It’s possible to believe two different things at once — that John Tory should step down from the Rogers Control Trust Advisory Committee but that the complaint brought against him to the integrity commissioner at City Hall has no merit.
Commissioner Johnathan Batty confirmed his investigation into a complaint on Friday saying, “I caution that I have reached no conclusion.”
The complaint arises from an activist named Adam Chaleff, formerly known as Adam Chaleff-Freudenthaler, the man responsible for several complaints against former mayor Rob Ford and then councilor Doug Ford.
A self-described progressive urbanist and left-wing activist, he was once described as a “little prick” by Doug Ford in an interview with National Post in 2012. Judging by Chaleff’s record of filing partisan and politically-motivated complaints, I’d say that Ford’s description is accurate.
Again, not to say that Tory shouldn’t step down from the trust, but it shouldn’t be over this.
Chaleff’s complaint is over Tory voting on ActiveTO and whether Lake Shore Blvd. W. should be closed to vehicle traffic when large events, including Blue Jays games, are on. The City sought public input on this issue back in May and in June, Blue Jays President Mark Shapiro wrote to the City expressing the team’s issues with road closures on game days.
“Many of our fans travel to Rogers Centre from outside of the GTA and taking public transit is not an option. Out-of-town fans are often not aware of ActiveTO and do not know to allocate extra travel time,” Shapiro wrote.
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For those who don’t know, the Blue Jays are owned by Rogers and, as has been noted, Tory has ties to Rogers.
On June 15, the majority of council, including Tory, voted for a staff recommendation not to close that section of road when major events were taking place. It’s a decision that makes sense except to extremist cycling activists and progressive radicals like Chaleff.
While most city residents said halleluiah at the decision, he filed a complaint with the integrity commissioner.
According to Chaleff, Tory’s position on the Rogers Control Trust Advisory Committee and the fact he’s a Rogers shareholder means the Mayor had a “pecuniary interest.” Basically, Chaleff’s beef is that Tory makes money from Rogers and that’s why he voted the way he did.
I don’t buy that for a second.
Council heard of problems with ambulances and residents accessing the emergency department at St. Joseph’s Hospital. They heard of firefighters having trouble getting to someone trapped in an elevator because the roads were so backed up.
Council, including Tory, made the right decision here, the sensible decision.
But to Chaleff, the left-wing activist, this is about Tory making more money. Have you seen John Tory’s bank account? I haven’t but I know enough to know he’s not doing much for the money these days.
Now, should Tory step down from his position with the Rogers Control Trust Advisory Committee? Yes, but not because this “little prick” — as Ford aptly described him — filed a complaint but because it’s the right thing to do.
Rogers has a lot of business with the City. The Blue Jays will be coming before the City over their plans to reconstruct Rogers Centre, right now with renovations, but eventually for a rebuild. They may ask for money or concessions.
Tory has declared his position with Rogers to the Integrity Commissioner, who I doubt will find against him on this file, but that’s not enough. As he seeks a third term, Tory should pledge that, if re-elected, he will step down from the trust while he is in office.
It’s the right thing to do and it will stop complaints from coming forward in the future.
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