Lace up your skates and join the Friends of Regent Park, Parks and Recrearation and me for a free Family Day Skate in Regent Park! Saturday, February 14, 2026, 12:00-6:00 pm at the Regent Park Ice Rink, 480 Shuter Street.
A huge thank you to everyone, including residents, business leaders and their associations, who wrote to Mayor Chow and the Budget Committee to demand that the Downtown East Action Plan (DEAP) be fully funded. Thanks to your support, funding for the DEAP will increase from $756,000 to $1.4 million this year. The plan will need a full $2.2 million in 2027, so I hope you will continue to support this significant work next year. This critical funding supports our Clean Streets teams and Community Safety initiatives to ensure our neighbourhoods are clean, safe, and welcoming.
Last December, I wrote about the impact of Premier Ford’s Bill 60, Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025’s impact on renters. The impact of Bill 60 goes beyond the Premier’s fight against bike lanes in Etobicoke; it threatens to derail any current or future transportation project in Toronto that dares impact a lane of traffic.
The City is accepting applications for its new Material Exchange Directory, a user‑friendly online resource that will showcase local programs helping Torontonians sell, buy donate or trade materials instead of sending them to landfill. Launching later in 2026, the directory will help residents, community groups and businesses find local organizations that support the reuse, resale or donation of excess goods and materials, including household items, equipment and building materials.
Help shape Toronto’s waste future by sharing what matters to you. Your feedback in the final phase of the City’s Long-term Waste Management Strategy Update consultations will help inform the 10-year (2026–2036) Reduction and Diversion Plan to increase waste diversion, reduction and reuse through implementation of policies, programs and education. Join the virtual consultation on Wednesday, February 11 from 7:00pm to 8:30pm and take the online survey before Sunday, March 8.
On January 26, the City of Toronto relaunched the “Make the Right Call” campaign. In addition to informing residents of when to call 9-1-1, 3-1-1 or 2-1-1, the campaign includes a new way to connect with the police non-emergency line by dialing *-8-7-7 from a mobile phone. Those calling from a landline can continue to use 416-808-2222.
On December 2, I officially named an laneway adjacent to 10 Bright Street after the late Canadian artist, Joyce Wieland. Together with members of her family, friends, neighbours, old students and the Art Gallery of Ontario, I was honored to commemorate her contributions and legacy.
As a big supporter of public libraries, I’m thrilled to announce that the St. Lawrence Library Branch will be moving to 339 Queen Street East! For many years, the Toronto Public Library (TPL) has been working to relocate the branch, currently located at 171 Front Street East, elsewhere as the space was relatively small and the building itself was subject to frequent water leaks and heating issues. The new space will allow the library to transform into a larger district branch and bring exciting new opportunities to the Corktown, Regent Park, and St. Lawrence neighbourhoods it borders.
Every year I host six Neighbourhood Town Halls in the fall to provide updates to the local community and give residents a chance to ask direct questions. There are three left, one at Central Neighbourhood House on October 15, one at the 519 Community Centre on October 23 and a virtual town hall on November 4. Registration is encouraged, with details below.
On Monday, June 2, the intersection of King Street East and Church Street closed to through traffic as the City of Toronto begins the replacement of a 142-year-old watermain. This work will be followed by streetcar track renewal, impacting local transit routes until mid-August 2025.
This work will necessarily impact transit along King Street East, with much of the transit traffic being diverted to Queen Street East while construction is ongoing. Please read on for a summary of the current status of construction, as well as information about route diversions during this critical work.
Starting January 1, 2026, the City of Toronto will no longer manage recycling collection. Under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act of 2016, this responsibility will shift to producers, with Circular Materials taking over Blue Bin collections for all residential properties, schools, long-term care facilities and retirement homes.