucky enough to settle somewhere that ticks all the boxes of good urban policy:...
Toronto police choose authority over visibility: Elliott
Toronto police say the new design “achieves a balance between visibility — with white doors, reflective lettering and emergency lights — and professionalism.” Last year, Police Chief Mark Saunders faced public backlash after he unveiled a new, stealthy, dark grey design for Toronto police cars. In response, Saunders withdrew the design and launched a survey process to collect feedback...
Seeking relief from the property tax corkscrew: Matt Elliott
Yonge Street business south of Bloor are struggling under the pressures of tax increases. Around the world, most major cities have access to a range of revenue sources. They’ve got a Swiss Army knife of options available to them: income taxes, sales taxes, road tolls and other fees. But in Toronto, most of these tools are off-limits. Our local government’s Swiss Army knife holds pretty much...
Chrome cows, giant ducks, robot battles: Let’s embrace weirdness in our cities
In addition to being a piece of art rooted in the local history of Markham, Ont. — before she was a statue Charity was a very famous milking cow — the cow sculpture is gloriously weird, writes Matt Elliott. I need to defend a cow. In recent weeks, a shiny metal cow sculpture named Charity has drawn all kinds of headlines. First because residents of the Markham, Ont., neighbourhood Charity calls...
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