Premier Doug Ford's Ontario

[adma]

Can I ask what exactly is meant by “four-corners” in your post?

I’ve often heard that the intersection of Queen and Main in Brampton is the Four Corners, and also is noteworthy of there being a bank on each corner. (at least traditionally) Brampton’s library close to here is called the Four Corners branch of course, so by that name, are you referring to Brampton’s Four Corners or any “four corners” in the forgotten Hamlets like Nortonville, Woodhill.

Yeah, I wasn't thinking of *Brampton's* Four Corners; just generically in terms of communities materializing more or less where roads intersect.

 

[lenaitch]

Pefferlaw was never a village--however, within present-day Georgina, Sutton was.

You are probably correct. Perhaps it was a police village or I'm remembering incorrectly. I used to know a early member of York Regional Police who I thought came from Pefferlaw Police but he may well have been with with Georgina Township.

Chinguacousy was a township right to the end, if that constitutes any kind of "distinct municipality"

In my simple world, if it had/has an elected government (mayor, council, etc.) then it is/was a distinct municipality. I only have a vague recollection of the concept of 'police village' but don't recall much about them, other than Thornhill used to be one.

Bramalea was a created following the zoning by-laws of the time, the 1950's and 1960's. Single-use, low-density, sprawl. Old Brampton was more a slow growth of a 15-minute walkable neighbourhood. Unfortunately, Bramalea won out, which is also why the whole of Brampton has the highest auto insurance rates, because of their reliance on the car.

The following happened on Mountainash Rd and Countryside Dr in Brampton, where the posted speed limit on Countryside Dr. is 70 km/h, but on a stroad designed for 85% of the users will likely be travelling at over 80 km/h (or more in this case). Designed for the "safety" of speeders, not pedestrians (lucky no pedestrians involved). Guess why the auto insurance rates in Brampton are the highest in Ontario?

And this has what to do with the discussion? I'm sure "15 minute walkable neighbourhoods" didn't exist as an urban planning concept- anywhere - in the 1950s and 1960s. Smaller communities are/were naturally 15-minute. Whether you could 'live-work-play' depended on the community. Go back far enough, pretty much everyone lived and died within their home community.

 

[zang]

Ok, I see we have to bring the unrelated personal hatred of the automobile into this.

First, since you’re quoting Not Just Bikes, Countryside more follows his definition of a road than a “stroad” which I’ve only ever heard him use.

The only businesses really on countryside are those at the corners, as in the case with Mountainash, there’s no commercial at all, some “stroad”, eh?

Stroad is a term coined by conservative Chuck Marohn of Strong Towns.

 

[afransen]

Ok, I see we have to bring the unrelated personal hatred of the automobile into this.

First, since you’re quoting Not Just Bikes, Countryside more follows his definition of a road than a “stroad” which I’ve only ever heard him use.

The only businesses really on countryside are those at the corners, as in the case with Mountainash, there’s no commercial at all, some “stroad”, eh?

I'd agree that Countryside is more of a road than a stroad, though it does have direct access off of it for some destinations, which is not ideal.

That accident is a bit of an illustration why roads can be a lot safer if they are smaller. Ideally, one lane in each direction with a hard median and roundabouts at intersections. Aint nobody getting up to 200kph on a road like that.

 

[afransen]

Stroad is a term coined by conservative Chuck Marohn of Strong Towns.

Haha, interesting that you chose that word as the descriptor of Chuck.

 

[zang]

Haha, interesting that you chose that word as the descriptor of Chuck.

He is a very adamant conservative. He devoted an entire episode of the Strong Towns podcast to explaining to fellow conservatives why “15 minute cities” aren’t the evil they believe it is—including his often infuriating interpretations of what drives progressives. People often think Strong Towns is left-wing, and while it’s a bipartisan organization in terms of its members, it very much leans to the right. Fiscal conservatism and financial independence are the two driving forces behind Strong Towns.

It just so happens its agenda works well with and bolsters more left-oriented things like cycling and environmentalism.

 

[afransen]

He is a very adamant conservative. He devoted an entire episode of the Strong Towns podcast to explaining to fellow conservatives why “15 minute cities” aren’t the evil they believe it is—including his often infuriating interpretations of what drives progressives. People often think Strong Towns is left-wing, and while it’s a bipartisan organization in terms of its members, it very much leans to the right. Fiscal conservatism and financial independence are the two driving forces behind Strong Towns.

It just so happens its agenda works well with and bolsters more left-oriented things like cycling and environmentalism.

Is his conservatism the most important attribute to describe him (and I did listen to that podcast)? I'd go for 'former engineer and sustainable urbanism advocate' to describe him, myself.

 

[zang]

Is his conservatism the most important attribute to describe him (and I did listen to that podcast)? I'd go for 'former engineer and sustainable urbanism advocate' to describe him, myself.

Just wanted to head off at the pass any “left-wing agenda” arguments for what “Stroad” meant, as Not Just Bikes was being used in a pejorative manner.

 

[mistersg1]

Well if the goal of Chuck Marohn is to destroy the suburbs, it will require an iron fist attitude by government to make it happen. Anyone who believes that is hardly a conservative.

What I would consider a stroad and it seems it’s what he has in mind, is a kind of commercial strip (not necessarily in suburbia in all cases) which has many lights and tons of access roads. In Brampton, speaking of Queen Street from say around Centre Street to Hwy 410 is more of the textbook definition of the stroad. As it passes east, sure it is a stroad still in some respects, but not to the same extent.

I mentioned that this could exist in smaller cities mainly because how provincial and state highways generally pass through towns/cities. Consider Bolton, and (former) Hwy 50, obviously right in downtown Bolton, that is a “street”, and outside of the immediate downtown it transitions to a stroad on either side, before eventually becoming a road when it exits Bolton completely.

Another example could be described with Bloor/Dundas (in the former Hwy 5 route), obviously Bloor is pretty much a road for most of its existence of Royal York onward, west of there when the route moves onto Dundas, we turn into a stroad, and this continues as a stroad into Mississauga and Halton, although it becomes more limited access at points. When passing west of Waterdown, Dundas/Hwy 5 is clearly down to being an outright road.

 

[adma]

He is a very adamant conservative. He devoted an entire episode of the Strong Towns podcast to explaining to fellow conservatives why “15 minute cities” aren’t the evil they believe it is—including his often infuriating interpretations of what drives progressives. People often think Strong Towns is left-wing, and while it’s a bipartisan organization in terms of its members, it very much leans to the right. Fiscal conservatism and financial independence are the two driving forces behind Strong Towns.

It just so happens its agenda works well with and bolsters more left-oriented things like cycling and environmentalism.

Think of him as "conservative" in the same way that the argument for New Urbanist planning principles is "conservative", I suppose.

 

[zang]

Well if the goal of Chuck Marohn is to destroy the suburbs, it will require an iron fist attitude by government to make it happen. Anyone who believes that is hardly a conservative.

Marohn believes in small government, and that Strong Towns works as a bottom-up approach. Local governments, personal responsibility and community action.

Just because he doesn’t believe in the dogma tying cars and suburbs to conservatism doesn’t mean he’s not a conservative. He’s outright stated in interviews he’s a Republican. One of the few I have respect for.

What I would consider a stroad and it seems it’s what he has in mind, is a kind of commercial strip (not necessarily in suburbia in all cases) which has many lights and tons of access roads. In Brampton, speaking of Queen Street from say around Centre Street to Hwy 410 is more of the textbook definition of the stroad. As it passes east, sure it is a stroad still in some respects, but not to the same extent.

Marohn has often—and very simply—described a stroad as a street designed to road standards. The wide lanes that encourage high speeds of a road with the frequent intersections and turnoffs of a street. It’s a pretty simple and easy to understand concept.

Regardless, it’s not Jason Slaughter’s definition; its Chuck’s.

At this point Jarvis street would nearly qualify.

 

[zang]

Think of him as "conservative" in the same way that the argument for New Urbanist planning principles is "conservative", I suppose.

Or you can take him for his word when he says he votes Republican and calls himself a conservative.

 

[adma]

Or you can take him for his word when he says he votes Republican and calls himself a conservative.

Well, New Urbanist neo-traditionalism *is*, at heart, "conservative", and readily adoptable by those who seek to Make Suburbs Beautiful Again.

 

[afransen]

Well if the goal of Chuck Marohn is to destroy the suburbs, it will require an iron fist attitude by government to make it happen. Anyone who believes that is hardly a conservative.

What I would consider a stroad and it seems it’s what he has in mind, is a kind of commercial strip (not necessarily in suburbia in all cases) which has many lights and tons of access roads. In Brampton, speaking of Queen Street from say around Centre Street to Hwy 410 is more of the textbook definition of the stroad. As it passes east, sure it is a stroad still in some respects, but not to the same extent.

I mentioned that this could exist in smaller cities mainly because how provincial and state highways generally pass through towns/cities. Consider Bolton, and (former) Hwy 50, obviously right in downtown Bolton, that is a “street”, and outside of the immediate downtown it transitions to a stroad on either side, before eventually becoming a road when it exits Bolton completely.

Another example could be described with Bloor/Dundas (in the former Hwy 5 route), obviously Bloor is pretty much a road for most of its existence of Royal York onward, west of there when the route moves onto Dundas, we turn into a stroad, and this continues as a stroad into Mississauga and Halton, although it becomes more limited access at points. When passing west of Waterdown, Dundas/Hwy 5 is clearly down to being an outright road.

Marohn doesn't seek to destroy suburbs. He seeks to make them financially sustainable through a more efficient pattern of development.

 

[W. K. Lis]

The Ontario government offered the Star an interview with its top doctor. At the last minute, it was cancelled. We found out the real reason why​

Documents obtained about an interview with the chief medical officer of health offer a snapshot of how communications decisions are made during a health crisis.​

From link.

It was a rare interview opportunity at a pressing moment.

In mid-December, as patients sick with RSV, COVID-19 and influenza were flooding emergency departments, and pediatric ICUs were overflowing, the Star accepted an offer to interview two of Ontario’s most influential health-care leaders.

Government spokespeople said the interview with Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, and Matthew Anderson, president and CEO of Ontario Health, would speak to the “layers of protection” ahead of the holidays and to the current pressures on the health-care system.

The interview never happened. Nearly 10 minutes after it was supposed to take place on Dec. 15, the Star’s Kenyon Wallace received an email. The call was cancelled. When he asked why, he was told “there was a scheduling conflict.”

That statement, it turns out, was not true.

Government emails obtained by the Star under freedom-of-information legislation reveal it was the director of communications for Health Minister Sylvia Jones who made the call to pull the plug on the interview, apparently unhappy that it would be Wallace asking questions.

The internal emails offer a snapshot of how decisions are made about communications during a health crisis. Several experts in governance, ethics and journalism say they also raise questions about the level of communication control over the office of the chief medical officer and the degree to which the public has access to health leaders at such times.

The email exchanges, they say, point to an ongoing tension between political and bureaucratic interests, and independent, non-partisan health communications. And there is a risk, they caution, that trust in public health messaging will be undermined if it is — or has the appearance to be — influenced by political considerations.

“If the chief medical officer of health has an obligation to protect the public’s health but is in any way constrained in their actions or communications by political forces, the public must be made aware of this so they can interpret such actions or communications accordingly,” says Maxwell Smith, a bioethicist who specializes in infectious diseases and an assistant professor at Western University.

Among other things, the internal correspondence shows:

• The idea for a media availability had come from the minister’s office;

• It took 68 emails, in which 17 civil servants were either providing input or copied on the exchanges, to arrange a handful of media interviews for Moore and Anderson on Dec. 15 and respond to media requests;

• The health minister’s office asked to review the list of media outlets and individual journalists being offered interviews;

• Moore’s talking points around COVID and flu vaccinations, masking and family gatherings were sent to the minister’s office in advance;

• At no point in the communications did the office of the chief medical officer object to the involvement of the minister’s office or push back against its instructions.

During the pandemic, the chief medical officer of health became the face of public health communications in Ontario.

At crucial points, Moore — and his predecessor, Dr. David Williams — stepped to a podium to tell Ontarians about lockdowns, vaccine requirements, mandatory masking and other public health measures.

They became, for many, the authorities on how to stay safe.

But whatever the public perception, the independence of the office isn’t so cut and dry given the chief medical officer of health’s many, often competing priorities.

The office of the chief medical officer stressed in an email that Moore is a public servant who has “a reporting relationship to the Deputy Minister of Health” and as such, “endeavours to work collaboratively with the Deputy Minister of Health, Minister of Health and with other officials in the government of Ontario on matters of public health, including communication to the public.”


The chief medical officer of health, appointed by the government under the Health Protection and Promotion Act (HPPA) for a five-year term, “provides leadership and policy direction on public health matters and public health standards” in the province, the statement said.

Under the HPPA, the chief medical officer has a number of statutory powers including the ability to exercise independently “any of the powers of a medical officer of health or board of health,” and to “issue directives to health-care providers or health-care entities on precautions or procedures to be followed,” the statement said.

“The CMOH wears several hats,” says Patrick Fafard, a professor in the faculties of social sciences and medicine at the University of Ottawa. “And the pandemic has revealed that there are tensions — if not outright contradictions — between these hats.

“The way the role is constructed, in general, but especially during a public health crisis, is that it’s meant to be an independent and autonomous person who can both provide advice to ministers, but also speak directly to the public as they deem appropriate,” says Fafard, considered one Canada’s top experts on chief medical officers.

He says that in Ontario, the chief medical officer has many roles: adviser to the government; a senior public servant who oversees and implements the government’s public health priorities; the “explainer-in-chief” for the public; and, increasingly, a government spokesperson.

“The challenge lies in the fact that those different roles don’t align perfectly,” says Fafard, also a senior investigator at the Global Strategy Lab, an interdisciplinary research and policy lab that advises governments on designing laws and policies to promote public health.

He adds that he would not label the communication in the emails as “inappropriate.” The chief medical officer of health, as a top bureaucrat, is “subject to the same communication strategy as every other public servant,” he says.

Rather, the tight co-ordination is “inconsistent with the public perception of the role,” says Fafard.

That tension is the reason some are calling on provincial governments to clarify the role of the chief medical officer.

---

The Dec. 15 interview was set up by Catherine Fraser, senior communications adviser for the chief medical officer of health, who wrote to the Star the previous day, offering a teleconference with Moore and Anderson, to be on the call together.

The Star set up an interview at 9:30 the next morning with reporter Kenyon Wallace.

But the call never came.

At 9:38 a.m. Wallace received an email from Fraser saying the interview was cancelled due to “scheduling conflicts.” Wallace phoned but she said no details could be provided. Wallace inquired if there would be other opportunities to interview Moore and Anderson but did not hear back.

The abrupt cancellation — and the lack of details — was unusual, so the Star made a freedom-of-information request to the ministry for any communications between it, Ontario Health and the office of the chief medical officer regarding the planning and execution of interviews with Moore and Anderson.

The records received show the minister of health’s director of communications, Alexandra Adamo, expressing concern the afternoon before the scheduled interview after being told Wallace was the reporter. She asks if another reporter can be lined up.

In response, Gillian MacDonald, manager of strategic communications and issues management at the ministry, writes: “Kenyon is already on tap for this.”

Adamo replies that in future she would like her office to be alerted earlier if alternative reporters cannot be found.

Then, on the morning of Dec. 15, shortly before the scheduled interview, Adamo writes to MacDonald and Donna Kline, chief communications and engagement officer at Ontario Health: “the Toronto Star interview needs to be cancelled all together.”