The title of this post is a double entendre. Figuratively, it is meant to convey that the size of the proposed development is going to contaminate our neighbourhood. Literally it is on contaminated ground that is being excavated without proper protocols. 419-425 Woodbine is just another in a long line of overdevelopment and overdensity. They…
Despite numerous valid concerns, Toronto and East York Community Council approved the new Murphy’s Law development unanimously and without an ounce of scrutiny. But the fight isn’t over yet, there is still a chance to convince the rest of council, or sway councillors who already voted yes at community council, to not approve the new…
It was another bang of my head against a brick wall in my latest deputation at the Toronto and East York Community Council. No amount of information or statistics seem to matter, it’s a rubber stamp committee. I don’t know why they don’t just end the farce and let the public know these decisions are…
I attended the community “consultation” for 143-147 Main St on Feb 12th. It was the usual: developers and planners present and justify their plans, making overreaching and greatly impactful applications seem reasonable and fair. It is abundantly clear the goal is to densify every major intersection in Toronto, and overdensify anything remotely close to a…
Councillor Bradford and the Planning and Housing Committee have made it official: the Queen St E Urban Design Guidelines are a sham and they have no intention of honouring them. Regardless of those guidelines being developed 14 years ago, they still reflect the sentiment of residents, and the majority of developments that were supposed to…
On Nov 27, 2025 I deputed at Toronto and East York Community Council regarding yet another oversized development planned for 6 Dawes Rd. You can watch the deputation here: Councillor Moise interrupted me twice, first when I called out Mike Harris and Doug Ford for removing rent controls, and again when I called out the…
Hello, my name is Adam Smith; lifelong Toronto resident, father, activist, and two-time candidate for Toronto councillor. I created the Restore the Wards campaign to convince provincial parties and candidates that restoring Toronto’s wards prior to Ford’s 2018 mid-election slashing was an important issue in the 2022 Ontario election. Sadly, it was not. You know…
This article was so incredibly off-base in so many regards it requires a whole blog post to debunk it. It is rife with pro-developer neoliberal ideology, and one of the sources is quite surprising (ie disappointing). It’s not clear if the author is 1) just reporting what these “experts” have told her completely oblivious to…
Picture: Protest in front of 55 Division, July 6, 2020 I went to the protest in front of 55 Division on July 6, and found the story of Mark Austin resonated with me. Not because I’ve been the victim of racial discrimination, but because I too have been assaulted, multiple times, only to have 55…
SIGN THE PETITION HERE My name is Adam Smith, I’m a lifelong resident born and raised in Toronto. I am requesting Toronto City Council to fully defund and dismantle the Mounted Police Unit in Toronto as a starting point to making cuts to the police budget. In the 21st century in a modern city like Toronto…
UPDATE: March 5, 2019 The petition supporting the recommendations of the report has been submitted to Councillor Bradford’s office on Feb 26, 2019. The petition garnered over 100 names, mostly from residents on Dixon Ave, Woodbine Ave, Lockwood Rd, and Sarah Ashbridge Ave. We have requested a public meeting at Corpus Christie church and await the councillor’s…
On Feb 21, 2019 I spoke at the city’s Special Committee on Governance, which was formed to take public input on how to govern Toronto now that Ford abruptly slashed council in half mid-election, and also to discuss Councillor Bradford’s motion to institute term limits. The committee has five councillors: Perks, Carroll, Holyday, Crawford, and…
My years with the Beach Village BIA (2010-2016) were my first foray into volunteering, lobbying, and advocacy, and my first time on a board of directors. The board has changed over the years, but regardless of the board’s membership I was frequently the sole voice of opposition to many ill-considered policies and plans, and found myself often…
This is what I like to call “auto-waste”, and it’s a policy of FAR too many businesses, organizations, and charities in the Western world. Basically it means that no matter how you sign up for something, for example entirely online, the entity you signed up with will automatically send you a bunch of wasteful paper…
