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cityscape

Toronto Casino Well and Thoroughly Dead

City council rejects both a new downtown casino, and an expansion of gambling at Woodbine.

Mayor Rob Ford at the final council debate.

City council rejected all proposals for expanded gaming in Toronto today. By a resounding vote of 40–4 they opposed the establishment of any new downtown casino (the dissenters were Rob Ford, Norm Kelly, Vincent Crisanti, and Giorgio Mammoliti). This was widely expected, in the wake of a concerted grassroots campaign opposing a new facility, and news that the provincial government would be giving Toronto much less in hosting fees than casino advocates were hoping. Much more surprising was the rejection also of any expanded gaming at Woodbine, which already has slot machines—that was by a much closer margin of 24-20. Woodbine officials have maintained that they need to expand in order to stay alive at all. Even though Toronto has rejected a casino, neighbouring municipalities such as Vaughan might permit one; Woodbine representatives say this competitive pressure will put them out of business.

In the middle of it all was Rob Ford, who surprised everyone by moving a motion to reject casinos even though he has been one of their strongest proponents.

Keep reading: Toronto Casino Well and Thoroughly Dead

CBC Music’s First-Ever Festival Will Be a CanCon Love-In

The CBCMusic.ca Festival will feature Sloan, Kathleen Edwards, Of Monsters and Men, and roving appearances by Jian Gomeshi and Matt Galloway.

Sloan’s Chris Murphy is a huge CBC fan, and he'll be playing at the CBCMusic.ca Festival.

Sloan’s Chris Murphy is a huge CBC fan, and he'll be playing at the CBCMusic.ca Festival.

  • Echo Beach (999 Lake Shore Boulevard West)
  • Saturday, May 25
  • 2:30 p.m.–11 p.m.
  • $59.50

According to CBC’s Chris Boyce, the goal of this weekend’s CBCMusic.ca Festival is twofold. First and foremost, the CBC wants to celebrate Canadian music. Second, it wants to celebrate CBC Music, the broadcaster’s online music service, which launched a little over a year ago.

Keep reading: CBC Music’s First-Ever Festival Will Be a CanCon Love-In
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news

Duly Quoted: Andrea Horwath

“We’ve worked hard to deliver results. It’s not everything we wanted. It’s not everything people have told us they need. But we’re proud to deliver results that will make people’s lives better and government more accountable.”

—In a press release issued earlier today, Horwath, the Ontario NDP leader, announced a deal with the Ontario Liberal party, putting an end to the possibility of an immediate provincial election. In exchange for not opposing the Liberal budget (and thereby toppling Premier Kathleen Wynne’s government) Horwath won a few concessions, including the establishment of a new Financial Accountability Office and a 15 per cent cut to car insurance premiums.

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Weekend Newsstand: May 18, 2013

If you're feeling pretty good about the fact that you don't have to go to the office for three days, think about how happy a certain elected official must be about that. Hurray for holidays! In the news: More from the Star on how they got a piece of this week's biggest story, Rob Ford's proposed solution to dealing with illegal drug users, the end of Magnetgate, a music video debut, and a big day at Marineland.

newsstand-jeremy-kai-spring-1