Transit a key in many Italian wards

From St. Clair to North York, transportation a common concern

There are so many challenges, and so few of them clear cut, where Italian-Canadian candidates (whether incumbents or challengers) will vie for a City Council seat.
With the passing of time, the Italian-Canadian community has grown steadily more fragmented, yet there are areas that continue to be beacons - even for people who don't live there any longer - and that still elicit emotion and interest. Many if not all also share a common denominator: transit, a key issue of this campaign. Facets of this issue include the St. Clair Right-of-Way, i.e. the controversy over preferential streetcar pathways, as well as the extension of the Spadina Line of the subway, which concerns most of the neighbourhoods where Italians concentrate and should eventually cross Steeles Ave. into Vaughan.

COLLEGE
Once upon a time there was College Street; now there is perhaps a little less of it, because what was the heart of Toronto's Italian community has become an area crowded with Italian restaurants (some authentic, some less so) and other locales, a kind of happy island that has experienced no great upheavals in the past few years. Such peace overlaps with the 'reign' of Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone (Ward 19 - Trinity-Spadina), who's been representing this area for over two decades. The recent renaissance, which turned Little Italy into a very cool zone, has further contributed to defuse potential challenges, and Pantalone should coast to re-election without sweating, in this Italian- and Portuguese-speaking area running from Dovercourt to Bathurst and from the Lakeshore to Dupont.

ST. CLAIR
The opposite goes for the other historic Italian centre: dealing with an almost constant decline, despite its continuing role as a focus of the Italian-Canadian community (as the huge spontaneous party for Italy's World Cup victory clearly demonstrated), Corso Italia is a battlefield, where at present the hottest - but far from the only - issue is the TTC ROW. The steady influx of Portuguese-Canadians has finally eroded the prevalence of the Italian-Canadian community, and for the past few years the local councillor has been Cesar Palacio (Ward 17 - Davenport, Dupont to Eglinton and Dufferin to Caledonia), and one of his main challengers, Alejandra Bravo (who came in second three years ago), despite bearing an Italian-sounding last name, was born in Chile. Her electoral signs (coloured white, red and green) raised the ire of candidates boasting Italian roots, such as businessman Fred Dominelli (regarded as very close to Pantalone and to Toronto COMITES chair Gino Cucchi) and Cinzia Scalabrini, a former restaurateur from Lombardy who runs on her opposition to the Right-of-Way and to any form of enmeshments between public and private interests. In neighbouring Ward 18 (Davenport), incumbent Adam Giambrone, who served as Federal President of the New Democratic Party of Canada from 2001 to September 2006, runs for re-election. His ward runs along Dufferin from Queen Street West to Dupont.

DUFFERIN
Her name is Rosina Bonavota, as Italian a name as possible. She faces an uphill battle against no less than Howard Moscoe, one of mayor David Miller's most prominent collaborators as head of the TTC. However, the race may be closer than it appears, as this Italian lady, who left her work at a restaurant in pursuit of a seat at Nathan Phillips Square, can rely on two key factors: one, Moscoe is one of Toronto's less popular politicians, even among NDP supporters. Two, her Italian name should be an asset in Ward 15 (Eglinton-Lawrence, running between Bathurst and Caledonia), centred on Dufferin Street and home of institutions like Columbus Centre and Centro Scuola (but also, and it is not a coincidence, Corriere Canadese itself). Less ethnically friendly, but with greater chances of victory, is Ward 16 (Eglinton-Lawrence, from Bathurst to Yonge), where Albert Pantaleo runs as a challenger to Karen Stintz. Pantaleo, a local business owner, distinguished himself in several battles against plans for intensive construction.

WESTON & KEELE
The former City of York sees two well-known Italian-Canadians running: Frances Nunziata, former mayor of the old municipality that merged with Toronto in 1998, and Frank Di Giorgio. They run respectively in Wards 11 and 12 (they share the denomination of York South-Weston), centred around Weston Road the former and Keele Street the latter, main axes followed by the Italian-Canadian community in its north-west movement (towards Maple and Woodbridge). Nunziata finds herself up against another Italian: one of her main challengers is Rocky Gualtieri, former Canada Post employee, who's been campaigning vigorously in the area. Much the same goes for Di Giorgio, who has to race against two other Italian-Canadians: Nick Dominelli (son of Fred, cfr. Ward 17) and Joe Renda, well known for his community activity.
SHEPPARD
The Sheppard corridor comprises the Wards of Giorgio Mammoliti (Ward 7 - York West), Peter Li Preti (Ward 8 - York West) and Maria Augimeri (Ward 9 - York Centre), formerly part of the old City of North York. Here around, transit is still an unresolved issue, with works for the subway extension that should start from Augimeri's Ward (Downsview) to reach that of Li Preti, who has been advocating this extension for years. While Mammoliti and Augimeri are not facing tough challengers, Li Preti will instead race once again against his long-time antagonist Anthony Perruzza. The issue of the Jane & Finch hospital is among the hot topics of debate.

SCARBOROUGH
In what was once the city east of Toronto, only Mike Del Grande (Ward 39 - Scarborough-Agincourt) should harbour few doubts about his re-election. Good chances of victory should also go to Michelle Berardinetti, the wife of Liberal MPP Lorenzo, running in Ward 35 (Scarborough Southwest).

Overall, Italian-Canadian candidates (about 40 in Toronto alone) will enjoy many opportunities, even though none is running for mayor - unlike John Nunziata three years ago. Another potential surprise might come from John Colautti, running in Ward 14 - Parkdale-High Park, who'll try to replace former councillor Sylvia Watson; he was her assistant for years. His challenge to Gord Perks, a candidate close to mayor Miller, will not be a cakewalk, however.
In many other wards, characterized by a lower Italian presence, individual capacities will trump phonetics in the race for a City Council seat.

Publication Date: 2006-11-12
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=6774