Community campaign calls for advisory board to increase Toronto's autonomy from province

A community-led letter campaign is pushing for a citizens' advisory board to help Toronto gain more independence from the province.

More than 85 letter writers, including Margaret Atwood, are asking city council to create the board next week. 

Many residents are frustrated with what they see as the province interfering with municipal affairs, said Doug Earl, a member of Charter City Toronto – a group advocating for Toronto to have a constitutionally protected city charter.  

After the province passed a bill in November allowing for the removal of three major Toronto bike lanes, there was a surge in people reaching out to Charter City Toronto, Earl said. 

"When the province starts to interfere in something as basic as how we organize our streets and what lanes are going to be on our streets, that's really a bridge too far for a lot of Torontonians," he said. 

Another example of provincial interference was when Premier Doug Ford's government slashed the size of Toronto's city council during the 2018 municipal election, Earl said. 

The citizens' advisory board would be "an official forum in which citizens can research, discuss and report back on ideas for transforming the city from a so-called 'creature of the province' to a body with real authority," according to a news release from Charter City Toronto. 

Ford 'meddles in our city all the time,' councillor says

On Tuesday, the city council's executive committee will vote on a motion to create the board, put forward by councillors Josh Matlow and Jamaal Myers.

Matlow said he's asking city council to support exploring whether Toronto can create constitutionally protected city charter. 

Canadian cities have no power other than what their provinces give them, and Premier Doug Ford "meddles in our city all the time," he said. 

Most mid-sized to large cities in the U.S. have city charters, he added.

"I'm under no illusions that Doug Ford is gonna come around and be a big supporter of Toronto's autonomy," Matlow said. "But if we begin the work now … we can start doing the real work that needs to be done to empower Toronto." 

CBC Toronto has reached out to Mayor Olivia Chow's office and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing for comment.