Why U.S. Cities Should Envy Toronto for Electing Rob Ford
But Mr. Ford, who died on March 22 while being treated for a rare form of cancer, wasn’t a sign that something was wrong with the city, but evidence of the smart planning and foresight that helped Toronto avoid many of the problems that plague American cities. In short, Toronto works because its suburbs never separated themselves economically or politically from the city core. Mr. Ford, a suburban populist, may have been an embarrassment to some, but his election shows that the system works.
.. The tension between the old Toronto and its suburbs is unlikely to vanish, nor are shifts in fortune between the two sides. But throughout all the battles, Toronto’s unified tax base has supported both and mitigated any political consequences.
..Compare Toronto’s good fortune with that of one of its closest American neighbors: Detroit. As David Maraniss’s new book, “Once in a Great City,” explains, Detroit had for years hoped to tie its tax base to that of the surrounding suburbs.
..an abandoned center surrounded by wealthy suburbs that simply look the other way. While other cities in the United States eventually formed metro governments, only Portland, Ore., has followed Toronto’s model and elected a regional council.