02.28.2011 09:41 AM

Rob Ford’s gravy train

Turns out it starts with him!

18 Comments

  1. canadiansense says:

    Of the $ 150 million, the bulk being road and subway, what do you consider gravy?

    • Warren says:

      He said he wouldn’t do this. Now he’s doing it.

      He’s become what he said he wanted to stop.

      • canadiansense says:

        It might just be me but the items listed in the article do not look like qualify as “gravy train”. Rob Ford is a politician and I am expected to believe 100% of what he campaigns on?

        I did mention a very long time ago, I can be critical of all politicians. It looks like you grasping at straws on this funding request that appears to be reasonable.

        If you can point to an objectionable spending item please let me know. I am on record of against funding many projects (Stampede, CNE-Clinton, CFL game out east).

        • Derek Pearce says:

          May I please please pleeeeaaaaaase quote this back to you when another Millerite or LIberal of any sort is in power? “BLANK is a politician and I am expected to believe 100% of what BLANK campaigns on?” That is a fantastic defence, love it! Better even than “You think it’s easy to make priorities?!”

          On the whole it’s good to see Ford either a) waking up to what it actually costs to run the city or b) will be forced to admit his campaigning was populist-sounding BS not based in facts.

          • JenS says:

            THIS is the defense – that, because he’s a politician, you can’t elect everything he campaigned on to be so? Pretty effing lame.

        • Philip says:

          So you are cool with being lied to by your bff? Nice. How does it feel to have zero credibility?

    • Philip says:

      Canadiansensi:
      Why should a single extra nickel of my Ontario taxes go to this mayor? He is the one who ran on cutting the revenue from the city budget. If there is a shortfall, it is not my problem or the Province of Ontario. Where is all that “waste” that was supposed to solve every budget problem? Where is it? You do get that your Rob Ford has completely and utterly lost the plot, don’t you? Toronto’s budget issues were always revenue issues, never spending issues. A child could have seen that. Rob Ford is now doing exactly what he campaigned against. I just love the fact the you can’t see why that is wrong.

  2. bigcitylib says:

    Province has said no way.

    http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/mcguinty-rejects-ford-request-for-over-350-million/article1923517/

    Not surprising. And note that the reason cited is that T.O. has come begging for money without having raised its own property tax.

    The thing with this is: Ford is screwed. Its not like Hudak can/will pander to the big city.

    • JenS says:

      Exactly. You can’t win points for not raising property taxes while still attempting to get your hands on public dollars.

      Municipal taxpayers are going to hav to catch on that zero tax increases come with costs, and those costs usually outweigh the $3 a month you might save on you taxes as a result of the 0.

  3. Ted says:

    “Penny wise, pound foolish” also comes to mind.

  4. Ed says:

    As a Torontonian, I am torn between knowing we need (as opposed to just want) this funding and wanting to see Ford crash and burn. As Phillip said, to anyone paying attention, it is obvious Toronto has a revenue problem. This is why the provincial government gave it new tax capabilities that were used by the Miller administration. Now, I didn’t particularly agree with those taxes either (at least from a political standpoint. When governments develop tax vehicles for a plethora of reasons, it gives their constituents the feeling of being nickel-and-dimed). However, the message was clear from Queen’s Park: we’re not going to take in municipal taxes and give them to municipalities. If you want to tax, do it yourself. This makes municipalities more autonomous to decide which services they want. Unfortunately, when you get someone like Ford into office, it also is like letting loose a bull in a China shoppe.

    • Andrew says:

      Toronto should just scrap property taxes and move to a consumption tax, it will be a boarder based tax and bring in more revenue.

      • Derek Pearce says:

        The problem with that is you’d have to either force landlords to lower rents by the amount their property taxes have disappeared or give massive subsidies/rebates to the (mostly renting) poor. The city is still too over-reliant on property taxes, but there is something to be said for basing some taxes on the size of a property/amount of city resources it consumes. We should put in place things like a small tax on each hotel room or concert tickets if that’s what you meant by consumption tax.

        • Andrew says:

          Consumption taxes = retail taxes. You buy it, you use it, you are taxed on it. It will also capture taxes from people who commute into the city.

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