Pantalone: team player and captain

From the Toronto Star:

Pantalone endorses Mike Layton for council

Son of Jack Layton running in Pantalone’s old ward

Mayoral candidate Joe Pantalone is endorsing Mike Layton to be city councillor in the downtown ward that Pantalone has represented for years.

Just like other residents of Ward 19, Trinity-Spadina, Pantalone said he wants a councillor who will look after the ward.

And Mike Layton, son of NDP Leader and former city councillor Jack Layton, fits the bill, Pantalone said in an announcement Wednesday at Il Gatto Nero, a College St. eatery in the heart of Little Italy.

People are disillusioned with city hall, which needs to communicate better with residents, said Pantalone, 58, who has been elected for 29 years.

“We have to figure out a way of reconnecting with people,” he said. “It starts with a councillor like Mike Layton will be, knocking on doors talking to people.”

Layton, 32, said people want to see the downtown neighbourhood made more liveable by tending to issues like traffic.

“It’s cars speeding through school zones, on streets where kids play,” he said. “And these are things we have solutions for. We can go in and do things at city hall to actually make it better.”

The traditional solution has been to install speed bumps to slow traffic, but some people hate speed bumps, he said.

Other ways to moderate speeds include installing bike lanes and letting people park on both sides of the street, he added.

More adventurous approaches could include installing planter boxes on the street and building bioswales, landscaped areas that can absorb stormwater runoff.

“You can make a little bioswale, actually have a stormwater feature where it cleans the water, filters it back into the ground, provides some green space but also slows down traffic,” Layton said.

“Bike lanes are a good way of slowing down traffic. Putting parking on both sides is a good way of reducing traffic speeds.”

Layton said he wouldn’t try to impose an answer but rather would talk with residents to develop something people can support.

“I’m not saying any particular one of those is a solution on every street. But those are the types of ideas you can bring and you start to build a consensus between the neighbours, so it’s not pitting speed bump against no speed bump.”

Pantalone said what he brings to the mayor’s race is the ability to get along with other councillors and be a team player.

The left-of-centre career politician with NDP roots said he can work with people from all political stripes, noting that under Mayor Mel Lastman he chaired council committees, served as tree advocate and headed Exhibition Place.

That’s important on a council where the mayor needs wide support from the 44 ego-driven councillors to get things done.

“Municipally, you have 44 districts. In effect, you have 44 princes and princesses. And the mayor is only one vote,” he said.

Pantalone said he expects to endorse other candidates for city council, although not in all 44 wards, and his picks will likely include candidates with Liberal and Conservative backgrounds.

Because there is no party discipline at city hall, the mayor must cajole people to muster the votes to pass his agenda.

“Frankly, it’s a team effort,” Pantalone said. “You need a team captain, but unless you’ve got the rest of the team, you’re not going to win many games, you’re not going to win many issues, you’re not going to serve Torontonians well.”