Commentaire 374 – commentaires et rétroaction

Fr. Dean Mercer
The Anglican Church of St. Paul, L'Amoreaux

Dear Members of the Ontario Commission for the Federal Electoral Districts Redistribution: I am writing on behalf of the Anglican Parish of St. Paul, L'Amoreaux, where I serve as the parish priest. We are located on the southwest corner of Warden and Finch in the former city of Scarborough now an area within the City of Toronto. We are concerned about the proposed changes to the Federal Electoral Districts, particularly the loss of an electoral riding in Scarborough and thereby Toronto.

The proposal takes out a large portion of Scarborough North, and a sizable portion of Scarborough-Agincourt, and collapses areas of these communities into a new riding called Scarborough Northwest. Not only would this break up existing communities of which we ourselves have been a part of since 1840, but would redistribute a sizeable portion of Scarborough-Agincourt into North York and delete any reference to the history of Agincourt in the process.

Scarborough Village dates back to 1832 and Agincourt emerged in 1858 as a farming town and continues to this present day to have a rich cultural and historical identity. The parish itself has served in this community for more than 180 years from when it was dedicated in 1841 by Bishop John Strachan, the first Anglican bishop of Toronto. The parish boundaries are roughly the same as the present Electoral District.

The present boundaries of the Electoral District also match the obvious visual and imaginary boundaries: Hwy 404, Hwy 401, Kennedy/Midland; Steeles. Notably, the average income in the region of North York is significantly higher and the proposed section to be drawn from the old Scarborough would become "the unseen poor cousin on the wrong side of the tracks," the tracks in this case being Hwy 404.

The western municipal boundary of Scarborough clearly ends at Victoria Park Ave. Taking parts of Scarborough from Warden Ave. and Pharmacy Road to Victoria Park Avenue will break up police services from 42 Division, health care services and social and seniors' community services such as St. Paul's L'Amoreaux Centre residence for seniors and SPLC senior services, both originating at the church. Like Scarborough North, Scarborough-Agincourt has large numbers of seniors, newcomers, families, and immigrants. Scarborough-Agincourt's immigrant population is 19% over the Toronto average. Over the decades, our communities have created an interconnected network of services that meet Scarborough's unique needs. St. Paul's, L'Amoreaux, was also one of the seven parishes who founded Agincourt Community Services (ACSA) for this region.

While population is a significant consideration in the proposed changes, the Committee is also responsible for considering "historical patterns, communities of interest, identity and geographic size". The strong negative response to this proposal, which includes six elected representatives and now the Mayor of Toronto John Tory, indicates the serious negative impact we see. One less voice from Scarborough is one less voice for health care, subways, seniors, residents, churches and businesses.

Please take our concerns seriously and keep Scarborough-Agincourt and Scarborough North as distinct ridings. We want fair representation for Scarborough and Toronto as a whole.

Sincerely,

Fr. Dean Mercer
Parish priest, St. Paul, L'Amoreaux