Toronto: Considering Self-Government

Toronto: Considering Self-government is an exploration of the potential for the Toronto region to gain greater control over its future. Decentralization has become the buzzword of corporate restructuring worldwide as a proven means of maximizing productivity, efficiency and service quality. This seminal book examines the potential for a similar course for municipal governance.

Initiated by Alan Broadbent, chairman and CEO of Avana Capital Corporation, Toronto: Considering Self-government documents the early stages of what will no doubt prove to be a rigourous and challenging process: the reconsideration of governance for Canada's largest and most prosperous city. "There are many of us in this region committed equally to economic prosperity and social justice," Broadbent says. "We know we can build a society embracing both-not sacrificing one for the other." Of importance not only to Toronto, this book also presents a crucial analogy for the other large urban regions of Canada. Toronto: Considering Self-government initiates a discussion of how governance arrangements arrived at over a century ago to service a predominantly agrarian society must be adapted to the urban reality of Canada in the 21st century.

Toronto: Considering Self-government includes papers by Jane Jacobs , Joe Berridge, Alan Broadbent, David Crombie, Meric S. Gertler, Richard Gilbert, Michael Mendelson, David M. Nowlan, John Sewell and Enid Slack. Edited by Mary W. Rowe and published by The Ginger Press, this book is essential reading for everyone concerned with the ongoing health and vibrancy of both the Toronto region and the rest of Canada.

Contents
• Introduction
  Jane Jacobs and Mary W. Rowe
• The Evolution of Toronto: Participants
• The Autonomy of Cities in Canada
  Alan Broadbent
• The Evolution of Toronto
  David Crombie
• There's No Need to Sit and Wait for a Handout
  Joe Berridge
• Environmental and Resource Aspects of Self-sufficiency for the Toronto Region
  Richard Gilbert
• Self-determination for Toronto: What are the Economic Conditions and Do They Exist?
  Meric S. Gertler
• The Road to Financial Self-sufficiency for Toronto: What are the Impediments and How Can They Be Overcome?
  Enid Slack
• The City Status of Toronto
  John Sewell
• The Emancipation of Cities
  Michael Mendelson
• Towards Home Rule for Urban Policy
  David M. Nowlan