City council votes to lift ban on street hockey
Posted July 15, 2016 7:14 am.
Last Updated July 15, 2016 8:21 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
City council has voted to overturn a ban on street hockey.
Leading up to the vote, Minister of Children and Youth Services Michael Coteau penned an open letter to Toronto city councillors, urging them to lift the controversial bylaw.
“I firmly believe that we should encourage kids to play,” Coteau, who has two young daughters, wrote.
On Friday, council agreed and Mayor John Tory was quick to celebrate the decision on Twitter, tweeting “Game On!”
With the ban now lifted, residents can play street hockey on local roads with a speed limit of 40 kilometres or less, between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. during daylight hours.
While street usage is governed by municipal bylaws, not provincial legislation, Coteau had urged the city to set an example for other jurisdictions that prohibit street hockey. He had lauded the health benefits of the game and noted that social skills, compromise and teamwork can also be learned through sport.
The fight against the street hockey ban was spearheaded by Coun. Christin Carmichael Greb after residents in her ward received violation notices from the city last fall for having hockey and basketball nets on the roadside.
After looking into the issue and finding that a bylaw banning street hockey dated at least as far back as 1978, Carmichael Greb set out to change the rules around the sport.
“Kids are playing street hockey and basketball now anyway. I would rather have them do that without the fear of being fined or getting in trouble for it,” she said.
“We have big problems now with obesity rates in children and to put things in place that prevent them from being active I think is something that we really need to look at.”
Toronto also moved one step closer to becoming the first place where anyone can text 911 operators instead of just calling them.
Coun. Norm Kelly, who tabled the motion, said in a written statement that he was delighted by the vote’s outcome, adding that it reinforced Toronto as a leader of technological innovation in Canada.
Many parts of Canada, including Toronto and 500 other Ontario communities, offer 911 texting for people with hearing or speech impairments.
Nowhere in Canada, however, is 911 texting available to the general population.
Also up for debate on Friday, affordable housing, including a plan to use “surplus” public land for affordable housing.
A digital billboard in Leaside is also up for debate, with many residents petitioning against the proposal. They argue lit signs belong in Yonge-Dundas Square, but not their residential community.
Follow that debate here.
During their four-day meeting, councillors approved safe injection sites and a plan to continue with the Scarborough subway extension.
Council also agreed to ask the province to ban people from using handheld devices while crossing the road. Coun. Frances Nunziata’s motion passed 26-15. It was part of a larger road safety plan passed, which sets an ambitious goal of reducing the number of road fatalities to zero over a five-year period.
Along with the text and walk ban, the plan calls for reducing the speed limit on a number of downtown streets.
However, Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca says the province has no plans to amend the Highway Traffic Act.
“Municipalities are mature levels of government with powers to establish bylaws in the best interest of their communities,” said Del Duca. “The City of Toronto has the power to pass a bylaw similar to the one requested (Thursday).”
Council also agreed to end child care waitlist fees.
Related stories:
City council approves supervised injection sites, asks for text & walk ban
Scarborough subway extension to proceed despite ballooning costs
Transit a hot topic in heated Ward 2 byelection debate
Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report
