I've been impressed with all the changes planned for Toronto. It seems like every week I read about some new major plan or design. A re-designed Nathan Phillips Square and a bold new transit plan are the most notable. Mayor David Miller's long-range plan to reduce greenhouse emissions also has the potential to radically alter the city landscape.
When we first moved to the area, I was impressed that two major museums were being renovated and expanded, both with designs by famous architects, but that's old news now. And of course this is in addition to the endless construction of condo towers, mirrored by the endless construction of townhouses in the suburbs.
Living in Mississauga, I don't feel as connected to these changes as I would if I lived in Toronto itself, but I like it anyway. Big plans like these avoid that small-time mindset that a city must attract an outside event, like the Olympics or an Expo, to revitalize it - as if there isn't reason enough already to create a great city.
It's the difference between needing outside approval to tell you you're all right, and standing up and saying, I am great. If Toronto is going to get over its well-publicized inferiority complex, these plans are the kind of therapy it needs. Even if the execution falls short, no one gets what they don't reach for.
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