By Shaun Bernstein

Population: 44,420
Voter turnout in 2006 municipal election: 43 per cent

Ward 30 stretches south of Danforth Avenue, with the Don Valley Parkway to the west, Coxwell Avenue and Leslie Street to the east, and with the Portlands and the Toronto harbour to the south. The area includes neighborhoods like Riverdale, Leslieville, the Gerrard India Bazaar, Greek Town and it also includes the landmark downtown greenspaces of Riverdale Park and the Leslie Street spit.

Some 42 per cent of residents in Ward 30 live in houses, while 57 per cent live in apartments, according to the 2006 census. Just over 58 per cent own their homes.

English is the primary language spoken in the area, with Cantonese and other Chinese dialects accounting for 17 per cent of the population's mother tongues. People of Chinese origin account for the largest proportion of the ward's visible minority population, representing a quarter of the area's residents.

Key Issues

Transit: The plan to build a new maintenance facility in the ward for the new fleet of TTC streetcars has become an issue in the campaign. Leslieville residents have expressed concerns because the new streetcars will travel through the area daily to the new facility at Leslie Street and Lakeshore Boulevard East. The area is also dealing with road safety issues, with a number of prominent intersections in the ward recently going through safety improvements, and a safety audit currently happening along Broadview Avenue. As well, parking in the ward and traffic congestion are recurring issues.

Taxes: Many candidates have raised concern about current levels of spending at City Hall. Several of the candidates are vowing to freeze residential property taxes until City Hall makes massive spending cuts.

Redevelopment: There has been debate in recent years over the redevelopment of the Bridgepoint Hospital at Gerrard Street East and the Don Valley. The landmark facility, which is 150 years old, is a prominent feature of the Riverdale landscape. Within the next council term, the hospital is about to get an overhaul that will transform it into a state-of-the-art care facility that will include a public concourse, public gallery, and public greenery adjacent to Riverdale Park.

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