Mammoliti has big plans if elected
ERIN KANN
Giorgio Mammoliti’s mayoral campaign, ‘Outrageously in Touch,’ promises big risks and big returns, but not everyone is convinced it will fly.
The campaign centers around “the three R’s”- rethink, rebuild, and return. Mammoliti says he will rethink Toronto’s operational strategies and assess what works, and what doesn’t. He will rebuild the parts that are ineffective in order to give a better return to the community.
If elected, the first thing Mammoliti says he’ll do is cut property tax by 5 per cent.
Giorgio Mammoliti speaks out at his campaign launch party on Feb. 25.
He proposes addressing crime by putting an 11p.m. curfew on all teens under 14 years of age, declaring that kids out on the streets late at night are the ones who get picked up by gangs.
“Everyone’s concerned about the plastic bags, but no one’s thinking about the body bags that are coming home from crime,” Mammoliti says.
The Humber College graduate wants to make a commitment to the people who have worked hard in the community for their whole lives.
“Seniors will never have to pay property tax again,” he says.
On top of abolishing property tax for those on pensions, Mammoliti will give a $10,000 credit per parent to families that have their parents live at home with them. He says it’s about keeping families together.
Mammoliti’s plans hinge on building a casino downtown. First a smaller casino would be built, probably on a boat, he says. After a few years, the city would look into a permanent location for a casino in Toronto.
Etobicoke North Councillor, and president at city hall, Rob Ford isn’t convinced. Ford a newly announced mayoral candidate, notes that although the casino could be a cash cow for Toronto, building one would not be Mammoliti’s decision.
According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, there is no official cap for the number of casinos that can be built in the province. However, an OLG representative says building a new casino is up to the provincial government, not the city. Applying for, and building a casino could take up to 10 years.
There is already a casino and racetrack in Rexdale and Ford says if anything, the mayor should expand on that one.
Ford believes that Mammoliti’s promises don’t hold water.
“What throws me for a loop with Mammoliti though, is he says he’s going to cut property tax by 5 per cent, yet he’s voted for every property tax put forward,” Ford says.
In the 10 years Ford has sat on City Council, he has never voted for a property tax increase in Toronto.
The biggest issue that Ford would like to see resolved is the mismanagement of funds in the city. He says since Mayor David Miller took office, spending and debt have both tripled.
“We’re $3 billion in debt…We need a mayor to undo basically everything that Miller did,” Ford says.
For the root of the problems, Ford looked in his own backyard.
“It all starts at the top. You can yell and scream at whoever you want, but at the end of the day, there’s 45 councillors that vote on everything,” Ford says.
Ford’s announcement of his candidacy on March 25 tightens a mayoral race that also features former Ontario cabinet minister George Smitherman.
Both councillors may get their chance to keep their promises this fall, as the Toronto election is set for October 25.
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