About Olivia

65 years old

Hometown: Hong Kong

Before entering politics, Olivia Chow worked as an artist and a teacher. She was elected as a school board trustee in 1985, and as a city councillor for Ward 24 (Trinity - Spadina) in 1991. She served on city council until 2006 when she was elected as Member of Parliament for the Trinity - Spadina riding. She served as an MP until 2014, when she resigned her seat and registered to run in the 2014 mayoral race.

Olivia Chow is against the Toronto Island Airport expansion.^[1]

Gardiner Expressway

Chow is in favour of exploring the “hybrid” proposal to reconfigure the eastern Gardiner Expressway rather than tear it down or preserve the existing infrastructure.^[2]

Auto Congestion

Chow has propsed the installation of “smart traffic lights” at 10 more intersections. If elected, Chow proposes to reduce road-lane closures by requiring companies to pay increasing fees the longer the work continues, and fining companies for blocking lanes when no work is occurring.^[2]

If elected, Chow would move forward with the fully funded 7-stop LRT extension into Scarborough as well as the plans for light rail along Sheppard East and Finch.^[2]

Chow supports the construction of a downtown relief subway line using the money saved by cancelling the Scarborough Subway. Under her plan, the Union to Pape Station phase would open by 2020.^[3]

Transit

Chow states that the key to alleviating traffic congestion is better bus and light rail service. If elected, she vows to increase bus rush hour capacity by 10%. Chow also supports the plan to electrify existing GO rail lines.^[2]

If elected Chow vows to cut red tape for access to public spaces as well as put permits for common activities such as large picnics and wedding photography online. She would also waive event fees for community groups that care for and put events on in public spaces. Chow has stated she would plant 100,000 trees per year across the city using money recovered from a new "polluter fee."^[4]

Culture

If elected, Chow would increase the city’s art spending to $25 dollars per year per capita and establish a public arts foundation to commission art for the city’s public spaces. She also promises to establish a city music office to support the development of the music community. These initiatives would be funded by indexing the billboard tax, which hasn’t been increased since 2010.^[5]

Cycling

If elected, Chow promises the construction of 200 kilometres of separated or designated bike lanes within four years.^[6]

Chow has not ruled out continued privitization, but has stated that competition between public and private sector is good.^[7]

After School Programs

If elected, Chow vows to expand nutrition programs to serve 36,000 more children across the city. She also promises to continue developing after school recreation programs to keep kids out of trouble.^[8]

Public Housing

If elected Chow would work to introduce a target of 20% affordable units in new residential towers. She would also investigate plans for a more "decentralized, tenant- and community-driven approach" to public housing governance.^[9]

Chow has vowed to keep property taxes in line with inflation.^[10]

Chow has proposed to retain the land transfer tax and increase the rate on homes sold for $2 million or more.^[11]

Small Businesses

If elected, Chow proposes to invest $3 million a year to further cut small business taxes, while extending the current tax cuts to 2020. She also vows to cut red tape and make it easier to register a business with the city by modernizing the process and putting it online.^[12]

Chow vows to make it easier for foreign companies and entrepreneurs from abroad to do business in the city by offering forms and information in multiple languages. She would create a new city entity called "Global Toronto" to ensure a coordinated approach across all economic development initiatives.^[13]

Chow vows to create jobs for young people through her after school care, tree-planting and other community benefit programs to target youth unemployment.^[13]