2025

Dec 29 2025: the year in charts ↗ Newsletter Dec 27 Crime is down, rents are down — there are many reasons for Toronto to feel up about 2026 ↗ Star Dec 22 Council decks the halls with votes on a faster Finch, a luxury land transfer tax and a TTC guarantee ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Dec 16 A money-back TTC guarantee? Why this councillor’s mayoral campaign stunt is on the right track ↗ Star Dec 15 Council gets ready for festive debate about a faster Finch ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Dec 9 Why dark clouds loom over Bike Share Toronto, despite its undeniable success ↗ Star Dec 8 Introducing the City Council Buddy System ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Dec 3 Waymo has its sights set on Toronto for driverless cars. The city's history with Big Tech suggests that's cause for alarm ↗ Star Dec 2 What an Olivia Chow re-election bid might mean for TTC riders and public library users ↗ Star Dec 1 Waymo looks at TO, and more stories from a month of lobbying ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Nov 28 Supersized speed signs, park profanity, and bringing on more bike lanes ↗ Newsletter Nov 25 What is the 'dead raccoon test'? And is Toronto passing or failing it? ↗ Star Nov 24 Handing out some housing report cards ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Nov 18 Toronto’s streetcars are some of the slowest in the world. Here's how the city could speed them up ↗ Star Nov 17 Council comes to compromise on corner stores and — surprise! — disbands the TPA Board ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Nov 11 Why Olivia Chow’s council allies are attacking John Tory’s World Cup bid – and not the scandal that caused him to quit ↗ Star Nov 10 Council looks to keep corner stores closed ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Nov 3 Gardiner repairs wrapped up 18 months early. How that big win reveals some much needed lessons for Toronto ↗ Star Nov 3 Lobbyists hunker down for long cold winter ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Oct 27 Blue Jays' World Series run shows Toronto is a baseball city. So why are there no batting cages left in our parks? ↗ Star Oct 27 Housing plans by the dashboard light ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Oct 21 Now, Toronto has noisy pickleball games in its crosshairs. Are we becoming the City That Fun Forgot? ↗ Star Oct 20 The parking spaces between us ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Oct 14 Council offers Ford a fast fact check on speed cameras ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Oct 14 Without acknowledging hard truths, Toronto’s traffic czar isn’t likely to get very far ↗ Star Oct 7 How the popping of the condo bubble led to a looming budget crisis in Toronto ↗ Star Oct 6 Gondola lobbyists pull up to City Hall ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Oct 1 Doug Ford wants to kill speed cameras. Olivia Chow wants to save them. Here are three ways she could change his mind ↗ Star Sep 29 The condo crash comes for City Hall ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Sep 22 Introducing the new and improved Council Scorecard ↗ Newsletter Sep 16 A Toronto councillor is experimenting with direct democracy for residents. Doug Ford may have put an end to it ↗ Star Sep 15 When the car's not king ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Sep 13 Cash grab? If there’s a problem with Toronto’s speed cameras, it’s that they aren’t grabbing enough cash ↗ Star Sep 9 Why does Olivia Chow keep playing nice with Doug Ford? There's one big reason ↗ Star Sep 8 Here we are now, going to the Parkside ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Sep 2 Old friends, new lobbyists ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Sep 2 Toronto's hunt for the Parkside camera vandal has come up empty-handed. But here's the real mystery ↗ Star Aug 26 Sorry, Doug Ford – gut feeling isn’t a good enough reason to end hybrid work ↗ Star Aug 25 Toronto vs Ottawa: the redux, the sequel, the final reckoning (maybe) ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Aug 19 Love Park broke the mould with its movable chairs. Toronto's other public spaces should take note ↗ Star Aug 18 The 2025 Council Power Rankings ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Aug 14 Yes, tech can be a force for good. Meet the people hacking Toronto for the better ↗ Star Aug 11 Olivia's opposition: a look at Chow's top critics ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Aug 5 Lobbying up to the bar ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Aug 5 The TTC is still short millions of riders. Fare capping could help bring them back ↗ Star Jul 29 The city planted dozens of trees to honour Pan Am Games countries. But the tribute hasn't worked out so well ↗ Star Jul 28 Gotta go fast — Council endorses RapidTO for Bathurst and Dufferin ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jul 22 Doug Ford helped usher in an era of outsourcing at Toronto city hall. Olivia Chow may be finally pushing back ↗ Star Jul 21 Council sits for summer for debates on transit, shelters, and snowfall ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jul 14 Battling on Bathurst Street ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jul 7 Lobbying Live & Unplugged ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jul 1 Forget speed cameras. It's 'ghost cars' that Doug Ford, Olivia Chow and others need to focus on ↗ Star Jun 30 Toronto City Council nixes six ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jun 24 Olivia Chow could do with a big idea to help her keep her job next year. Here are four ↗ Star Jun 23 Running through a sixplex debate with some woes ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jun 17 Montreal beats Toronto badly when it comes to bike sharing. Here's how we can shift gears and grab the crown ↗ Star Jun 16 Taking Toronto to sixplex city ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jun 10 Multiplexes in Toronto neighbourhoods were madness, said critics. Now the city should give in to the joy of six ↗ Star Jun 9 Scoring Mayor Olivia Chow's first defeat ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jun 7 Why Toronto’s streets keep ending up as a battleground — and what the fight should really be about ↗ Star Jun 6 Sixplexes for the Six, parking pondered, senior staff come and go, Tory turns up ↗ Newsletter Jun 2 Lobbyists join the battle of Bathurst Street ↗ Subscribers Newsletter May 27 Toronto's 2026 World Cup games have just been given a yellow card. Olivia Chow needs to stand tough on the budget ↗ Star May 26 Toronto Council votes to inflate bubble zones ↗ Subscribers Newsletter May 20 Bursting the bubble? Council eyes protest restrictions, High Park shuttle, leaf blower limits ↗ Subscribers Newsletter May 19 Matt Elliott: There was a better way — 'transit hell' from streetcar detour is a cautionary tale ↗ Star May 14 Why is the TTC funding vastly underused parking lots? ↗ Star May 12 Toronto's multiplexes are multiplying — but not fast enough ↗ Subscribers Newsletter May 6 Driverless cars in Toronto could actually make the streets safer — if city hall does the right thing ↗ Star May 5 Simons says: lobby the mayor ↗ Subscribers Newsletter May 2 Carney crowned, McKelvie moves on, robot cars rise, leaf blowers may get banned ↗ Newsletter Apr 28 Council creates a congestion czar — but how many cars does Toronto even have? ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Apr 22 City hall finally found a way to help ease traffic congestion — and bring in more money. Not everyone is happy ↗ Star Apr 22 Makeover, makeover: Toronto Council readies for debate on creating a pretty city ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Apr 15 It's the crisis the federal election can ignore — but the TTC can’t ↗ Star Apr 14 Spider-Man, a Big Red Monster, Santa (with a real beard) — and other tales from Council expense records ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Apr 8 How drinking in parks showed us the way to fight Donald Trump's tariffs ↗ Star Apr 7 A labour of lobbying love ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Apr 1 This 'colossal fail' made me think Toronto's city council needs to up its game, along with its pay ↗ Star Mar 31 Council approves Trump counterattack — and gets a pay raise ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Mar 25 Eglinton Crosstown LRT finally has an opening date — but the TTC’s service on the line may fall short for these two reasons ↗ Star Mar 24 Council to talk about coyotes, federal support for shelters, and a big pay hike ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Mar 18 Why so much Toronto home construction is going nowhere — and what to do about it ↗ Star Mar 17 Toronto versus Trump ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Mar 11 Toronto’s city hall has few weapons to fight Trump’s tariff war. But here’s one thing it should definitely try ↗ Star Mar 10 City Hall's Amazon addiction ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Mar 4 Olivia Chow’s greatest opposition has been revealed. Can she rise to the fight? ↗ Star Mar 3 Trash of the titans ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Feb 25 Doug Ford says he has big plans to ‘get it done’ in Ontario. His track record in Toronto tells a different story ↗ Star Feb 24 Whatever happened to Vision Zero? ↗ Newsletter Feb 18 Doug Ford has money for $200 cheques and a 401 tunnel — where are the funds to address homelessness? ↗ Star Feb 18 Mayor Olivia Chow blasts through another budget ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Feb 10 Council readies for kinder, gentler budget debate ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Feb 10 Trump’s tariff threat sparked council’s ‘buy local’ campaign. Here’s why that move rings hollow ↗ Star Feb 4 Toronto has a lot of rich people. But there's a reason it's hard to tell ↗ Star Feb 3 A conventional Lobbyist Watch in unconventional times ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jan 28 With campaign chaos looming in Ottawa and Queen's Park, Toronto should finally get this one thing that other major cities already have ↗ Star Jan 27 Reserving judgment as Toronto's budget nears the finish line ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jan 22 Mayor Olivia Chow is spending big to make sure you notice Toronto’s parks are improving. But there’s one thing that won’t change ↗ Star Jan 20 How property taxes work — and how they don't ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jan 14 Justin Trudeau wasn’t a perfect partner for Toronto. But it’s easy to imagine worse from Pierre Poilievre ↗ Star Jan 13 The 2025 Budget Launch Spectacular ↗ Subscribers Newsletter Jan 7 Most Torontonians say life in the city is getting worse. Here's how Olivia Chow can help change that ↗ Star Jan 6 Saying goodbye to all the City Hall lobbying of 2024 ↗ Subscribers Newsletter