Ward 41 (Scarborough-Rouge River) Issue Profile

Only three candidates are running for city council in Ward 41 this year, but a short ballot doesn’t necessarily mean an easy decision in Scarborough-Rouge River.

Ten people registered for the electorate’s consideration in 2006, when the council seat was open, and while that number has dropped, Patricia Sinclair, Danny Chien and incumbent Chin Lee each offer unique and conflicting platforms.

Resident Stephen Grant said there is not much to be upset about in his ward, and does not really want to see any major changes.

“It’s a good community. It’s quiet and everybody knows each other. There aren’t really too many issues I think,” said Grant.

Whether he likes it or not, change is inevitably coming to the ward. On the top of the agenda for all candidates is the Transit City plan, which includes a light rapid transit (LRT) line down Sheppard Avenue through Scarborough.

Building the line will involve cutting up streets and major construction for the next several years. Each candidate wants more transit coming into the ward, but disagree on which method will best serve the community.

Since plans for the LRT were announced in 2008 along with redevelopment plans for Bridlewood Mall, Sinclair has been fighting for the city to scrap LRT and invest in subways. She is a founding member of a community group called Save Our Sheppard, lobbying against a transit plan she thinks will be wasteful and hurt the esthetics of the community.

“If we are wasting millions of dollars, like the St. Clair right of way…then we won’t have money for things like municipal standards enforcement,” said Sinclair.

“For 30 years we have been promised a subway and it’s still not here. What’s the matter? Now they are presenting these streetcars to us as light rail and people believe it’s something other than it really is, which is street cars.”

Fellow candidate Chien also disapproves of building a light rail system, in favour of a subway that could better support increases in population density he feels are inevitable.

“Eventually that system is not going to be able to handle the amount of people we will have here…we are going to have to go back to a subway system, so why are we spending $900 million now instead of spending a little bit more and putting a system in place that can handle the eventual population density?” said Chien.

“If you have more people that move into an area, property value will go up, more businesses will go up and there will be more employment. It’s great for a community to have more people move in.”

Lee is the lone candidate supporting the current plan because he didn’t think his constituents want more population density.

He cited greater visibility to businesses and more realistic costs associated with the LRT. Lee has been working with local businesses for the last two years to help guide them through difficult times he knows will be associated with LRT construction. In the long run, he said there will be greater benefits to businesses and the community in general.

“I don’t think I pulled the wool over their eyes. There is going to be some pain, but it is a matter of doing our homework and going ahead with this to make sure the pain is minimized,” he said. “I’ve been working hard with them to minimize construction, but after that, benefits will come with increased traffic and increased visibility of an LRT. That’s the thing people don’t think about. With a subway everybody is underground and won’t see the businesses above.”

He also didn’t think Ward 41 residents were in favour of the intensification a subway would bring, instead favouring examination of how the Scarborough LRT connecting Kennedy station to the Scarborough Town Centre could be converted into a subway in the future.

Another aspect of this council race is the clashing political orientations of Lee and Chien. Each are staunch supporters of a different mayoral candidate and have made their feeling very clear during the election. Chien throws his support behind Rob Ford, while Lee has publicly endorsed George Smitherman.

Both said they will work with whoever is elected as mayor, but these endorsements may sway a few council votes one way or another.

“I really hope (Ford is elected) because I think George Smitherman would be the absolute worst mayor Toronto can have,” said Chien.

He claimed Ford personally encouraged him to run in Ward 41, which is a contrast to the Liberal Party support Lee has enjoyed in the past. Local MPP Bas Balkisoon endorsed him in his first election win in 2006.

“I’m not going to hide and not say anything…I’m an open book and I’m willing to state my mind,” said Lee. “A lot of people that like Ford are still going to vote for me and they have told me that.”

Sinclair has remained neutral in her support for the next mayor, stating she will work with whoever is elected.

Transit and political ideology have provided contrast in Ward 41, but each candidate has a few other items to round out their platforms.

Lee said keeping the community informed about municipal politics and containing spending at city hall are big issues for him.

Chien promises to tackle rooming houses in the area by finding better ways to house the lower income families and individuals that rent them. He also wants to reexamine driveway bylaws that have recently been amalgamated across Toronto.

Sinclair is most well known for her opposition to streetcars, but is also running on a platform of responsible spending, supporting the middle class and paying more attention to esthetics in the ward.

- Eric Heino

Posted in Scarborough