Economic Plan Updated for Business Resilience

Summary#

This item updates Toronto’s 10‑year economic plan, “Sidewalks to Skylines” (2025–2035). It adds new actions, revises some existing ones, and formalizes how progress will be tracked. It also gives the City’s Economic Development and Culture Division (EDC) limited authority to adjust actions and success indicators as conditions change.

Main points:

• Expands the plan from 73 to 80 actions by adding four long‑term actions from the Mayor’s Plan responding to U.S. tariffs and three actions focused on inclusive economic development.
• Updates 10 existing actions to reflect 2025–2026 Council decisions and current work.
• Removes the planned “Green Industry Cluster Alliance” action (original Action 70).
• Confirms year‑one progress: 7 actions completed, 59 underway, 7 not started, and introduces success indicators for all actions.
• Authorizes the General Manager of EDC to update actions and their indicators when consistent with Council’s 2024 direction for the plan.
• Notes the Red Tape Hotline for Businesses has moved from pilot to ongoing service within existing resources.

A separate councillor motion linked to this item asks staff to explore support for Canadian open‑source municipal software and to request federal help to scale such tools. Adoption status of the motion is not provided.

What it means for you#

• Businesses

  • No immediate new program starts from this update. The City will keep implementing existing supports under the plan within the 2026 budget.
  • The Red Tape Hotline remains available for reporting unnecessary or burdensome City rules and processes; the Small Business Office will triage and follow up.
  • The plan now explicitly includes longer‑term actions aimed at helping firms adapt to U.S. tariff risks (e.g., AI adoption, housing innovation supply chains, electrification, and port capacity). This could mean more targeted programs or partnerships over time.
  • Zoning changes adopted in late 2025 to allow more small‑scale retail and home‑based business uses in certain neighbourhoods are reflected in the plan updates.

• Job seekers and workers

  • The plan keeps a focus on “quality jobs,” youth employment pathways, and skills initiatives (including AI upskilling via Toronto Public Library). This update does not create new entitlements but confirms those priorities continue.

• Indigenous communities

  • The plan continues actions on Indigenous economic development, including progress toward opening the Indigenous Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and co‑developing an Indigenous Procurement Policy. This update incorporates success indicators and keeps these actions moving.

• Residents and commuters

  • Work on congestion management and construction standards continues and is reflected in updated actions (e.g., clearer standards to improve safety and access during road works). Expect continued efforts rather than immediate new measures.

• If the digital sovereignty motion is adopted

  • Staff would explore how Toronto can support development of Canadian, open‑source software for municipal use and ask the federal government to create and co‑fund a program to scale such tools, subject to City procurement rules and trade obligations. This is exploratory; no direct change to City services is set out.

• Oversight and process

  • EDC can now adjust actions and success indicators between annual updates when consistent with the plan Council approved in 2024. This could speed up tweaks but means fewer minor changes need a full Council vote.

Expenses#

No immediate public cost is identified in the report’s recommendations.

• Implementation in 2026 will continue within EDC’s approved budget.
• No new funding requests for this plan or the U.S. tariffs response were included in the 2026 budget.
• For 2027 and later, EDC will advise Council of any resource or staffing needs to continue or expand actions.
• The City’s Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer reviewed and agreed with this financial impact statement.

Proponents' View#

• The update appears intended to keep the economic plan current and responsive to fast‑changing conditions (including U.S. tariff policies and trade uncertainty).
• Adding tariff‑related long‑term actions and inclusive economic development actions could be seen as strengthening resilience and ensuring more people and businesses benefit from growth.
• Setting success indicators for all actions and adding new inclusive indicators to the City’s Economic Dashboard could improve transparency and accountability.
• Allowing the General Manager of EDC to adjust actions and indicators, within Council’s original direction, could speed up delivery and reduce red tape in plan management.
• Keeping the Red Tape Hotline as an ongoing service could help identify and fix business pain points across permitting, licensing, and public‑space use.

Opponents' View#

• Delegating authority to update actions and indicators to the General Manager may raise questions about oversight and how “consistent with the original plan” will be interpreted.
• The update identifies future resource needs as “to be determined” for 2027 and beyond; it is unclear which actions may face delays or require new funding later.
• The plan now covers 80 actions across many areas. One concern is whether limited staff and budgets can deliver meaningful progress on all fronts, and how underperforming actions will be addressed.
• Several highlighted supports (e.g., industrial water rate relief, small business tax subclass changes) were decided earlier; this update itself does not add direct, immediate relief. Expectations for new near‑term benefits should be tempered.
• If the digital sovereignty motion is adopted, it is unclear how the City would balance support for Canadian open‑source tools with procurement bylaw requirements and trade agreement obligations; the motion notes these constraints but does not detail implementation.