If I had a billion dollars...

I’d buy your loooovvvveee….

Couldn’t help myself.

But seriously, as the G20 descends upon us, I think we are all emerging from our collective slumber, shaking our heads and thinking: how the hell did that happen?!

What would you do with a billion dollars? Could you think of a few better ways to spend the billion dollars that our great federal government (which I remind you does not have the support of the majority of the voters in our fine country) than on security and food, fake lakes and Muskoka chairs for reporters, and other odds and ends for a meeting that lasts a mere two days?

That’s -- let me get out my calculator -- $500-million a day. Wow. A nice chunk of change.

If I were to dream a little dream of a City – let’s say Toronto— and how it could be made more livable, where would I spend $1 billion?

This makes for a fun party game. I have tried it out on some friends over the last few days and here are some of the ideas they came up with (thank you friends):

- Put farmers market stands near subway and Go stops
- Spend it on bike lanes with actual barriers to cars.
- Put it into the construction of more affordable housing
- Continue the ecoEnergy home retrofit program
- Create more non-profit, public childcare spaces
- Send some kids who can’t afford to summer in Muskoka to Muskoka to swim in some real lakes

Or maybe George Smitherman could pay back the billion-something dollars lost in the e-health fiasco, and give a boost to Transit City. But don’t even think about letting him run it.

Okay, I’m feeling a little cheeky today. But what the hell.

The best I’ve heard yet is the Pantalone campaign’s response: The City could lend the money to the province so they could live up to their obligations on Transit City.

Clean and easy as a dip in an Ontario lake. A real one. I hear we have a few.

About Marit Stiles

Comments

[Rocco]

I would fund all-day kindergarten class for Ontario and would still have enough money left over to improve service at hospitals.

[Paolo]

Also, a six figure funding for Pride. We'll never get over that. And more funding to improve tourist events and areas for people who aren't suits.

[Nancy]

Invest the money in Transit City.
Create more parking lots close to subway stops to encourage the use of the TTC.

[François]

Simple: public transit improvements, rejuvenate parks and outside pools, affordable housing, upgrade the fire engines, develop a real cycling lane system... so many things!

[Jason]

The money could allow the Blue Jays to win the Al East for like 5 years in a row.

[Casey]

Wait a sec, this isn't Toronto's money if I'm not mistaken. Why not say "what could we do for Ontario!?

[Canadian Biker]

As inconvenient as it may be to ackowledge, the billion dollars that everyone likes to crow about is FEDERAL money, meaning it's tax dollars from everyone from St John to Vancouver and not the sole entitlement of the Centre Of The Universe(tm). So maybe instead of bike lanes in downtown Toronto the money could be used to help Native Canadians across Canada or give a raise to our soldiers or increase the pensions paid to ALL Canadian seniors; you know, the ones who spent their lives building this country.

[red5]

One small word: subways. Finish the Eglington (and connect it to Pearson) & Sheppard lines, extend Yonge/University/Spadina further north, and generally improve the TTC.

[W. K. Lis]

$1,000,000,000.00 is ¼ or 25% of the $4 billion cut from Transit City. That is money we could have used to improve public transit for all of us, not just the 500 delegates and world leaders coming to the G8/G20 summit for the few days they will be here.

[Gerry]

Toronto is good at spending other people's money. That's why so much effort goes into getting Provincial and Federal bailouts and subsidies. Both of those sources are in debt to their eyeballs anr are still running record deficits. It's time for Toronto to stop dreaming, get their own finances in order, and build reserves for their capital budgets. The other gift horses are hobbled. It's time to grow up and start to walk on your own.

[RonMacD]

The money is being spent in Ontario, so what's the problem?

[Theresa Wojtasiewicz]

What about paying down the federal deficit?

[r pearlston]

One billion dollars for Toronto? Hmm, let's see. This is soooooo easy - make the whole of the TTC fully accessible, including redoing the signage in every subway station and making certain that at every subway transfer point, everyone can easily get both between the different lines but from each line to the street / bus platform.

After all, what good is it to live in a city of not every resident can move around in said city?

[JIm]

Enough of this story already!!!

[Jinah]

- improve transit by building more stations and improve existing lines
- give the money to city services to eliminate the Toronto land transfer tax (Torontonians are the only ones who are taxed twice when buying a home)
- pay down the deficit

[Jose]

*improve, upgrade and extend the subway system - an Eglinton subway line from Pearson Airport to the Eglinton Go (scarborough) or Scarborough Town Centre or Eglinton/Kingston in Scarborough; extending the Sheppard line from the Airport to Scarborough; the 1985-planned DRL line; a Lawrence line; Queen Street line. And yes, while terminating the subway extension to Vaughan (it's the TTC, not VTC or York TC).

* create more underground parking lots (wherever current existing parking is), however, that is why public transportation must be extended and be made better so that people wouldn't need to drive to subway stations and park their car there.

* more funding towards health care, local agriculture (farms), building restoration and job growth (while making sure the federal gov't reduces immigration to 25,000/year), NOT housing/condos

[anna di vito]

hire some city planners with creativity and foresight, not just in it for the money, first keep ethnic neighbourhoods ethnic, they are tourist attractions, Thai noodle houses and shwarma palaces stay out of little italy and greek town, get your own street, high rises on gardiner drive, create buildings with some artistry, something pleasing to look at, not towers of brass and glass, attack the drug war differently, instead of pursuing the drug dealers, go after the user with siff penalties, if the dealers don`t have a market, they will eventually dry up, job creation idea build more jails, finally what does ttc do with our taxes, besides wasting it on limos for his girlfriend can`t they put a subway over every door in the subway car.

thank you for letting me get this off my chest

[lattegirl]

I'm just as frustrated as the next person but the truth is the money is already spent. Lets not focus on all the things the money could have done. Do I agree with how the money was spent? Not in the least but lets not dwell in the things of the past but rather look to the future.