AuthorMatt Elliott

It gets cold every year, writes Matt Elliott, and every year a version of the same shelter shortage crisis plays out. Almost five years ago, during a bitterly cold February in 2013, I wrote a column for this newspaper about Toronto’s homeless shelter crisis. Back then, the shelter system was running at about 95 per cent of capacity each night, well above the city’s target of 90 per cent. Shelter...

Toronto voters will elect 47 councillors and a mayor in the Oct. 22 municipal election. Forget going to the gym. To hell with pursuing new skills or hobbies. This year I've got a much better New Year’s Resolution for you: you’re going to run for Toronto City Council. I know what you’re thinking. “Matt, I’m not qualified.” But here’s the good news: neither are half the people who have been...

The goats at Riverdale Farm are among the most “absurdly” wonderful things Matt Elliott enjoyed this year as he explored the city from a fresh perspective. The holidays are a time for taking stock of the year. For me, that’s easy. Here’s what I did in 2017: I walked. I walked a lot. More than four million steps, according to my pedometer app. It’s a distance of about 3,000 kilometres...

Protestors gathered at City Hall voicing their concerns about the Scarborough subway, which critics are already calling a white elephant. One of the protestors came dressed as one. Toronto’s current Scarborough Subway plan began with a fundamental misunderstanding of the truth. At a Toronto City Council meeting in July 2013, hours before councillors first voted to formally replace the approved...