Search Results for: Governance
Presentation | 2016
What Does Good Governance Mean for Canadian Cities?
Zachary Taylor
In this presentation, Zack Taylor explores findings from his recent IMFG Paper on the meaning of good local governance for Canadian cities, and how to measure it.
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Perspectives Paper | 2016
National Urban Policy: A Roadmap for Canadian Cities
Abigail Friendly
The 21st century has seen a renewed interest internationally in national urban policies. This paper draws on the experience of countries that have explicitly pursued national urban policies to solve complex and interrelated urban challenges.
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Presentation | 2016
Presentation: A Recipe for Fiscal Trust
Dina Graser and Pamela Robinson
The national infrastructure deficit has been estimated at close to $400 billion, and much of it rests at the municipal level. Before local governments can raise these funds – through taxes, fees, or other revenue sources – residents must trust that the money is needed and that it will be spent wisely.
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Perspectives Paper | 2016
A Recipe for Fiscal Trust
Dina Graser and Pamela Robinson
Local governments need to make significant financial investments, and must raise revenues through taxes, user fees, and possibly new revenue tools. But before they can take these actions, they have to build trust to convince their residents that new revenues are needed and will be spent wisely.
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Presentation | 2016
The Boundary Bargain: Growth, Development, and the Future of City-County Separation
Zachary Spicer
This talk presents findings from a new book about the peculiarities of city-county separation. What are the dangers of having municipal institutions that are too rigid to modernize, and what does it mean for the future of regional governance in Ontario?
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IMFG Paper | 2016
Good Governance at the Local Level: Meaning and Measurement
Zack Taylor
This paper situates Canadian local governance practices within a review of international perspectives on the meaning and evaluation of governance quality. The author finds that Canadian authorities have construed local good governance largely in utilitarian terms, as the efficiency of service delivery.
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Presentation | 2016
Land Value Capture for Social Benefits: Comparing Toronto and São Paulo
Abigail Friendly
IMFG Post-Doctoral Fellow Abigail Friendly compares the use of LVC in two cities – São Paulo and Toronto – with a focus on acquiring local benefits and services such as park improvements, childcare and recreational facilities, and social housing.
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Book | 2016
The Boundary Bargain: Growth, Development, and the Future of City-County Separation
Zachary Spicer
Detailing the development of municipal institutions, the original logic behind the city-county separation, and the eventual shift in institutional and municipal organization, this book demonstrates that urban and rural areas have always had a reciprocal relationship and that both play an important role in the strength of the national economy and the broader local community. Focusing on three case studies of separated cities and their counties that still retain strict city-county separation, former IMFG Post-Doctoral Fellow Zachary Spicer reveals how this policy works, what problems it poses, and examines the best practices for addressing growth, development, and sprawl from a regional perspective.
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Search Research Archive
Toronto Star: 13th Annual Toronto City Manager’s Address
November 25, 2025
Global Radio: Enid Slack on the Challenges Facing Municipalities
October 21, 2025
CBC Calgary: Enid Slack on How Canadian Municipalities Face Similar Fiscal Strains
October 18, 2025
