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Whatever Ford's personal shortcomings may be, this story should be considered in connection to another big story of 2011: Ford's surrender on the police budget. In the weeks leading up to this October surprise, Ford had insisted that the police would be forced to make the same cuts demanded of...

The City wants to cut Giorgio Mammoliti's giant pole! See page 8!

Actually, it says you can't lock your bike to anything except a bike post, period. It authorizes removal after 24 hours. The fact that the enforcement mechanism makes it effectively "legal" within that 24 hour timeframe does not change the fact that it is still illegal. Also, for some people...

Morgan Solar is being forced to relocate from the Fort York area, after condo developers successfully petitioned to have its building's "Employment Area" zoning changed to "Commercial/Mixed-Use." Apparently, Morgan Solar reached a deal that gives them until 2012 to find a new location in...

I don't think A5 is Layton's preferred design. Layton's website says: "Our preferred proposal includes two bridges, with one bridge linking Wellington Street south to the Ordnance Street area and a second bridge spanning from Fort York north to the Ordnance Street area. Both spans would be...

Just the same way shareholders diligently keep executive pay under control.

The Globe says that Toronto Hydro paid out about $25 million in dividends last year, which was half of its earnings. The article says utilities generally are worth about 16-20 times earnings, but is unsure whether "earnings" here should include the reinvested earnings, or just the dividend...

Apparently, Ford is now claiming that he has reduced the police budget, despite the fact that the proposed 2012 budget is $5.9 million higher than 2011. By the same logic, the new privatized garbage deal (which supposedly will save $11 million - even if you believe the contractor's fishy...

It was $30 on a typical Wednesday during the summer -- no special events taking place. Parking lots do pay property tax, but the assessed value is not based on parking rates. When parking rates go up, the City receives no extra revenue. In fact, when overall property assessments go up, the City...

Many of these are taxes related to the overall success of NYC. There are no equivalent alternatives to renting a hotel in NY, or parking in NY, and the demand for these services is pretty inflexible. As a result, businesses can charge monopoly rates. If the City imposes a tax on this income...

I think it is quite likely that Matt Elliott's excellent blog post today caused Royson James and Marcus Gee to each write basically the same column. This is great, great stuff Matt!

The difference was, back then, the City was trying to pressure the province into paying more to fund transit. Nowadays, these tactics are being used against Torontonians to justify cuts to service. The "structural deficit" that the Fordites keep talking about is basically the transit subsidy...

Until the existing Sheppard subway has come remotely close to meeting the expectations of its proponents, there is no good reason to believe the unfunded, magical extension will be any less of an underused money-loser in our lifetimes. Doesn't anybody remember that time, only FOUR YEARS AGO...

Maybe they were backpacking though Texas, since Dallas and Houston also have new LRT networks. So does Salt Lake City, Utah. But what else would you expect from such notorious pinkos?

Many would argue otherwise. Investigative journalist Matt Taibbi says Chicago actually could have gotten nearly four times as much in the sale. Morgan Stanley, on the other hand, did indeed do pretty well. The bank represented the original American buyers, who then flipped their shares to an Abu...

By "serious," do you mean that influential people have proposed it, or that they are studying the issue in a thoughtful way? Selling TPA parking lots and garages were proposed in the KPMG report. More details here.

You don't have to get too conflicted. Before you dive into a complicated analysis of public vs. private or whether the City "needs to be in this business," just compare what Toronto Hydro earns for the City with the interest charges on debt that could be paid off by selling TH. For example...

Streetcars

The City's library system is the most used in North America. It now lends e-books and its website allow citizens access to several databases that would otherwise a lot of money. Newer branches are smaller, focusing less on maintaining a local collection, and more on the excellent inter-branch...

Keep an eye on Karen Stintz. Ford is already trying to backstab her because of her apparent support for reality-based transit policy. If the Fords keep alienating centrists, abusing democratic processes, blindsiding and strong-arming council colleagues, while cutting secret backroom deals...