Quote:
Originally Posted by vid
They don't control the local land use planning laws. I think that's what Northerners really want. Look at the things Northerners complain about the most when it comes to the government: MPAC, Far North Act, gas taxes (which until recently went entirely to public transit; about 40% of Northern Ontarians do not have access to public transit, yet pay those taxes), policies on wildlife, policies on forest management, policies on mining, the management of the hydro system. It's mostly land use and cost of living stuff.
There's really nothing that we can do when bears are present. One of Thunder Bay's subdivisions (an area of about 15,000 people) has a bear den in it, near several schools, and there is nothing anyone can legally do about it due to how provincial law governs interactions with bears. It's a serious sticking point here, and one that never gets addressed by the provincial government, while the city has no rights to act in this area.
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This was not an issue decades ago when the spring bear hunt tags were separate from the fall bear hunt tags. These days, you cannot do both.
Simple things like that, or even the way we clear snow on the highways, or inter city transportation, or so many other things that are more of a challenge in the middle of "nowhere" vs Toronto. Even the cities of Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Sault St Marie, North Bay and Timmins get why those things matter. Someone in Toronto, Oakville, Bolton, or Ajax have no clue why cancelling a bus or train is a bad thing, even if it is running almost empty sometimes.
Having Toronto not able to control those things whatsoever would be better for The North.