The Core Vision

Toronto is a world-class city, akin to Paris, London, or New York. We should strive to model their architectural successes - their vibrant public spaces, robust transit networks, and local autonomy - while celebrating our own unique identity. We must reject the provincial push to turn our home into an endless parking lot of gridlock and suburban sprawl. We are building a global metropolis, not trying to become Houston, Texas.

• Demand a High-Density Exemption for Safer Streets: We would build a coalition with adjacent major cities (Ottawa, Hamilton, Mississauga and others) and the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police to demand an immediate amendment to the Highway Traffic Act. Toronto needs the exclusive power to return automated speed enforcement cameras to our school zones, where data proves they save lives.
• Defend Our Bike Lanes & Bypass Bill 212 and Bill 60: I would fiercely back the legal injunctions protecting our core cycling networks on Bloor, Yonge, and University Avenue. Moving forward, since Bill 60 prevents us from reducing marked vehicular lanes on asphalt, I would shift funding to the boulevard layout, physically widening right-of-ways to create grade-separated active transit pathways completely outside the province's HTA restrictions.
• Fight the Waterfront Takeover (Bill 110): While we fight the provincial seizure of Billy Bishop Airport land politically, I would use the bill’s mandatory compensation clause to demand maximum, multi-billion-dollar payouts through binding arbitration, locking every cent into waterfront transit. Simultaneously, I would use municipal traffic, noise, and environmental permits on city-owned access roads to bottleneck unauthorized runway expansions.
• Reclaim the Ontario Science Centre: While the province downsizes the institution, Toronto should demand the return of the historic Don Mills facility to municipal control. I would partner with private tech leaders and educational institutions to revitalize the building as a localized innovation, community tech, and education hub for Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon Park.

• Launch the Commercial Parking Levy: I would look to council to independently fund a localized parking inventory to levy commercial parking space operators (big-box retail centres, corporate towers, commercial garages), earmarking 100% of the estimated $100M+ in annual revenue directly into the TTC capital budget.
• The Big-Box Stormwater Charge: Since the province banned mandatory green building standards, I would propose to council that we pivot to a utility fee. We would charge mega-warehouses and shopping centres an infrastructure fee based on their unabsorbed asphalt acreage. Corporations that voluntarily install green roofs and tree canopies will receive heavy discounts.
• Implement a Progressive Vehicle Weight Fee: I would introduce a tier-based registration fee targeting heavy, high-emission, luxury combustion vehicles that cause disproportionate wear and tear on our roads, while completely exempting standard electric vehicles and lower-income compact car owners.
• Enact a Luxury Pied-à-Terre Tax, or Revamp the Vacant Homes Tax: I would propose we overhaul the glitchy Vacant Home Tax by cross-referencing property registries with hydro and water baseline data to accurately catch corporate fraud. On top of this, I would introduce a premium surcharge on luxury, non-primary condos owned by offshore investors that sit empty most of the year.

• Pass a Metrolinx Accountability Bylaw: Metrolinx can no longer be allowed to paralyze neighbourhoods indefinitely. I would aggressively withhold or delay municipal staging and construction permits for provincial contractors who violate community noise and traffic agreements, and introduce a "Construction Disruption Levy" to fund emergency grants for impacted local small businesses.
• Accelerate the Waterfront East LRT & Scarborough Transit: Building on recent transit funding commitments, I would accelerate construction timelines to connect downtown to the Port Lands by the early 2030s, while prioritizing dedicated funding to finalize Scarborough’s LRT/BRT network designs and plans.
• Mandate Dynamic TTC Event Scheduling: No more waiting 10 minutes on a crowded platform after a Blue Jays game or a major concert. I would mandate that TTC dispatch frequencies dynamically align with massive stadium and festival dismissals.
• Regulate Ride-Hailing Congestion: I would cap the issuance of new vehicle-for-hire licenses based on localized emissions and gridlock data, while mandating advanced safety and navigation training for all rideshare operators. This could look like only issuing new licenses to hybrid and electric vehicles. On top of this, I would revisit our training requirements and rules - moving back towards the tougher standards that used to be in place for Taxi and Limo drivers.
• Simplify Parking Signage: I propose we augment our confusing web of parking signs by piloting an international curbside-painting model, using clear, colour-coded curb markings to instantly indicate loading, parking, and no-stopping zones. This may not fix our parking signage year-round, but it would take us in the right direction.
• Implement Intelligent Intersection Signalization: We will expand smart traffic lights across major arterials to dynamically adjust timing based on real-time congestion patterns, rather than relying on outdated static schedules.
• Build a Municipal EV Network Around Provincial Restrictions: Because Bill 98 strips Toronto of the power to require EV chargers in private developments, the city will use the revenues from our Progressive Vehicle Emissions Fee to build a massive, city-owned public curbside charging network across Toronto Parking Authority (Green P) lots and municipal right-of-ways.
• The Pothole & Road Work Sequencing Initiative: We will launch a targeted pothole resolution program backed by an upgraded 311 tracking system. Crucially, we will legally tie utility approvals to a strict sequencing calendar, penalizing any company that digs up a recently resurfaced municipal road.
• Re-Engineer Vision Zero via Provincial Funds: I would massively draw down from the Province’s $210-million Road Safety Initiatives Fund to rapidly deploy physical traffic-calming measures in the highest risk school zones.
• Lock Speed Camera Fines to Infrastructure: Once automated enforcement powers are reclaimed, 100% of net fine revenue would be legally firewalled into a hyper-local fund dedicated entirely to building neighbourhood sidewalks, bike networks, and speed bumps.
• Optimize Transit Infrastructure Delivery: I would prioritize dedicated transit lanes and close active transportation gaps by finalizing missing connections on the Finch Hydro Corridor, West Toronto Railpath, and work to improve and expand the Martin Goodman Trail.

• Launch the "ConvertTO"  Commercial Office Program: To fix high office vacancies, I would offer expedited building permits and a multi-year property tax holiday strictly for developers who retroactively convert under-utilized commercial high-rises into multi-bedroom residential units for families.
• Enact a progressive 2 km Rapid Transit Density Mandate: I would pre-zone all land within a 2 km radius of any rapid transit station (subway, LRT, and BRT lines) for progressively denser (as you approach a station) mid-to-high-density mixed-use development, vastly expanding current provincial minimums.
• Ownership Incentives & Site Footprints: I would introduce deep development charge rebates tailored strictly to multi-dwelling developments that build family-sized 2- and 3-bedroom units (minimum sizing to be studied and approved by council), while expanding rebates to equity-building non-profits (similar to the Options for Homes model) to provide down-payment assistance for first-time buyers. We will also provide planning incentives for developers who optimize their site footprints to preserve community green space at ground level.

• Fund Life-Saving Harm Reduction Clinics: With the provincial government removing operational funding for Toronto's remaining supervised consumption sites—driving an immediate, severe spike in EMS calls—Toronto will step in. We will leverage Toronto Public Health’s independent budget envelope to directly provide emergency municipal funding to keep these healthcare spaces open, protecting public order and keeping emergency rooms clear.
• Maximize Officer Efficiency & Enforce Road Rules: Reclaiming automated traffic cameras and expanding red light and streetcar door cameras will allow us to shift routine speed monitoring and congestion enforcement back to automated systems. This will free up our police workforce to focus directly on rising auto-theft and increasing highly visible traffic enforcement to actively penalize dangerous, aggressive behaviours across our streets.
• Expand Crisis Support Infrastructure: I would continue scaling the Toronto Community Crisis Service city-wide, ensuring non-violent mental health 911 calls are routed directly to specialized healthcare workers rather than armed responses.
• Leverage Board Governance for Police Reform: I would appoint reform-minded civilian members to the Toronto Police Services Board to mandate performance metrics that tie future budget increases to measurable public trust, internal accountability, and response times. Police reform is particularly challenging given the legislative framework we operate under. I would use my powers of appointment to the Police Services Board to make the most impact possible. In a perfect world, we'd tie police funding to evidence that they're fighting their own internal corruption, but they can always go to the province to circumvent any decreases in funding as a public safety harm.

• Accelerate Flood Protection: Using revenues generated by our new Big-Box Stormwater Charge, I would double the annual funding for underground infrastructure upgrades. This would compress the city's current 50-year flooding backlog timeline down to 20 years, prioritizing high-risk areas like Rockcliffe-Smythe.
• Withhold Contractor Payments for Broken Streets: I would systematically withhold final payments to construction and utility contractors until the affected public right-of-way, sidewalks, and green spaces are completely restored to a premium municipal standard. No more digging up recently paved roads without severe financial penalties. I'd also want to see steeper fines for leaving public realm spaces in a state of disrepair after construction on commercial and residential properties completes.
• Launch "Vibrant Main Streets" Pedestrianization: To boost local businesses, we will institute expanded, seasonal weekend pedestrianization pilots across major community hubs, spanning the downtown core (Kensington, Ossington, Church, King) into active neighbourhood main streets across Scarborough and North York.
• Resource Libraries & Recreation Centres: We will increase funding specifically targeted at training and resourcing library staff to safely manage the complex needs of vulnerable populations, expand service hours across high-density neighborhoods, and institute a rigorous maintenance review for aging municipal recreation centres.
• Protect Natural Infrastructure & Canopy Growth: I would implement dedicated capital funding to reverse severe erosion along our waterfront beaches (including Hanlan's Point), expand winterized public washroom access across underserved parks, and restructure our urban tree management systems to fast-track canopy pruning and maintenance.
• Upgrade Core Municipal Services: I would increase transparency and radically reduce response times for 311 requests, overhaul garbage collection standards to eliminate missed or delayed pickups and improve public waste bin management, and pilot city-wide community cleaning initiatives to restore pride in our shared public spaces. Additionally, I'd want to closely review our snow clearing contracts and look to models like the one recently piloted in New York that recruited citizens to receive compensation for supplementing municipal snow-clearing efforts with targeted local activations during major winter storm events.