March 29, 2004
With the City of Toronto still $361 million in the red, councillors are scrambling to come up with a new name for the $50 million they regularly dole out in annual grants.
a name that’s not so obvious could do the trick.
New Democratic Party (NDP) Councillor Joe Mihevc thinks the name "Community Partnership and Investment Program" may be more palatable for Toronto’s long-suffering taxpayers.
Call it a rose if you like, Joe, but it’s the same old dandelion.
With even the most basic of services in jeopardy, this is the budget-time ruse of the David Miller diehards at work for a mayor who rode into City Hall promising a brand new era of transparency.
It isn’t going to be easy for the City Hall NDP to hide their pet grants under the new name carpet with councillors like Doug Holyday on duty.
"a grant is a grant…why cover it up unless they’re trying to hoodwink taxpayers?" Holyday wants to know.
Without enough money in the budget to cover the basic services of the TTC and the police, councillors will give $39 million in grants to everything from the arts to homeless and anti-racism groups.
With pennypinchers like Holyday and Coun. Rob Ford leading the resistance, lefty councillor’s attempts to hike the $39 million to $6.1 million failed at the budget committee level. But the leftwing will watch for its chance at budget wrap-up sessions on March 24-25.
advocates of Mayor David Miller’s pipe dreams for outside government help, they’re still waiting for truckloads of big bucks from Queen’s Park and Ottawa.
The $39 million in grants mushrooms to $50 million when the millions of dollars in environmental projects are poured into the slush fund known as the Toronto atmospheric Fund. Then there are the traditional grants handed over to the non-profit sector from the Supporting Communities Partnership Initiative (SCPI).
That’s not even taking into consideration the 130 organizations getting free rent from the city, half of which also collect grants.
The broom synonomous with David Miller’s arrival at City Hall has one big corner awaiting a clean sweep, with a thorough review of all the groups that automatically get their grants each year just because they happen to be on the list.
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