Thread by @GraphicMatt

Toronto Council meets today! The first items up for debate will be: 1) COVID recovery; and 2) ActiveTO, Year 2. It’s streaming live here. I will tweet the actions and the happenings.

I previewed the agenda in this week’s issue of @CityHallWatcher, which also includes LOBBYIST WATCH and a weird story about a dude who maybe wants to buy the “trackless train” in High Park. graphicmatt.substack.com/p/chw117

And here we go, starting with the anthem. There are three exclamation marks in the official English lyrics to O Canada, which seems a bit excessive.

Correction: FOUR exclamation marks. They really want you to shout it out.

The meeting kicks off with Mayor John Tory marking the one-year anniversary of the pandemic, lauding the “team effort” of the last year. But he reminds councillors they have a duty to respect each other and city staff, citing some recent conflicts, without detail.

Supplementary report on ActiveTO has been posted. Staff looked at closing just the eastbound lanes of Lake Shore West, but are ruling it out because they say it’d require concrete barriers due to speed of adjacent traffic. toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2… (PDF)

Other locations being eyed for ActiveTO car closures: Black Creek Drive and the Allen Expressway.

Council adopts their agenda and all items not held for debate, which means John Elvidge is now officially the City Clerk. Councillor Gord Perks says he plans to celebrate by re-reading Robert’s Rules of Order.

Tory has timed his key items, so we won’t get to ActiveTO until this afternoon, and the COVID recovery item is set for tomorrow a.m. 30 items left on the agenda, plus 42 member motions. Up first: an item about the consultation plan for the transit network. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Scarborough councillor Cynthia Lai says she has done a survey in her ward and says a plurality (41%) are opposed to “expand[ing] the busway system at the expense of the roads.” She hopes transportation staff will keep an “open mind” during this consultation process.

This would appear to be the survey question/methodology cited by Councillor Lai. cynthialai.com/page/58453/Pri…

Council now debating a cool and good motion from Councillor Paul Ainslie directing staff to “implement mandatory open data requirements in all reports submitted to standing committees” app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Stephen Holyday moves a request to the Clerk to add data about the legislative process to the open data portal? I’m not entirely sure what this means, but I am in forever in favour of more data always.

Holyday’s motion and Ainslie’s Open Data item CARRY via show of hands. A good day for data.

And Council breaks for lunch. Back at 2 p.m., at which time this meeting will serve as counter-programming to the premier’s latest COVID lockdown announcement.

Council is back! After some housekeeping, they’re set to start in on their debate about ActiveTO 2: Electric Boogaloo. I’ll be watching this while almost everyone else in the province watches the premier’s announcement.

Councillor Mike Layton, who has become City Hall’s de facto bathroom czar, adds a motion to the agenda about getting park washrooms open early for the spring/summer season.

Okay, now it’s time. Council is debating ActiveTO 2: The Return. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Item about bike lane installations has also been joined with this debate. City installing just 2.39 km of new bike lanes in Q1 2021, with upgrades to another 11 km. @CycleToronto says that’s “not keeping pace” with needs of current & potential cyclists app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Part of the returning ActiveTO program is a proposed “Destination Danforth”-style makeover of midtown Yonge St, with bike lanes and curb lane patios. But TTC chair Jaye Robinson is asking some pointed questions about what it’ll mean for shuttle buses during subway closures.

Deputy Mayor Denzil Minnan-Wong also doesn’t seem to be a fan of the Yonge Street proposal, citing current cycling numbers showing there’s not many bikes on midtown Yonge. “Your own data shows cyclists are not using Yonge Street,” he says to Transportation GM Barbara Gray.

Gray says “if you build it they will come” typically holds true for bike infrastructure. She says people would bike on Yonge Street if they felt it was safer.

“Even if you DOUBLE the number of cyclists, it’s still an embarrassingly low number of cyclists,” says Minnan-Wong.

This kind of sarcastic, impatient questioning of a staffer by the deputy mayor kind of feels like the kind of thing the mayor was talking about in his speech this morning about the need for more civility.

“Barbara, did you ever see that movie, Field of Dreams?” asks Councillor Josh Matlow of Transportation GM Barbara Gray. She says she has, and she remembers the “if you build it, they will come” line. And agrees that it applies to bike infrastructure.

Read @jpags’ thread for details on the premier’s announcement re: a new stay-at-home order. I’m busy watching councillors make reference to a Kevin Costner movie.

https://twitter.com/jpags/status/1379870465460736005

On ActiveTO, Mayor John Tory moves for staff to explore options for “full or partial closures, on select weekends, of Lake Shore Boulevard West.”

Tory also moves to adopt recommendation to delegate authority to staff to close Black Creek Drive and Alan Expressway for potential ActiveTO car closures this summer.

Correction: Allen Expressway. Apologies to all people named Alan. No one named a highway after you.

Councillor Josh Matlow has a couple of motions. One to include results from Yonge Street pilot in final report for the Midtown in Focus planning report. Another to work with BIAs and make sure all bars/restaurants get curb space patios.

Matlow, who has clashed with the mayor in the past, praises Tory for his work during the pandemic, saying bike lanes are often controversial but Tory has supported bold moves like ActiveTO.

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam has a pair of motions too. One to report to the Accessibility Committee about the midtown Yonge pilot, and one to look at opportunities on Bloor-Danforth for creating more space for pedestrians/cyclists and transit riders.

Councillor Mike Colle says an ActiveTO closure on the Allen is fitting because this year marks 50 years since the cancellation of the Spadina Expressway. Good way to celebrate victory over those who wanted to split Toronto in half with an expressway, he says.

Councillor Stephen Holyday moves to remove the midtown Yonge Street proposal from ActiveTO. And to make sure any car closure of Lake Shore West also maintain access to parking lots.

Councillor Paula Fletcher has a motion requesting staff implement Quiet Streets on Fulton Avenue and Monarch Park Ave in her ward.

Councillor Brad Bradford has a motion to fully complete Destination Danforth, with an extension from Dawes Road to Victoria Park.

Councillor Gary Crawford explains that he’s not opposed to extending the Danforth bike lanes into his ward in Scarborough, east of Victoria Park, but he doesn’t think it’s the right time right now.

Councillor Jennifer McKelvie moves to amend Holyday’s motion to soften it — would only request staff look at possible ways to maintain parking lot access, instead of directing them to do it.

Holyday says McKelvie’s amendment changes intention of his motion. She says she appreciates the merit of parking lot access on Lake Shore West, but wants to make sure staff consider the logistics. She agrees to drop the “city staff study possible” part from her amendment. Okay.

Mayor John Tory is still delivering a press conference so Speaker Nunziata decides to hold off on any ActiveTO-related votes until he’s back in the meeting. They’ll deal with some other items in the meantime.

The mayor is back! They didn’t get much done in the meantime. But now it is time to vote on ActiveTO, so that’s exciting.

Councillor Wong-Tam’s motion to look at some more opportunities along Bloor and Danforth to create space for pedestrians, cyclists, etc CARRIES 20-3.

Councillor Stephen Holyday’s motion (as amended) to look at preserving access to parking lots along Lake Shore West during car closures CARRIES via show of hands.

Holyday’s motion to remove mid-town Yonge Street from this summer’s ActiveTO plan FAILS 7-16. (Perruzza is also a yes.)

Tory’s motion to look at options for full/partial closures on Lake Shore West on select weekends carries via a show of hands. As does his motion to authorize staff to close Black Creek / Allen.

Councillor Bradford’s motion to extend Destination Danforth to Victoria Park CARRIES 21-2.

Every other ActiveTO motion carried via a show of hands. Item as amended CARRIES 23-1. Year two of ActiveTO is a go.

Perruzza says he accidentally voted the wrong way on this one. For the record.

https://twitter.com/GraphicMatt/status/1379907316884123648

Council jumps over to an item about child care. Councillor Stephen Holyday has a motion for a yearly report comparing non-profit and private child care operators. he also wants a strategy for attracting new not-for-profit child care operators in priority locations.

Some councillors want to complete this item tonight, but Speaker Nunziata would like to call it a day and come back tomorrow. Motion to finish the child care item CARRIES 18-7.

Nunziata REALLY wants to go home. She calls the question. The first part of Holyday’s motion, to conduct an annual report comparing city child care with not-for-profit and private operators FAILS 8-17.

The second part of Holyday’s motion, to report on a strategy for attracting new non-profit child care operators at priority locations CARRIES 20-5.

And that’s it for the day. Back tomorrow at 9:30 a.m., with 17 items left on the agenda and 49 member motions. First up in the morning: COVID recovery.

All right, let’s do this again. Council is back for day two. The morning’s debate will focus on COVID recovery. Streaming live here:

A report was posted overnight revealing that Toronto’s 2021 COVID-related budget shortfall has shrunk to just (“just”!) $141 million, following some more funding commitments. The gap was $1.6 billion to start, so that’s progress. toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2… (PDF)

Councillors are asking questions of Dr. De Villa on vaccination efforts. Carroll asks if there’s a plan to get local celebs — actors, sports stars, etc — to promote the vaxx, saying politician vaccine selfies probably aren’t super influential. De Villa says TPH will look at it.

Councillor McKelvie asks De Villa when we are going to get guidelines on what vaccinated people are allowed to do. De Villa says that’ll be managed at federal and/or provincial level, but one of the issues might be the delays for second doses — few people fully vaccinated.

Questions over. Mayor John Tory has a couple of motions: one to direct staff to continue to get that provincial/federal cash, and one to encourage increased vaccination rates.

https://twitter.com/TorontoCouncil/status/1380186779416993797

Councillor Josh Matlow moves for an amendment to Toronto’s mask bylaw to require mask-wearing in common areas of apartment buildings and condos.

Matlow also has a motion to look at same-day vaccine appointments to make sure there’s no wasted doses.

Councillor Jaye Robinson has a similar motion. She wants to explore strategies to speed up vaccinations by looking at implementing standby lists at the mass clinics.

And Council breaks for lunch. Back at 2 p.m. for member motions and to finish this COVID item. There are 65 items left on the agenda, but 51 of them are member motions that should get dealt with pretty quick.

Council has returned. They’re going to finish this COVID item before they head to member motions.

Side note: while out for a walk over the break, I came across this Distillery-area development application sign on which someone has printed, mounted and posted an editorial cartoon. Novel approach.

Councillor Joe Cressy, chair of the Board of Health, compares the city’s vaccine effort to a voting drive. “This is a ‘get out the vaccine’ campaign.”

All the COVID motions CARRY via shows of hands. In lieu of a vote results screen, here’s a glimpse of what councillors look like when they raise their hands. Some are more enthusiastic about it than others.

On to member motions. A motion by Councillor Paula Fletcher to look at ways to reduce how much salt the city uses in the winter CARRIES via a show of hands. A @shawnmicallef special. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

A Councillor Joe Cressy motion to grant a grace period to restaurants whose CafeTO applications might be held by insurance issues CARRIES 25-0. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Another Cressy motion to expedite the opening of the King-Liberty pedestrian/cyclist bridge carries via a show of hands. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Jaye Robinson’s motion for a review on ways to improve virtual consultation meetings about development applications carries via a show of hands, with a Holyday amendment to also look at improving signs and mailed materials, etc. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Josh Matlow’s motion to conduct a heritage survey of Little Jamaica is added to the agenda. Councillor Mike Colle holds it for debate. They’ll come back to it. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Paula Fletcher’s motion about a potential “hybrid” approach to the Ontario Line is added to the agenda, but also gets held for debate. They’ll return to it later. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Mike Layton’s motion to give $3 million to renovate and maintain an affordable rental building in Kensington Market CARRIES via a show of hands. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Council adopts a Layton motion to support Toronto potentially becoming an OFFICIAL bird-friendly city. So for godsakes be NICE to our fine feathered friends. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Council votes 24-1 to endorse a Canadian Union of Postal Workers campaign to accelerate the electrification of Canada Posts’s fleet. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Paula Fletcher’s motion (inspired by @Walk_TO) to have staff modify “No Exit” signage in places where there are, in fact, exits for pedestrians carries via show of hands, with some amended wording. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam’s motion for a report ASAP on what exactly the provincial government would like to do with the First Parliament site CARRIES 25-0. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Liquor license applications drawing objections from Council so the City can negotiate restrictions: Pizza Pizza, Pizza Pizza, Pizza Pizza, 7-Eleven, 7-Eleven.

A Councillor Bailao motion to increase the housing budget by $6.3 million to fund the Rapid Housing Initiative CARRIES via a show of hands. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Mike Layton’s motion for a report on a plan to quickly reopen park washrooms (instead of waiting for Victoria Day weekend) CARRIES via a show of hands. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Mayor John Tory’s motion to pay Toronto’s $20K annual membership fee to be part of the Ontario's Big City Mayors club also carries via a show of hands.

Matlow is concerned that Colle has held the items related to Little Jamaica and Canada Square because these are time-sensitive items and he’s worried they’ll get deferred to next month. Nunziata says Council will likely be back tomorrow, so probably no reason to worry.

Up now: City Manager Chris Murray is recommending the Police Services Board negotiate a MOU to give Toronto’s Ombudsman power to independently review police policies and programs. Would be a good step for accountability. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Toronto Ombudsman Susan Opler has an extremely large wall calendar. She says this move to allow her office to have oversight over policing could provide a good example for other cities.

Councillor Gord Perks points out, via questioning, that this is a voluntary arrangement between the police board and the ombudsman, and the police could rescind the oversight in the future. Not ideal!

Opler says the Ombudsman’s office won’t be addressing public complaints about policing or looking at individual acts of police misconduct, but instead they’ll look systematically at the programs and procedures that the police use.

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam moves to make sure the MOU provide the Ombudsman with a “broad legal mandate” for reviewing police processes.

Wong-Tam’s motion to make sure the Ombudsman gets a broad mandate for police oversight CARRIES 25-0.

The item recommending the Ombudsman get police oversight powers CARRIES 25-0.

There are 18 items left on the agenda. Council attempted to start debate on the audit of tree maintenance, but motions weren’t ready. So they’ve skipped ahead to an item about eviction prevention. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Joe Cressy moves to add a request to Queen’s Park for a comprehensive ban on residential evictions during the third wave.

Councillor Michael Thompson moves to suspend all rent bank loan repayments during the pandemic, and to report on potentially forgiving those loans or converting them to grants.

Councillor Shelley Carroll says Cressy’s motion re: an eviction moratorium is necessary because we learned today that the province has not in fact banned eviction notices, but rather just put a pause on enforcement of those notices.

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam moves that, if the province doesn’t show up with funds for eviction prevention and rent assistance, staff report on alternative options for the city to move homeless people into housing.

Councillor Joe Cressy’s motion requesting the province put a moratorium on evictions during the third wave CARRIES 24-1.

Motions by Bradford, Thompson and Wong-Tam all carry via the showing of hands, as does the eviction prevention item as amended. Onwards.

Up now, for real: the Auditor General’s report on the city’s tree maintenance services. In short: the AG found that tree pruning crews aren’t spending the majority of their time pruning trees. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Josh Matlow moves for a report on in-sourcing all tree maintenance services, saying it’ll send a message to outside contracts that have been “ripping off” the city.

Deputy Mayor Denzil Minnan-Wong says Matlow’s motion is “dangerous.” He’s fired up. “I don’t need to see a report — this is an ideological motion to contract in. This will cost taxpayers more money. Let’s stop this nonsense right now.”

Councillor Stephen Holyday, chair of the Audit Committee, points out the report found issues with both contracted-out and city-managed tree maintenance crews. He says he won’t support the Matlow motion re: a report on in-sourcing.

Matlow’s motion for a report on potentially in-sourcing tree maintenance services in the wake of the AG’s findings CARRIES 17-8.

All other motions on the AG tree item carry unanimously. And the meeting rolls on.

Six items left on the agenda. Council is returning now to Matlow’s Little Jamaica heritage item. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Mike Colle moves for planning staff to factor in the goals of this Little Jamaica heritage study when looking at any development applications that come in for Eglinton West. I think. It’s a bit confusing.

Council is now debating whether to extend this meeting to finish the agenda tonight, or come back tomorrow morning. We briefly hear the sound of someone doing the dishes. They mute their microphone. Council votes 18-6 to finish tonight.

The items left:

1) Little Jamaica heritage
2) Ontario Line
3) Residential School Survivors monument
4) Canada Square
5) Anti-Asian Racism Action Plan
6) Preserving performance venues and drag bars

Council has returned, and is back to the Little Jamaica heritage item. For background on this issue, @DanicaSamuel has done an awesome job covering this story: thestar.com/news/gta/2021/…

Colle’s motion for planning staff to staff to look at ways they can incorporate the goals of the Little Jamaica heritage survey while reviewing development applications for Eglinton West CARRIES 22-0.

The Little Jamaica heritage item CARRIES unanimously, 23-0.

Up now: the Ontario Line! Fletcher wants a review of a “hybrid” Ontario Line design drawn up by the local community. Staff say doing this work might be illegal, as provincial legislation bars the city from working on transit projects that could conflict with provincial projects.

To avoid running afoul of the law, Fletcher moves to amend her motion, so it’s now a request to Metrolinx to do the feasibility review of the Ontario Line alternative design. Amendment carries unanimously 23-0.

Four items left. Up now: devoting some Section 37 funds and funds from the Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural centre for a Residential School Survivors monument at Nathan Phillips Square. app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Councillor Mike Layton shows a video with renders of the Residential Schools Survivors Spirit Garden planned for Nathan Phillips Square.

Item directing funds to the Residential Schools Survivors spirit garden installation at Nathan Phillips Square CARRIES unanimously, 22-0.

Some late night drama as Council debates Canada Square. Robinson suggests she and Colle weren’t invited to a meeting Matlow put together. Matlow objects. Then Matlow is caught on a live mic saying Robinson is playing “the same political games that killed midtown in focus.”

Matlow says he didn’t know his microphone was on and apologizes. Robinson calls Matlow’s comments “deplorable” and suggests he knew his microphone was on. Colle says Council should stand with Robinson, after “what she’s been through.” Midtown civil war!

Anyway. Council eventually moves on and approves the item to establish a working group for the future of the Canada Square site at Yonge & Eg. Vote is 21-0.

Council votes unanimously to condemn recent acts of Anti-Asian hate and to continue the efforts of a mayor’s roundtable, with a community agency acting as facilitator. 21-0.

Final item is about preserving independent performance venues like drag bars. Councillor Wong-Tam moves for a report on expanding the special creative facilities property tax subclass to include these venues.

Wong-Tam’s amendment carries, as does the item, via a show of hands. We’re done! app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…

Or not. Matlow wants to correct the record on the dust-up during the Canada Square item. He starts speaking but Nunziata cuts him off as Robinson objects. All of this is very unpleasant.

It appears this Council meeting will both start and end with the mayor giving a speech about the need for civility. He steps in to try to defuse things.

“If we don’t respect each other, how can we expect the public to respect us?” Tory asks. Matlow wants to say more, but Nunziata shuts the meeting down. And on that note, we end. Really just a dreary ending.

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