Laura Dean

Toronto already permits up to 4 residential units as-of-right in Neighbourhoods while six-plexes are legal in select wards. I support these intensification policies but believe substantially more housing as-of-right ("upzoning") needs to be directed to Avenues and major transit station areas.

Public parks are finite public resources which were not designed for long-term habitation. I would support requiring a person to leave an encampment where the new accommodation offers a viable path towards stable housing but not where it would only result in eventual relocation to a different park.

The road pricing question is not worth spending much time on because this provincial government will never allow Toronto to implement road tolls. In theory, I would be very supportive of Toronto implementing a congestion charge in the downtown core for non-residents or tiered pricing.

Today's Torontonians should not have to shoulder the burden of years of neglected maintenance through increased property taxes. Given the City's economic and cultural importance to the rest of the province and country, Toronto deserves its fair share of infrastructure funding from other governments.

Accountability requires transparency. The public should not have to file freedom of information requests to understand how their money is being spent by the City.

Mental health and addiction issues are in plain view in Toronto's public spaces, making us feel uncomfortable and sometimes unsafe. More trained crisis intervention workers are needed, especially on the TTC. Youth must be given job and leadership opportunities so they can find purpose and identity.

TPS should focus its resources on reducing the number of guns on the street and addressing violent crime.

With strict protections, automated licence-plate readers and similar surveillance technology have the potential to benefit Torontonians.

Many people choose to drive because they are not confident the TTC will get them to where they are going on time. Better reliability is key to reducing congestion.

Streets are for people and should be able to move as many people as safely as possible.

Reducing DCs and updating zoning permissions are important for new housing but will not solve the affordable housing crisis. Next term, the City should focus on building and financing the deeply affordable and supportive housing that market solutions cannot provide.

Non-profit and private providers have a better track record of delivering projects than the City. The City should rely on its ability to supply land, funding and incentives and leave the work of building, acquiring and owning the housing to its expert partners.

Each Toronto neighbourhood has its own character. City Planning must recognize the uniqueness of each area when deciding where to permit increases in density. Designating major streets and transit for intensification maximizes public infrastructure and avoids disrupting stable neighbourhoods.

Faster approvals only address part of the problem. Once a project is approved, it requires the City and the owner to enter into various agreements. The process for these agreements is incredibly and leads to construction delays. This internal process can be improved.

Contractors must be held to project timelines and specifications.

Where it can be demonstrated that a private company could deliver better value to Torontonians, external delivery should be used. However, Toronto's experience with waste collection demonstrates that external delivery is not guaranteed to lead to savings or better service.

Taxes were raised last term and should remain stable over the next council term.

Road charges won't happen politically. Land transfer taxes and development charges ultimately harm the purchaser. Property taxes are the City's most reliable source of revenue.

The money Toronto will save by no longer having financial and operational responsibility for the DVP and Gardiner should be reserved for addressing Toronto's infrastructure backlog.

Toronto has little legal authority to prevent provincial interference. It is in the long-term interest of Torontonians to partner with the province for funding and approvals. If, however a provincial initiative threatens our priorities, advocacy is essential to protecting Torontonians.

Strong Mayor powers should be used where Council stands in the way of crucial housing getting built. Overall budget decisions impacting the City as a whole as well as decisions on senior staff and departments should be made and owned by all of Council.

We need to focus on making Toronto better, easier and more beautiful for Torontonians.

To maximize the City's investment in existing cycling infrastructure, new bike lanes should be installed where there is demonstrated demand and where they provide missing links to the larger cycling network.

I support the right to peaceful assembly guaranteed by the Charter, subject to reasonable limits which would likely include keeping major roads, transit, hospitals and essential institutions operating.

Technology improvements should be directed towards identifying cost savings in the delivery of services and maintenance/repair of City assets.

Changes with the least impact on Torontonian's day-to-day experiences must be prioritized.

City departments often do not talk to each other or have overlapping functions. I have seen firsthand how this impacts small businesses, costing time and money.

A shortage of skilled labor creates an immediate bottleneck to increasing construction capacity. The City needs to work with trade schools and other partners to address this issue.

Without programming, the City's investments our parks and other spaces cannot be fully realized. Programming pays dividends in terms of local economic benefit and social connection and ensures the City maximizes its investment in public spaces.

Arts and culture are vital to Toronto but have had to adapt to an ever-changing city. To ensure the continued survival of arts and culture, the City must be a partner, not a barrier. It must provide space, enable permitting and alter regulations so our cultural sector can thrive here.

The City should not stand in the way of autonomous taxis if residents are in favour of this service.