Toronto?s Ford to skip Saskatoon conference

Canada?s civic leaders will meet next week in Saskatoon, but the mayor of the country?s largest city won?t be joining them.

Toronto?s Rob Ford is passing on the annual get-together of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), a chance for roughly 1,600 local politicians to compare notes and rub shoulders with federal ministers and the leaders of opposition parties. There will also be a number of tours highlighting civic projects such as the new police headquarters and River Landing.

It is the first time the conference has been held in Saskatoon.

Ford has skipped the conference every year and as a councillor characterized attending as a waste of taxpayer money.

?I don?t go to FCM,? Ford told reporters Friday in Toronto. ?Since when do I go to FCM??

Saskatoon Mayor Don Atchison challenged Ford earlier this year to attend the conference and join him for a jog along the city riverbank to help the Toronto mayor?s much-publicized weight loss challenge.

Atchison said he had not yet heard officially that Ford would not be in attendance.

?I would hope he would want to see Canada?s fastest-growing city,? Atchison said, noting he has followed the ongoing fight in Toronto over rapid transit pitting proponents of light rail against supporters of a subway expansion. Saskatoon is planning a revamped bus rapid transit system.

?(Mayor Ford) could give us some advice on transit,? Atchison said.

The conference begins Thursday when the big city mayors group ? led by Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson ? will hold a meeting focused on a federal infrastructure program and funding for affordable housing. Calgary?s Naheed Nenshi, Ottawa?s Jim Watson, and 91-year-old Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion will be in Saskatoon for the event.

The conference features keynote addresses by NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair, interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, and sessions on the growing cost of policing, using social media, and the pros and cons of cities selling naming and sponsorship rights.

A number of Toronto?s civic politicians are expected, including a councillor to take Ford?s place at the table.

Saskatoon?s council on Monday will be asked to contribute an extra $47,000 to the conference because sponsorship funds fell short. City taxpayers have already contributed $290,000 for the FCM conference and $10,000 for the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) meeting, which begins Monday.

The FCM conference has a total budget of $612,000 with registration covering $203,000 and sponsorship $73,000. Calgary?s council recently set aside $1.4 million to potentially host the conference in 2018.

dhutton@thestarphoenix.com

Twitter.com/HuttonSP

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