FROLITICKS

Satirical commentary on Canadian and American current political issues

Aug 31

Why Urban Politics At Times Appears To Be More Important Than Even National Politics

by bcurry

Think about it.  How many things that your local government looks after affect city dwellers on a daily basis?  Sometimes they may seem fairly mundane, but there is little doubt that they have a direct impact on us.  These include things that have to do with schools, public transit, roads, sewer and water systems, property taxes, urban waste disposal, policing and crime, medical facilities, first responders, etc., etc.  Often local issues far outweigh even those issues under review at the national level, which can seem to be very distant and not always of any direct import to us.

We tend to put more trust in our local leaders, who generally are members of our communities and are easier to contact than one’s national government representatives.  When something is a problem locally, municipal council representatives and urban administrators normally can be more easily accessed in order to file a complaint or raise an issue.  Moreover, this ready access implies that one can trust local officials to respond to our needs and thus are more trustworthy.

However, this level of trust has been somewhat damaged in recent years.  Much of this has to do with the rapid development that most urban centers are experiencing; be it with respect to housing, urban transit, infrastructure, green spaces, and other local developments.  As a result, there is a large amount of possible profits to be made by developers.  This is particularly true in California where a real estate boom drove political corruption, particularly in Los Angeles.  Jose Huizar, a member of City Council had gained control of the influential committee that approves multimillion-dollar commercial development projects across the city.  Reportedly, F.B.I. agents caught him accepting $1.8 million worth of casino chips, luxury hotel stays, prostitutes and a liquor box full of cash from Chinese developers.  As reported by the New York Times, he will become the third recent Los Angeles City Council member to go down as part of corruption investigations. This is part of a much larger circle of staff aides, fund-raisers, political consultants and real estate developers who have been charged in what federal authorities called an “extraordinary” recent wave of bribery and influence-peddling across California .  It is also reported that over the last 10 years, 576 public officials in California have been convicted on federal corruption and racketeering charges, including in San Francisco, South Gate, Bell, Lynwood and Vernon.

Why is it taking so long to uncover such corruption?  Part of the answer may lie in the fact that fewer smaller cities and towns have local reliable media sources such as newspapers and radio stations.  In larger centers, cutbacks in local reporting capabilities have led to a decline in investigative reporting.  In addition, you may have large immigrant populations, largely marginalized communities that do not have the resources to watch their politicians closely.  Increasingly, we have seen the need to have independent auditors to oversee the budgets and financial activities of municipal governments.  Their duties are similar to what one sees at the state, provincial and national levels.  In the U.S., unlike in Canada, municipal politics often involves political parties, Democrats or Republicans.  When a political party controls councils for a lengthy period and enjoys uncontested power, there’s appears to be no real penalty for stepping over ethical or legal lines.

Unfortunately, corruption is most often discovered through more indirect means or third-party observation, particularly when it comes to influence-peddling.  For the most part, representatives in municipal government tend to be trustworthy.  However, the evidence has shown that some developers and businesses are prone to offering certain incentives to local officials in order to influence their choices for major developments and services.  This is why it is so important to have independent oversight of matters related to urban policies, just as it is for those in higher levels of government.  Without it, one risks the possibility of inappropriate decisions being made that will affect all of us locally.  Given the number of critical services delivered locally, city governments do indeed have a good deal of responsibility and accountability.

Canada Urban Issues Urban Issues US

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Aug 5

For Most Urban Centres, Affordable Housing Continues To Be A Primary Issue

by bcurry

For several years now, the issue of affordable housing has become a major concern in most of North America’s major cities.  We are especially talking about a large segment of young people who are questioning whether or not they can afford a home.  Middle-income households are now struggling with the issue of affordability in many of our cities.  For the last decade, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco in the U.S. and Toronto and Vancouver in Canada are examples of wealthy cities that have failed to meet the housing needs of low- and middle-income households.  What’s crazy is that in the last few years, the costs of housing jumped leaps and bounds, making it almost impossible for young middle-class individuals and families to afford a home despite low mortgage interest rates.  For example, the average price of a home in Canada peaked at just over $790,000 in February 2022, marking a 50 percent increase over two years.  The same situation has emerged in the most American cities.

Enter local, regional and national governments who began to introduce numerous programs and bagfuls of money to encourage developers to build more affordable homes, especially in a market where demand outstripped the housing supply.  The difficulty in today’s post-pandemic era is that developers themselves are being faced with increasing labour costs and shortages, higher land prices and construction costs, as well as financing constraints.  As a result, governments at all levels were showering developers and consumer groups with incentives, including tax breaks, reduced fees and promises of quick approval times.  Some housing activists would like more public funding to be funnelled into purpose-built rentals and co-operative housing — or “non-profit housing.”  Despite such incentives, affordable housing scarcity remains the number one concern in most communities.  In order to own a home, some people are being forced to purchase homes in outlying areas, creating what we call “rurbanization.”  Since many will work in the urban core, this then leads to increased commuting times and greater congestion on feeder routes, never mind environmental concerns over increased air pollution and greenhouse emissions.

Now, central banks in both countries are increasing their rates in order to curb the current hyperinflation.  It is anticipated that rising mortgage rates will force a decline in housing prices as more and more potential buyers back out of the market.  However, the housing correction is seen as only being a small “blip.”  Even with today’s expected price drop, some Canadian analysts note that the lower asking prices will still be nearly 30 percent above what they were in December 2019.

The costs of a lack of affordable housing can stretch into the broader economy as well.  When households are financially stretched with a greater share of income going to housing — often 50 percent or more, their consumption of other goods declines.  The lack of affordable housing has forced many the turn to the rental market for short-term accommodation, thereby causing a significant increase in rents in many cities.  Such is the “domino effect.”  The danger now is that the cuts in consumption will contribute to what economists believe will be a recession in both Canada and the U.S.  Under these circumstances, how can young people or couples really consider investing in home ownership?  Based on his observations, one analyst even suggested that there are women in their 20s who want to have babies, but put off doing so given that real estate prices are interfering with their ability to start a family.

From time to time, I read of huge mansions and estates selling for millions of dollars in cities like Toronto or Los Angeles.  This may be fine for multi-millionaires, but does little for the so-called struggling middle-class.  As a boomer, I was fortunate to live during a period when wages were good enough to buy a modest home in one of Canada’s biggest cities.  One can only ask if the age-old dream of home ownership has slowly but surely collapsed in today’s economy?  One cannot but feel for the millennials who it was estimated in 2019 could take up to 29 years to save enough money to afford a home in some of Canada’s biggest cities.

Canada Urban Issues Urban Issues US

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Jul 15

From the Ridiculous to the Surreal: Renaming of Major Thoroughfares in Toronto, Ontario

by bcurry

I’ve just read that Toronto city council plans to vote to rename the major thoroughfare Dundas Street and other locations named after the 18th-century politician Henry Dundas.  The reason apparently is that someone discovered that Henry Dundas was a Scottish politician who delayed Britain’s abolition of slavery by 15 years.  Now, having lived in Toronto for the majority of my young life, I would have never known the origin of the name for Dundas Street.  I’m certain that, even today, the vast majority of Torontonians do not know anything about Henry Dundas. 

Now it’s one thing to remove statues of major historical figures such as John A. McDonald, Canada’s first Prime Minister, but it’s quite another to start renaming major thoroughfares in cities.  Can you imagine the costs associated with such initiatives at a time when urban centers are starting to reopen following the costly pandemic.  Toronto’s city council has suggested that the city also plans to make room in its budget to support people and businesses affected by the change, otherwise taxpayers.  You would think that they have other more important issues to spend money on, such as increasing affordable housing, fixing aging infrastructures and improving social and health care services.

As in most countries, historically local governments often chose to name streets and municipal properties after people, sometimes based on historical connections.  For example, I lived near Bathurst Street in Toronto — a major north-south thoroughfare — which apparently was named for Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst, who was also a member of the British Parliament during colonial times, and who like Henry Dundas had never once visited Canada.  I never knew this and really couldn’t have cared less!  I’m certain that if someone did a deep dive into Henry Bathurst’s history as an 18th-century British colonial politician, they would probably find something to object to.

The Mayor of Toronto, John Tory, declared that the “names of our public streets, parks, and monuments are a reflection of our values as Torontonians.”  While I recognize his sentiments, I cannot but think that this is a political ploy to satisfy a small group of persons at the expense of the rest of us.  Can you imagine all the small businesses and other organizations along Dundas Street or Bathurst Street which would have to bear the expenses associated with changing their business and mailing addresses?  Should the motion go through, one can only ask whether this is one incidence or whether this is just the beginning of a ridiculous trend across North America?  Indeed, this could represent a dangerous and costly precedent, going from the ridiculous to the surreal!

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