Sending Toronto's Mayor To The Chicago School

"If you haven't visited Chicago lately, I highly recommend it. The city is bursting with energy and drive. The public spaces gleam. The downtown is a feast of wonderful architecture from every decade. The shops and restaurants are thronged with happy tourists. Of the waterfront I will say nothing, because the comparison with Toronto, where I live, is too depressing.

Once upon a time, Chicago and Toronto were neck and neck in the great-city stakes. That was a long time ago. Today, Chicago is to Toronto what Toronto is to Winnipeg - nice place, but not in the same league.

In Chicago, public art is mandated for all new construction. The mayor is a big fan of architecture, and the new Millennium Park is a bold, creative - and city-led - triumph. You want green? He put a green roof on city hall and gave developers incentives to do the same. He thought the city airport was a blot on the waterfront, so he had it bulldozed before anyone could stop him.

Why do Chicagoans love Mayor Daley? Because he knows that obsessing about trash is not enough to make a city great. He understands that cities need to compete. Torontonians could, of course, choose not to compete. The price will be that the next generation will choose to move somewhere else."