What can Cleveland Learn from Toronto?
March 12, 2006 – 8:14 pmIf you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
We took a shorty driving trip to Toronto, Canada over past the weekend and the whole time that we were there, we talked about what Cleveland and Toronto had in common and how they differed.
Similarities include basic things like the weather. There isn’t much you can do about that.. Chicago and New York are 2 other highly successful “cold” cities that have kept it going even with harsh winters.
Both Toronto and Cleveland are lakefront cities that advise people against swimming in the lakewater, because of harmful bacterias that could cause infections to those that dare enter the waters. When I was a kid, I loved swimming in the lake, but couldn’t imagine swimming in it today. That is a sad turn for the worse in both communities.
Both cities have a Public Transportation System, but Toronto is further advanced with a Subway system, electric streetcars, and public busing. Driving is tedious and finding a parking spot is close to impossible. (I had to remind myself that we were in Canada’s version of New York City.) Here is a photo of their Subway station (taken early on a Saturday morning, so not many people are using it)
One big difference is the number of people walking everywhere. Every street we drove down had sidewalks full of people out and about. Even at 8:30 in the morning… on a Saturday. Every block had little shops offering foods of every ethnicity. You could easily find a Coffeehouse, Indian, Chinese, Tim Horton’s (at least 2 on every block ;)) McD’s, KFC, Thai, Vegetarian, and Mexican food walking just a block or two.. you could also find fresh produce stands with fresh flowers, and shops that sold clothes and knick-knacks. A true shopper’s paradise. Everyday commuters have to be happy that there is an underground system when the weather gets snarly. Very Innovative.
What I concluded is that Toronto has more “energy” than Cleveland. It offers cultural diversity and tolerance of all cultures, races, religons, and sexualities. They have attractions like the CN tower, a thriving Convention Center, and various “districts” that are in close to proximity of each other. Toronto doesn’t seem to be hurting at all..there’s growth everywhere .. even the suburbs seem to prosper from just being within driving distance.
I wonder if there is anything we can learn from our neighbors in the North?
H.
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