A Multi-Year Municipal Finance Plan is Needed!

The picture of Toronto was taken at The Kingsway and Bloor - Protect our Parks and Preserve our Heritage!

My detailed response to the recurrent question: If elected, how would reconcile spending and revenues by the City? These thoughts are highlighted into today's Toronto Star article.

https://www.thestar.com/news/toronto-election/2018/10/20/ward-4-candidate-gord-perks-not-taking-front-runner-status-for-granted.html

To provide sustainable, high quality municipal services (from police and fire services to transportation and transit services to waste management to social services to housing to our cherised arts and culture) for all Torontonians, it will critical for the new City Council to develop a multi-year Municipal Finance Plan that may include but is not limited to:

1. revenue generation (includes property tax strategy, user fee pricing strategy, broadening the tax base, improved revenue performance by Toronto Hydro Corporation and Toronto Parking Authority),

2. better value for money (includes back office transformation, workforce optimization, modernization of how city does business),

3. state-of-good-repair investments and business development (includes capital and infrastructure investments, public-private partnerships, new business development, small business programs - this MUST include sustainable development, see blog on section 37 and preserving biodiversity and natural heritage)

4. inter-governmental collaboration and investment (includes predictable provincial and federal transfer payments to partner on transit, housing, homelessness, climate change and other shared priorities), and

5. results-based budgeting and expenditure management focused on evaluating the effectiveness, efficiency and relevancy of the City’s municipal services

As the Councillor for Ward 4, I will bring 30 years of experience in public, private and not-for-profit sectors and in government to City Hall and work collaboratively with the Mayor, my Council colleagues, and the Ward 4 residents and businesses to ensure we collectively make more strategic, integrated decisions on a multi-year timeframe – to ensure Ward 4 and Toronto remains the best place in the world to live! On October 22nd Vote4 Valerie Grdisa!