Toronto housing board still in charge

Toronto Community Housing board still in place, for now
City Council to discuss TCH board at special meeting Wed
Kris Scheuer
(Written for Town Crier March eighth. Update here.)

Councillor Doug Ford wants remaining board members to step down. Photo by Kris Scheuer/Town Crier.

The remaining members of Toronto Community Housing’s embattled board are staying put despite Mayor Rob Ford’s calls for their resignations.
The issue was expected to be the heated topic today at city hall, but  while politicians voted unanimously to move the issue to the top of the agenda, the mayor failed to get the votes needed to debate it without having the issue sent to Executive Committee first.
The controversy stems from scathing reports from the city’s auditor general which said the housing corp. could have saved between $4-10 million if there was increased competition for contracts and shone the spotlight on inappropriate staff expenses ranging from planning meetings at spas to lavish Christmas parties. Meanwhile the city-owned housing corp. has a state of good repair backlog of over $300 million.
While the auditor didn’t call for a clean house of the current board the mayor has. The board chair David Mitchell plus eight other members resigned at the mayor’s request but councillors Maria Augimeri and Raymond Cho and tenant reps Catherine Wilkinson and Dan King remain.
“Has (council) malfeasance on our part?” King asked. “Has the auditor general mentioned cause for our removal? If not, then we have a legitimate right to be here. Calling for our removal because they don’t like certain people is not what I call democratic.”

Advertisement

Toronto councilors and mayor elected

Rob Ford elected new mayor
Some incumbent councillors lose
New faces on 45-member city council
Kris Scheuer

Mayor-elect Rob Ford at the Town Crier's editorial board. Town Crier file photo.

Here’s a run down of the winners, upsets, and top place results for the Oct. 25 vote.
Of the possible 1,546,732 eligible voters, voter turnout was about 52.6 percent, which is up from the 2006 election with 39.3 percent.
RESULTS: Toronto here’s your new mayor and 44 councillors.
Are you pleased with the results for mayor and council seats? Please let me know…
Mayor-elect is Rob Ford with 383,501 votes for 47.11 percent followed by George Smitherman in second with 289,832 for 35.6 percent, according to the city’s website. Of course, 38 other mayoral candidates were on the ballot and results for each can be found here and may vary as the city updates the election results.
Here are the councillors-elect for all 44 wards with a list of each winner and closest runner-up. For a full list of all candidates votes in each race, click here.
Etobicoke-North Ward 1:  Vincent Crisanti won with 40.75% of the vote ousting incumbent councillor Suzan Hall, who got 36.96%.

Toronto mayor and council candidates

Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone has expressed interest in running for the top job in 2010.

By Kris Scheuer
(For update, click here.)

For political junkies, like me, elections are a fun time to be a journalist.
There’s change, drama, personality clashes, issues debated, suspense, scandals, disappointment, joy, surprise upsets, unpredictability…
Okay maybe it’s just me, but I know I am not the only one who gets excited by politics and electi
Someone back me up here and write to tell what you think.

So last night, I was at a party with a bunch of left-leaning strategists, politicians, journalists and lobbyists. I am not a card carrying member of any political party and never have been. But it so happened this evening’s party was packed with NDPers.
As I was not working this past weekend,yesterday was my first chance to officially confirm what’s been reported on Friday that Councillor Kyle Rae is out of the game. He won’t run in Toronto Centre-Rosedale in the 2010 municipal race.
I interviewed him today, so click here for a teaser of the full interview I am writing for the Town Crier and will post on my site this Thursday.
But that’s not the only story.
Today Liberal fundraiser and strategist Rocco Rossi made it official that he, along with MPP George Smitherman and councillor Giorgio Mammoliti, is running to be Toronto’s next mayor.
But that’s not all. On a range of rumour all the way to sure bet – others are set to announce their mayoralty hopes too including current city councillors: former journalist Adam Vaughan, Budget Chief Shelley Carroll, Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone and TTC chair Adam Giambrone.