RC108 SeptOct2023 - Magazine - Page 41
TORONTO
FCM Conference
Jennifer McKelvie, Toronto’s Deputy Mayor
addresses the Federation of Canadian
Municipalities’ annual conference in Toronto, Ont.
FCM
MUNICIPAL LEADERS FROM ACROSS Canada
gathered in Toronto for FCM’s 2023 Annual
Conference and Trade Show. More than 1,500
municipal elected officials gathered to engage
national party leaders and representatives, to
shape FCM’s policy priorities, and to discuss
the challenges and the opportunities that
come with a rapidly growing Canada.
Through a new series of workshops, study
tours and keynotes (including speeches by
federal elected officials), municipal leaders
discussed their priorities and exchanged
ideas to draw a renewed roadmap for a
better-working country—one that is ready
to re-examine the fiscal framework that currently constrains municipalities.
“Canada’s municipal order of government
remains the closest to the lives of Canadians”, said Scott Pearce, Mayor of Gore,
Que. and FCM president. “Canada is facing
so many challenges, but also offers great
opportunities. Municipal elected officials are
driving local solutions to national challenges, whether it’s the need for tools to unlock
the right kind of housing supply, tackling
chronic homelessness, or addressing core infrastructure. This year’s Annual Conference
sent a clear message to the country—municipalities are leading.”
The event featured keynote addresses
RENEWCANADA.NET
from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Conservative Party of Canada deputy leader
Melissa Lantsman, NDP leader Jagmeet
Singh, and Green Party leader Elizabeth
May. Delegates also had an opportunity to
participate in workshop sessions focused on
municipal realities, including intercommunity transit, climate adaptation and mitigation, building great community spaces and
more. The Plenary stage hosted multiple
presentations, including a Rural Plenary
session on advocacy in Rural Communities,
and a discussion on the need for a new fiscal
framework for municipalities.
“If there has been one clear call to action
through this year’s event, it is the message to
the federal and provincial orders of government to engage with municipalities in a
national conversation regarding a new fiscal
framework for municipalities,” said Pearce.
“From housing to a growing mental health
crisis, municipalities are on the front lines of
national challenges, but with outdated fiscal
tools that are not designed to meet modern
challenges. FCM is primed to lead the next
steps of this work.”
FCM’s Big City Mayors’ Caucus (BCMC)
met at the event to discuss the most pressing
challenges facing Canada’s largest cities,
including the national homelessness and
mental health crises and the need for a
modern municipal growth framework to
empower solutions to the pressures of a
growing population.
“The mayors of Canada’s largest cities
have been crystal clear,” said mayor of Halifax and chair of the BCMC, Mike Savage,
who spoke alongside Toronto Deputy Mayor
Jennifer McKelvie and Montreal Mayor
Valérie Plante. “Large urban centers are
where our nation’s most pressing challenges are seen and felt first, and while cities
are leaders in addressing these challenges,
the reality is that municipalities across the
country are constrained by a fiscal framework that is not designed to empower local
governments to drive local solutions at the
scale needed in 2023 and beyond.”
During a press conference, the mayors
were asked about the latest federal budget
and how municipalities can work better with
all levels of government.
McKelvie, whose city is facing a significant budge shortfall, said Toronto’s finances
have still not recovered the effects of the
pandemic.
Using reserve funds to make up the difference is not a long-term solution, she said.
“It’s like taking out money from your
RRSPs to pay for groceries.”
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2023 – RENEW CANADA 41
