City's economic development committee looking over core service review

TORONTO, Ont. - The core service review of city services took the spotlight once again on Tuesday, as the economic development committee looked over suggested savings from the report by KPMG.

Some of the cost savings suggested in the report include cutting back services to business improvement areas and the film office, which left some councillors with a bad taste in their mouth.

"To go to this bean counter approach is not a very wise way to do it," Councillor Paula Fletcher told 680News, adding that the city needs to support industries which create jobs and bring money.

Furthermore, Toronto's film industry said such cuts would diminish the city's role on the international stage.

"The very last action that we should be considering is excising the nerve centre of our permitting location and problem solving operations," said a spokesman for the film office.

Fletcher plans to defend every service while calling on Mayor Rob Ford to take action.

"I think it's really up to him. He should be a leader, he's gotta tell people what he thinks of all of this, and I'm going to wait for him."

Fletcher believes the meetings over the past couple have days have been a rehearsal for what is to come at the executive committee meeting, scheduled for September 19.  

On Monday, it was the public works and infrastructure committee putting the review under the microscope. They did not make any decisions, and instead, referred the matter of the executive committee at the end of the day.

Their decisions could be made as early as Tuesday.