Budget Chief-Yes/Local Representative-YES!

By now you will have read or heard that I have been appointed to the post of Budget Advisory Committee Chair by Toronto's newly constituted Executive Committee. It is a great honour to be supported by this group of City Council veterans. The task is enormous but this new Executive Committee will have an active role, which will help me in my quest to broaden the understanding of the City Budget Process. I've always maintained that before we can successfully broaden the understanding of the City's finances and financial pressures amongst the citizens, we must first do a better job of building a better understanding right here on Council.

Today I want to assure the residents of Don Valley East that I spent a long time weighing the pros and cons of such a demanding position. Ryan Merkley, my executive assistant and I are working on an office work plan that will ensure that you still have the energetic and fierce advocacy you expect for Ward 33 and all of its pressing issues.

We have hired a new constituency assistant, Jimmy Yin, who grew up in Ward 33 on Kingslake Blvd. He and Jennifer Daws are designing a more efficient method of Constituency service. Jimmy has been active in youth organizing in North York prior to joining the Ward 33 team and will be a great help with all of our community events.

Our dear Collette Lennie has returned to the department of Parks, Recreation and Forestry. We were very sorry to lose her to departmental staff but we also know that Parks and Rec Division needs her strengths. Spending three years with my office and a year previous with Councillor Sutherland, equips Collette to bring our citizens' perspective to inside staff departments. We know they will function better as a result and that Collette has a bright future ahead of her.