ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the reasons why a number of leading municipalities in Canada developed an ethos of civic pride which embraced a far greater level of interventionism than their counterparts in the United States. In the United States, an alternative planning philosophy – the ‘City Practical’ – eschewed the notion of civic design on a grand scale in favour of technocratic solutions to specific urban problems which required urgent resolution, notably zoning to separate incompatible land-uses, and management of traffic flows. In the 1950s and 1960s, the municipality successfully bid for a capital grant to construct radial highways east-west along the lakeshore, and north-south along the Don Valley, linking up with the federal highway. Metro’s Official Plan emphasizes the municipality’s policies to achieve strong communities where diversity is valued and residents have equitable access to services and opportunities, where the public realm is usable, safe, recognizable and appealing, and where residents are able to participate in decisions affecting them’.
