image from torontorealestatedirect.com

Maclean’s recently had a survey conducted of the best run cities in Canada and Toronto managed to come in 10^th. Here are the top 10 cities on the list.

1. Burnaby
2. Saskatoon
3. Surrey
4. Vancouver
5. Longueuil
6. Sherbrooke
7. London
8. Saint John
9. Quebec City
10. Toronto

It was the Halifax-based Atlantic Institute for Market Studies that conducted the survey. What made this survey different from most others like it was that it didn’t attempt to measure the quality of life, or by a series of preset criteria determine which city is the best place to live. Instead it focused on how local governments contributed to making their cities great by using a set of indicators in 7 categories.

• Governance and Finance
• Taxation
• Safety and Protection
• Transportation
• Environmental Health
• Economic Development
• Recreation and Culture

Based on the fact that the cities were rated based on their individual governments I cannot believe that Toronto ranked 10^th as a best run city. Personally I can’t believe that Toronto ranked at all. Do the folks who conducted the survey have any idea what goes on here? At the moment we are in the midst of a garbage strike that has turned Toronto into a giant dumpster. Our mayor, leader of the city’s government, has single handedly killed Toronto tourism. At the best of times we are mired in scandals of government corruption. If Toronto was being rated in any other way but its city government’s contribution I would put Toronto in first place, but according to the existing criteria for the study, Toronto should be in last place or off the scale entirely.