“I Get Things Done”: Frances Nunziata on 40 Years of Serving Toronto

TORONTO – “I’m a hands-on councillor. I get things done.”

Frances Nunziata has that quintessentially Italian practicality in her DNA: born in Naples, Italy, she emigrated to Canada as a young child. She was first elected as a school board trustee in 1985, served as a City of York Councillor from 1988 to 1994, and was Mayor of York from 1994 until the 1997 amalgamation. Since then she has represented South York–Weston on Toronto City Council.

With nearly 40 years of uninterrupted civic service – she has also served as Speaker of Toronto City Council for 16 years, under three mayors: Rob Ford, John Tory and Olivia Chow – she is now seeking another term, saying she wants to complete many of the projects she has started in her ward. Because her mission is “to get things done” for her people.

Councillor Nunziata, you’ve been in politics since York was a much smaller municipality. Do you think Toronto has become too big to maintain that real connection between councillors and residents?

“When I was first elected, we were the City of York, so we were a small city. I was Mayor in 1994, and then in 1997 we amalgamated into one city. When we were a small municipality, you were able to do a lot more because you interacted directly with staff and constituents. Once we became a bigger city, the issues became bigger and things became more difficult. Even though we amalgamated and the wards became bigger, I continue doing what I was doing when it was the City of York: my priority is still my constituents, I’m a hands-on councillor. I do a lot of work for my constituents: I have on-site meetings, I visit people at their homes, I help them. Everybody who calls my office, I call them back myself. I speak to them directly.”

What does Toronto need most today, in your opinion? 

“One of the biggest challenges we have now is that it takes too long to get things done because of the bureaucracy. Sometimes you make sure the money is in the budget, but for the work to actually be done, it takes a long time. For example, I was working on a splash pad at Maple Leaf Park. It took four years before that splash pad was installed, even though the money was in the budget. That’s frustrating. I think we need to be a little more proactive. What I’m hearing from constituents when I knock on doors is: ‘Why does it take so long for staff to come here and solve this issue? Why, when they drive down the street and see garbage, don’t they pick it up? Why do they have to wait for us to complain?’ People notice the little, day-to-day problems. They see a broken sidewalk and ask why it isn’t fixed when the sidewalk across the street is being repaired. Even with urban forestry, to have a tree pruned can take a year or a year and a half. That’s ridiculous. I also think people in the suburbs feel they’re not being represented as much as downtown. For years, investment has been downtown. There hasn’t been the same level of investment in the suburbs.”

Is there something you’re particularly proud of having done for your neighbourhood?

“I’ve made sure that in my ward, with all the new housing happening around Eglinton, Weston and Lawrence, there are investments from the city. That community benefits stay in ward 5. I am also a champion for our youth. Our youth are experiencing high unemployment and being recruited into criminal activities. I have held youth job fairs, held youth forums, roundtables and one-on-ones with youth. One of my major efforts for youth has been working with the City and MLSE (Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment) on the renovation and repurposing of Western Lions Arena to be an ice rink and free community multi sport facility. I am, and will continue to work with provincial and federal governments for financial support and continue working with MLSE’s commitment to the project.”

“In general, I want to advocate for investment in York South Weston. I’m proud of a lot of other things that I got done thanks to my experience and to my connections with all the three levels of government. For example, the St. Clair and Scarlett Road bridge reconstruction is a top priority for me. I have worked on this for 20 years – it is a complicated and complex reworking that I am so pleased to see is now underway. I also want to ensure we bring new homes to fit the needs of our diverse community and make sure that the master plan for the Weston Loop is fully implemented – establishing the conservatory, and seeing through the plan that will make the 74 acres of parkland more accessible and welcoming to our community.”

What is your position on bike lanes, and what do you think the City of Toronto should do to address the city’s serious traffic problems?

“I support Doug Ford removing bike lanes where they reduce a lane of traffic. I want cyclists to be safe on our streets. For example, I have been on Bloor Street when ambulances and fire trucks were trying to get through and couldn’t. I support bike lanes that keep cyclists safe. I want to ensure that we keep traffic moving, especially on major streets.  Let’s put bike lanes where we won’t reduce a lane of traffic. Or, put bike lanes on residential streets. By putting bike lanes on side streets, it’s safer for the cyclists and safer for cars, buses and other vehicles.”

Maybe some traffic issues might be fixed easily, for example: the subway doesn’t open until 8 a.m. on Sundays, even though thousands of people go to work, and buses are often overcrowded. Don’t you think the city should increase TTC service?

“I agree that they should look at expanding those hours. I don’t know when they changed the Sunday schedule, but maybe it was during COVID, when nobody was taking the subway and they lost millions of dollars. Now people are using the subway again, and a lot of people work on Sundays. They should look at expanding those hours, yes”.

Is housing really a problem in Toronto, given that so many homes are vacant?

“What people are saying right now is that they don’t have enough affordable housing. That’s the problem. In my ward, I have about 40 or 50 development applications that have been approved, some of them for condominiums. But the market is bad now, and developers can’t afford to build affordable housing. They’re too expensive to build. A lot of them are now applying to the federal government and the city for grants so they can build some affordable housing and some market-rent units. I have a number of developers in my ward applying for funding. If they get the funding, they’re going to start building. I’ve already been successful with some of them. LIUNA is building affordable housing at Weston and Eglinton. They got federal funding and already have the shovel in the ground”.

In terms of safety, what does Toronto need most today?

“More police. I’m a big supporter of the police. I was on the Police Services Board for 16 years. There are some people who wanted to defund the police, I was always supporting giving them more money and getting more police officers on the street. A lot of residents call me because their houses have been broken into, their cars have been broken into and there are shootings. The subway can also be unsafe, especially in the evening. The problem is that police arrest people and then they’re back on the street. When I was on the Police Services Board, I moved a report calling for bail reform, particularly for repeat offenders. If somebody is dangerous, you shouldn’t put them back on bail. The province supported it, but the federal government hasn’t supported it yet because it involves the courts.”

“Safety is a priority for me. I’m a big supporter of policing and giving more money to the police. Another issue is that we have a lot of people sleeping on the street. It’s not only downtown; it’s here in our ward too. I get calls every day. Then, when the city wants to build a shelter, everybody gets upset: “We don’t want a shelter.” But you can’t have both. You can’t have people sleeping in parks. You need to put them in shelters.”

“And safety means pedestrian safety. Since the speed cameras were removed, a lot of residents have said it’s not safe for kids to cross the street to go to school. We need crosswalks, lights and safer streets. Through Vision Zero, we’re putting in crosswalks and sidewalks in areas where there are no sidewalks, to make it safer for pedestrians and kids going to school.”

And if you were Mayor of Toronto, what would be the first three things you would do for the city?

“Everybody asks me, ‘Are you running for mayor?!?’ …no. I really don’t want to be Mayor because I want to be in touch with my constituents.  I want to be in touch with them. When you’re Mayor, you’re not in touch on the ground as much as a councillor. I was mayor of the City of York because it was smaller and I could keep that contact. But being Mayor of the City of Toronto now is very difficult. I wouldn’t want that job”.

In a few words, why are you running again for another term as City Councillor?

“I’m running again because I’ve started a lot of projects that I want to have completed. When I’m ready to leave, I want that to be my legacy: that I’ve done all this work. A lot of it has started, but it hasn’t been completed, and I want to finish what I started. I know, people say “you’ve been there too long. You’re too old.” But I have a lot of energy. I get things done. People call me every day and want me to come to their house, look at their driveway, look at their tree. They love it because they feel that personal touch. And I love it too. It’s my life”.

A though question… do you support Mayor Olivia Chow?

“Well, it’s not a tough question for me because I’m not supporting anyone. I’m totally independent, my allegiance is with York South Weston”.

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