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Josh in the Community
My Staff and I are here to assist you with any questions or concerns you may have about your neighbourhood and/or your home. We’re working every day to make our community safer while improving Midtown’s parks, main streets, and the many valued services we rely on including recreation, childcare, and waste collection. I hope to see you out in our community soon!
Josh at City Hall
On your behalf, I am advocating for a more thoughtful, creative, and responsible approach to policy issues at City Hall. I take very seriously the responsibility to make informed decisions that are based on evidence, community consultation, and the merits of arguments – rather than partisanship. I will continue representing our community at Council meetings on transit, tenant concerns, childcare, green space, and other issues that matter most to Midtown residents. Or, you can reach us by phone at 416 392-7906.
Current News Updates
City Hall and Community Update for April 5, 2016
A Comprehensive Rapid Transit Plan Moves Forward with a Network [...]
680 News: Changes made at petting zoo following public complaints
March 20, 2016
Faiza Amin
680 News
A photo showing a camel in a tight pen, surrounded by his feces has prompted a petting zoo operating in Toronto to make some changes.
On Sunday, the owner of Tiger Paw responded to concerns that animals weren’t being taken care of at his petting zoo.
In a statement to CityNews, Tim Height said, “A camel doesn’t move around a lot, they like to lie down. To us it’s not an issue, but if we find out the public has an issue, we don’t mind changing it.”
Metro: If road tolls come to Toronto, who should pay them?
The city took another step towards tolling the Gardiner and Don Valley Parkway last week, but there's no consensus on who should have to pay.
March 16, 2016
Luke Simcoe
Metro Toronto
Traffic jams the Gardiner Expressway in downtown Toronto in this April 8, 2000 photo. PHOTO: Torstar News Service
Tolls could be coming to the Gardiner and Don Valley Parkway, but it may not be a pay-one, pay-all system.
Some believe tolls should only be paid by those commuting into Toronto from other cities.
“Given that so many people who drive into Toronto every day use infrastructure paid for solely by Toronto taxpayers, it's a reasonable question to ask,” Coun. Josh Matlow said.
CBC News: OMB ‘very broken,’ needs reform, Guelph councillor says
Kitchener deferred motion to call on province to limit scope of Ontario Municipal Board
March 9, 2016
Kate Bueckert
CBC News
Photo: Colin Butler/CBC News
Several municipalities are calling on the province to change the way the Ontario Municipal Board operates. Guelph city councillor Cathy Downer says "bold reform" is needed.
In January, the Town of Aurora passed a motion calling on the province to limit the scope of what the OMB can address to matters of law and process. The OMB is a tribunal that hears applications and appeals under various land use planning laws and operates under the Environment and Land Tribunals Ontario.
Toronto Sun: Who’s keeping eye on city workers, councillor asks
Employee on jury duty break didn't return to work.
March 7, 2016
Maryam Shah
Toronto Sun
Councillor Josh Matlow. Photo: tan Behal/Toronto Sun files
TORONTO - A city councillor says he’s baffled by how a city employee was able to miss work for 44 days during a break in jury duty before being fired.
“It seems like people can disappear around here and there’s no accountability for where they went and when they’re coming back,” Councillor Josh Matlow said Monday.
Toronto Star: Toronto council lacking critical transit information ahead of key decisions
Staff released 369 pages worth of studies on Thursday night ahead of requesting council endorse a new multibillion dollar plan to build out a transit grid.
March 4
Jennifer Pagliaro and Tess Kalinowski
Toronto Star
Some key information is expected to be provided to Toronto council just two weeks before they are set to approve a multibillion-dollar network of new transit. Photo: MARCUS OLENIUK / TORONTO STAR FILE PHOTO
Toronto city council is being asked to endorse a network of new transit lines worth billions of dollars without essential information needed to justify those plans.
On Thursday night, city staff posted 369 pages worth of studies about the new network which mostly deal with how many people are projected to ride those lines.
But the studies consider a transit map that’s already been redrawn. Updated numbers aren’t expected until June — just two weeks before council will be asked to approve building that map, to be built out over the next 15 years, and long after public consultations have already wrapped up.
Councillor Josh Matlow said it’s not good enough that those numbers will be provided at the “11th hour.”
“That’s not a responsible way to plan transit, to spend billions of dollars, and it’s not fair to councillors or the public we serve,” he said.
