Here’s what to expect from a second term
My father taught me to always make sure to put every deal in writing, so all parties knew exactly what we agreed upon, so I went to Mayor Olivia Chow’s campaign site and read what she had promised in writing. Here is the summary of what she hopes to achieve now that she has been re-elected. Note that each promise is based on her best efforts because remember the Mayor has only vote on Council.
- She will never override City Council by using strong mayor powers
- Ensure lower property tax increases then the past three years
- Make grocery prices fairer and encourage more independent grocery stores to open.
- Ban surveillance pricing, cut community grocery store taxes, stop laws that help big chains
- Make the TTC more affordable: after 10 paid TTC rides, the rest of the week is free. She will also keep TTC fares frozen for the fourth year straight.
- Reduce traffic jams: Better technology, better coordination, upgrading the City Traffic Command Centre, Hiring traffic agents, build Scarborough LRT East to help Scarborough move faster, increase transit signal priority
- Reduce homelessness with 600 more beds including drug and mental health treatment – complete 6 shelters
- Create community hot spot responses for public drug use and continue reducing encampments
- Place a moratorium on data centres
- Help build 65,000 affordable and rent control homes to reduce rents and stop housing costs from skyrocketing
- Continue her holistic view on safety, investing in emergency and community services supporting youth – get young people on the right path through programs
- Create 15,000 new youth jobs, using community benefits agreements to create youth jobs in Scarborough
- Ensure 20% of construction jobs on the Scarborough East LRT go to local residents
- Seniors will see expanded free homemaking services (cleaning, laundry, meal prep and basics), mobile dental and primary care clinics will increase, and expanded recreation opportunities
- Expand the school food program to every school providing a mid-morning meal for 330,000 kids – my father told me there is no free lunch in life but I guess there is now!
The people of Toronto have voted and Olivia Chow gets four more years to do exactly what she has outlined in writing. Congratulations Mayor Chow and in a democratic society, regardless of how few people vote, we must support the leader when they are selected because our votes created the second signature on the deal.
