Item - 2020.CA16.3

The Civic Appointments Committee:  

1. Selected the following candidates for interview at its next meeting for appointment to the Toronto Transit Commission:

TTC2-43

TTC2-66

TTC2-190

TTC2-250

TTC2-266

TTC2-271

2. Directed that Confidential Attachments 1, 2 and 3 to the report (November 27, 2020) from the Interim City Clerk remain confidential in their entirety as they relate to personal matters about identifiable individuals being considered for appointment to the Toronto Transit Commission.

The Civic Appointments Committee must select candidates to interview for appointment to the Toronto Transit Commission. Following the interviews, the Civic Appointments Committee will recommend two public members for appointment to City Council.

The first recommendation contained within the report from the Toronto Office of Recovery and Rebuild is as follows:

"For its part, the City should lead by example and address racism against Black and Indigenous people openly and honestly within the City in its hiring and promotional practices. In addition, the City should set standards for Black and Indigenous representation at the tables where priorities, planning, investments and implementation of City Council decisions are discussed. Moreover, the City should also address the representation of Black, Indigenous and people from other vulnerable populations on Agencies, Boards and Corporations in order to ensure that the decisions made by these City bodies reflect the communities they serve."

Recently, the Toronto Transit Commission accepted the resignation of Alan Heisey and thanked him for his truly exemplary years of dedication to his role on the Board of Directors. Consequently, a vacancy for a public member has arisen on the Toronto Transit Commission Board. The City Clerk is currently accepting applications from residents of Toronto to fill this vacancy, with the Civic Appointments Committee to review the matter later in 2020 or early 2021.

Given the expert recommendation above, and given the crucial work of the Toronto Transit Commission Board during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent recovery, it is essential that City Council take the opportunity to respond to the Toronto Office of Recovery and Rebuild report and the City’s own diversity policies.