downtown kids

Dear Doug,

I was saddened to read transcripts of your comments both in council and to the press. I have had friendly debates on this issue with a number of my out-of-town friends. I can understand when someone who is not “of the city” cannot grasp the idea of living “in the city”: It is dense and loud and busy.

However, you are the deputy mayor of the largest urban centre in the nation. To hear this misinformed rhetoric from you leads me to draw only two possible conclusions; first, you are completely out of touch with your city-wide constituency; and/or second, you are compromising your office at the behest of the developers regarding the 10% rule.

Either way, you are failing in your civic mandate. For the record, I am both pro-city and pro-development.

Andrew Gallifent

Hi, we haven’t met but I’m your neighbour.  

I live in the west end of the city - a little further north than the downtown elites - but well within the boundaries of what has always been Toronto.

I am the mother of one extremely social and outgoing toddler. Before my son was born I struggled with my feelings about this city. I was frequently overwhelmed and used to feeling out of my element.

Since my son has been born I have had the pleasure of seeing this city transform.  

Every little crack seems to have sprouted a flower. Now I know the women who run the local grocery store — in fact, they are my girlfriends. The people at the drug store remember us and chit-chat about the news of the day. At the park, the girls who guard the splash pad greet us by name and make us feel like we are famous. We visit the Early Years centres several times a week, and I am blown away by the wonderful and diverse women who run these programs. I am proud to know them.

I grew up in a much smaller city - far more dangerous than this one - where I had half the sense of community in my neighbourhood.  We are very lucky here to have the parks that we do, the neighbours that we do, the resources that we do.

I am so grateful for my son, who has opened my eyes to the community that is all around me. In fact, I didn’t really live in Toronto until I had a child here.

Your neighbour,
Carla Mundwiler

(sent today to Councillor Doug Holyday and cc’ed to Councillor Ana Bailao)

I grew up downtown and I can tell you that every memory of my childhood is filled with wonder, excitement, inquisitiveness, love and compassion. I know you had some concerns about where children would play, as that is, without a doubt any parent’s greatest concern in raising a child. </endsarcasm>

Rest assured, I did not play King St. traffic. (Also, your conclusion triggers further concern over the brainpower of the individuals working for our great city.) 

A vibrant downtown core works to feed and encourage child curiosity, offer exposure to magnificence, encourage acceptance of all that is not mediocre and drive ambition.

Quite frankly, Mr. Holyday, yours is an example of a closed-minded attitude that children raised in the suburbs are at risk of developing.

Yours Truly, 

Stevana — A Downtown Gal

I read your comments on kids in the city - and I am so embarrassed for you. I grew up in Oakville, and clearly you have no idea what kids do in the suburbs when their parents are not home. Their parents are never home as it takes them 90 minutes to get in and out of the city every day. Think about that next time you are stuck on the QEW.

Regards,

Kyra Kendall

(sent today to Councillor Doug Holyday)

I find it very disturbing that the Deputy Mayor of Toronto could be not only so out of touch with the realities of the city he supposedly serves, but have a stubborn ignorance of the communities in Toronto that make this city so unique and liveable.

I was born in the mid 1980s to a middle class family and raised near Dufferin subway station, a block away from Bloor, and right across the street from Dufferin Grove Park. Family ties brought my parents to this neighbourhood; it had been where my great grandmother and grandmother had been raised. My parents, conversely, were brought up in Scarborough, and from their own experiences were eager to have my sister and I raised in an urban environment.

My parents, little sister and I were located minutes away from Gladstone Public Library, seven or eight different elementary and high schools (including Catholic options), corner stores, fruit stands, coffee shops, restaurants, the West End YMCA and the Dufferin Mall. This is without even beginning to count the number of services and programs that were made available to us through Dufferin Grove Park, including an ice rink in the winter, playground with wading pool in the summer, monthly, weekly or nightly free professional shows put on by Paperclay Theater and Dusk Dances (to mention a few), weekly farmers markets, community potlucks, the pizza oven which we were able to make our own pizzas with the help of Toronto Parks and Rec staff, public gardens, street fairs…

I could literally go on for hours about the happy memories I made in that park as a child with all of my friends. My street and the surrounding streets were a community, and as a child I never felt threatened within it. As an adult returning to my parents house, I notice that there are not fewer but more children then ever, who always seem to be running and playing down the sidewalks and in the park. Not much has changed.

My whole young adult life was spent in inner city schools with other children born and raised in the inner city, even on the dreaded Yonge street. We were all normal kids, living in quiet downtown neighbourhoods.

The comments you made were ignorant, and in that, either comedic or offensive. My parents, and the parents of my friends around me, ranging in employment from lawyers, to cashiers, to teacher, were not making poor decisions when they decided to raise their families downtown. If my own upbringing can be any indication, they were doing me the greatest service and I can never thank them enough.

thank you for your time,

Keith T-R

I heard about your concern for children on the busy streets of Toronto. I too have concerns; mostly for those rowdy street hockey players who I’m deathly afraid of not seeing, as they dart out from between cars for that surprise goal they have been waiting to score.

I don’t have buses or streetcars on the street where I live. Oddly enough, 30 years ago, when looking for a house in the Bayview/Davisville area, one of our requests to the real estate agent was a quiet street and close to good schools. 

I admit I wasn’t a good parent back then as I often let them run up and down the sidewalks on Bayview Avenue and oh yes, even Davisville Avenue.  Things have changed in those 30 years, my street is not as quiet as it once was, but, thankfully for my grandchildren’s sake, my children made it out of the neighbourhood and have discovered other wonderful neighbourhoods in Toronto.

My grandson (poor boy) is being raised in Little Italy. Just north of Trinity-Bellwoods Park. Oh yes, it’s noisy all right: cars, streetcars, children laughing as they walk along College St. with their parents. And the noise in the parks around them, good lord, so many children playing in the splash pads, on the swing sets, running in the open green space.

Another thing, those Farmer’s Markets in the parks: I thought they were good ideas, but I don’t know having to stand in a line to get to the fresh vegetables, fruits, flowers etc., behind all those young parents and their children. Why do children have to eat all that healthy food?

Tonight I saw my grandson running on College Street, laughing (my goodness how could he? it is not safe there, you told me that the other day) stomping in puddles, with people walking along the street smiling and laughing at his laughter as the water splashed.

I really must talk to my children about raising their families in downtown Toronto. I don’t want them to have the same kind of happy life their parents had.

Karen Siddiqi – Ward 22 resident

c.c. to Councillor Layton & Councillor Matlow

I watched with interest when you suggested that people should not raise their families in downtown Toronto. From what I understand, you have raised a number of concerns about safety. Although I do agree that there are certain dangers to living in a city, there are certain dangers regardless of where you live.

Specifically, you stated, “It makes for a healthier city to have children out on a street like King St. where it’s bumper-to-bumper traffic and people galore at all times of night and day? I just think of raising my own family there. That’s not the place I’d choose.” 

Here, you have highlighted a concern for the safety of children when playing near traffic. We should ask ourselves what the root of this problem is: is it that children are playing, or that there is “bumper-to-bumper traffic”? I think the issue here is that cities can fail in certain areas to accommodate the needs of its citizens.

If there is too much traffic on King Street, we need to be proactive and work to reduce this traffic. The benefits of cycling are well-known to urban-dwellers who do not use a car. By making it safer to cycle, more people will choose to do so. By making our roads safer, we may allow our children to play more and get the exercise they so desperately need. We need to continue to encourage families to live in Toronto rather than pushing them to the surrounding suburbs.

I spent a large portion of my life living in a GTA suburb. Throughout my life, I lived in three different GTA cities, a town of 2000 in the prairies, and spent a summer in rural Quebec. However, I spent most of my childhood living in the GTA. When I was in grade nine, I started taking the Go bus and the Go train to Toronto with friends to spend the day or the weekend.

I loved visiting Toronto. It was vibrant and exciting and it was easy to find something to do. Traveling to Toronto was convenient, not altogether time-consuming for spending the day, but not something I would enjoy doing five days a week for work.

You stated, “there are healthier places to raise children.” I disagree. Toronto ranked 15th in the 2011 Mercer worldwide Quality of Living survey and ranked 17th out of 50 in personal safety.[1] The number of homicides in Toronto has been on the decline since 2008 [2] and is lower than most American cities as of 2004 statistics.[3] Many parents and schools teach children how to be safe in Toronto.

Living in Toronto exposes children to new and vibrant cultures, from the various food festivals, children’s festivals, art festivals (Nuit Blanche is quite the spectacle!), and even dog festivals (such as Woofstock). Toronto Island is a great destination for families and the city benefits from many beautiful, clean parks. Some elementary schools have green roofs and school gardens, something that my suburban school never had.

Priorities are changing. So-called ‘Millennials’ (those born in the 1980s, generally) no longer want a car, don’t necessarily want to get married to have kids, and are less likely to have a license. Young people are changing.[4] Or, have they been this way all along?

The Atlantic claims that Millenials are ‘Generation Walk’ and they are probably right.[4] Those who live in the downtown core do so for the convenience and often out of a set of principles. There are many who try to do good by taking the bus, walking, or cycling because they don’t need to drive. They also don’t need to own a large home with a pool, a garage, and a porch. 

More and more parents are looking to raise their families in cities. We should not be attacking them for their choice, especially when such lifestyles (car-free and downtown living) are often healthier. A healthier citizen is a more productive, happier, and maybe even more engaged citizen. We should encourage such people.

Thank you,

T.N.

[1] “2011 Quality of Living Survey,” Mercer, 29 Nov. 2011, 14 Jul. 2012 <http://www.mercer.com/qualityoflivingpr#city-rankings>.

[2] “TPS Crime Statistics,” Toronto Police Services, 14 Jul. 2012 <http://www.torontopolice.on.ca/statistics/ytd_stats.php>.

[3]  ”Safety,” City of Toronto, 14 Jul. 2012 <http://www.toronto.ca/quality_of_life/safety.htm>.

[4] Jordan Weissmann, “Why Don’t Young Americans Buy Cars?” The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2012, 14 Jul. 2012 <http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/03/why-dont-young-americans-buy-cars/255001/>.

(sent Friday, July 13 to Councillor Doug Holyday and cc’ed to Councillor Adam Vaughan) 

(David Hayes had already written to Councillor Holyday by the time I suggested people start doing so. He sent an excerpt):

It wasn’t your suggestion that market forces, rather than the city, should be driving the size of condominiums. That’s a valid point to make, even if I might disagree.

It was the remark about raising children in a city’s downtown. I guess you don’t travel much, Deputy Mayor Holyday. Someday, you should visit Manhattan, San Francisco, Chicago, Paris, London, Rome, Amsterdam. All cities where families (parents & children) live in the city centres.

Your remark might not have been surprising in, say, 1955.

I don’t have a single friend (many of them raising children in the city, not the suburbs) who isn’t waiting eagerly for you guys to be out of office. For that matter, my circle of suburban friends tell me they feel the same way.

Sincerely, David

(sent July 13 to Councillor Doug Holyday; cc’ed to Mayor Ford, Councillor Doug Ford and Councillor Pam McConnell)

When I was a little boy, I took the bus downtown every Sunday to visit my mother. This forced me to see how other people lived, people who were different from me. It was horrible. I have yet to overcome the scars from this trauma.

Thank you sir, for not forcing a condo developer to devote 10 percent of its units to three-bedroom, family-friendly dwellings, and stating clearly that downtown Toronto is “really not the ideal place that people might want to raise their families.”

Children are a nuisance. Do we need one more verse of “The wheels on the bus go round and round” to confirm that kids are just anti-subway activists? We all know that every time they chant their surface transit slogans, they get another payoff of juice boxes and cookies from their fatcat TTC union bosses.

And parents are just diabolical. The very concept of mixing the genetic structure of two taxpayers, to produce one non-taxpayer, is nothing short of treason.

But let us take this a step further. Let’s ban children from downtown. Let’s force parents to wear blue and pink armbands when they enter the city and allow merchants to deny them service. Eliminating families will also free up space for driving and parking, thus ending the war on cars.

This will move Toronto closer to being like other great cities, such as Tokyo, New York or Montreal, which are only occupied by young, single, childless people.

Your fan,

Dr. Prof. Cornelius P. Mintz

p.s. Subways subways subways.

Never would I trade my rugged city streets for a dream of middle-class suburban comfort. I did not run through the picket fence streets of the Beaches. I did not play in the parks of Forest Hill.  I grew up in a corner of the real heart of Toronto, in the self proclaimed ghetto-streets of Parkdale. My childhood days were spent playing basketball in courts filled to the brim with children, riding the TTC with the most interesting of characters, strolling the streets to the hum of languages from all around the world, and eating any type of food my heart desired.

My high school was ranked one of the lowest in the province of Ontario. Yet it was here that I received the truest education. I was taught about the value of justice. I was taught to accept everyone and anyone regardless of the way they looked, the religion they practiced, the amount of money they had, or who they chose to love.  

I was taught about opinions and cultures from around the globe.  I was taught to handle myself in any situation that the world could throw at me. It was also here that I met some of the most incredibly intelligent folk I would ever encounter. Most of my friends went on to post-secondary studies. Others are excelling in their respective fields. Our run-down, downtown school created the most successful people my age that I know.

Yet, I never truly realized the value of my upbringing until I actually left the city for university. My eyes were opened to a whole new reality. I was surrounded by students who had grown up in small towns, in privileged gated communities, and all forms of suburbia. Most lacked an ounce of cultural sensitivity, could not survive a day without the constant assistance of their parents, and simply had no street-smarts whatsoever. I was able to quickly transition to my new life, to handle with ease the curve balls that I was thrown, and to be ultimately independent. Toronto let me do that.

If there is one thing about my life that I wouldn’t change for anything, it would be my upbringing in downtown Toronto.  This city has enabled me to be an active member of society, to stand up for my beliefs, and to truly be a citizen of the world.  

I grew up in Parkdale and I turned out alright.

Sincerely,

Samira Sayed-Rahman, 

a 21 year old “ghetto” university student, activist, part-time rapper, and average Torontonian.

(sent July 14th to Councillor Doug Holyday)