Toronto's Street Furniture Models Are Available! ...for 1day

Toronto is planning on signing a 20year contract with an advertising company for the supply of our street furniture and they're letting you see the models... but just for today. Then they're gone.

The models will be at City Hall for the balance of the day ('till 8pm). Torontoist has photographs as well. Public input on the furniture that will shape the face of the city however is another story. From an email from the TPSC's street furniture campaign:

According to staff, the models will again go on display for one or two additional days here and there in the coming weeks, depending on public "demand." How will they determine public demand? By 1) the number of people who show up to the exhibit they haven't told the public about. And 2) the "feedback" they receive to the email address they haven't told the public about.

If you have a problem with this, we encourage you to send emails to those people in a position to open up this process: David Nagler, the Public Consultation Coordinator; Andy Koropeski, the Director of Transportation Services; Elyse Parker, the Clean and Beautiful City Secretariat; and Mayor Miller, whose determination to privatize Toronto's civic infrastructure has been the driving force behind this project. Their addresses, respectively, are: streetfurniture@toronto.ca, akoropes@toronto.ca, eparker@toronto.ca, mayor_miller@toronto.ca.

I encourage anyone reading this to stop in on the models today if you can, or at the very least check them out on Torontoist and then send your input to the people making these decisions. Personally, I'm not much of a fan of any of the models -- mostly because these companies have all shown that they can't be trusted.

Below is the official press release from the TPSC's street furniture campaign:

11.5 HOURS FOR 20 YEARS
Street furniture models on display Wednesday for one day only

In yet another show of contempt for residents of this City, Transportation Services and Clean and Beautiful City staff have opted to put the models of the City's proposed "street furniture" on display to the public for one day only; they are visible in the City Hall rotunda from 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. today, Wednesday, April 4. "This is a contract into which the City would be locked for twenty years," said Jonathan Goldsbie, a campaigner with the Toronto Public Space Committee. "It is unconscionable that City staff could express such disdain towards the people in whose interests they are ostensibly working."

Staff say that they may add additional viewing days in the near future, if there is sufficient demand. How will demand be determined? Through attendance at the exhibition that is not being promoted to the public and through feedback received at an email address that is not being promoted to the public.

Members of the Toronto Public Space Committee will be on hand in the City Hall rotunda today to talk about the "street furniture," to provide the public with information on how to submit their comments, and to explain why this is just the latest fait accompli in a process marked by staff's and the Mayor's indifference towards the wishes and desires of the people of Toronto.

Edit: 2007.04.04 13:15:00

This just in: Jonathan (the TPSC street furniture coordinator) just got this email from the street furniture staff people:

Efforts have been ongoing with Facilities and Real Estate at Toronto City Hall to extend the viewing period of the street furniture models.

Confirmation has been received that street furniture models will be on display at City Hall (west side of rotunda) for a total of five days.

• 8:30am to 8:00pm (April 4, 2007)
• 8:30am to 4:30pm (April 5, 2007)
• 8:30am to 4:30pm (April 10, 2007)
• 8:30am to 4:30pm (April 11, 2007)
• 8:30am to 4:30pm (April 12, 2007)

Thank you for expressing interest. More information is available at toronto.ca/streetfurniture.