I am disappointed with the Jarvis decision though I am trying to focus on the good, which is that the administration is staking at least some political capital on the separated downtown bike lane network--a big step forward if constructed. For better or worse those of us who care about building the city will have to take what we can get over the next three years, and that means finding common cause with Ford Nation wherever we can. The way Jarvis was handled was shameful, but doesn't change that reality. Right now losing Jarvis is annoying; it will be a tragedy if it convinces the left there's no way to work with the Fords and their allies. Doing so will, inevitably, mean swallowing some pride and trying to ignore bad behavior when achieving something for the greater good is possible. Like I said, I want to be optimistic. While they can be forced into unbelievable logical contortions by their masters, the likes of Karen Stintz, Peter Milczyn, and Michael Thompson are reasonable people who we can work with.
What I am much, much more concerned about is the apparent ease with which the Fords were able to slap down Kristyn Wong-Tam's laudable efforts to save Jarvis. 28 on side for Ford is a HUGE majority on a controversial issue, especially one where the main thrust of it--that a local representative shouldn't be blindsided by decisions about her ward--is a pretty universal concern among councillors. Similarly, getting 21 votes for blocking debate on two free public health nurses, the refusal of whom is about the most senseless decision imaginable, is pretty stunning. This suggests to me that for whatever reason the Fords have a much tighter grip on their working majority than they appeared to at the last couple of Council meetings, where they seemed to lose more than a few votes. Would love to be proven wrong about that, though.
