TORONTO — Would you care if Spadina Station was brought to you by McDonalds?
As Toronto hunts for new sources of revenue to do things that the tax base will not allow, selling naming rights of subway stations is also on the table.
Councillor Doug Ford said on Tuesday he backs the approach, saying “if it brings in revenue, I honestly don’t believe anyone cares.” He tossed out the Spadina McDonalds Station idea.
Staff are encouraging elected officials to come up with a list of properties that would be ripe for renaming and could generate funds to fill that $774-million budget hole. Some iconic buildings like City Hall would be off limits. Mayor Rob Ford also said he is open to selling off station naming rights.
TTC chairwoman Karen Stintz doesn’t see the transit agency changing names completely, noting that the disability advisory committee says it’s important for stations to be named after intersections so that they are easy to find. But some sort of corporate sponsorship could go a long way to renovating crumbling stations the TTC does not otherwise have the cash to fix, she said.
Ryerson University has expressed interest in naming rights at the TTC, Ms. Stintz said. “We’re looking at all options because we do want to refurbish our stations and we know we’re going to need some help to do that,” she said. “It’s too early to say right now what that menu might look like.”
Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong, a commissioner on the TTC, said the city would have to look at naming rights on a case by case basis, and with good taste in mind. “It depends on the asset, it depends who wants to sponsor it and it depends on how much money is on the table,” he said. “If we can make all those [subway station] repairs and all we have to do is have an appropriate sponsor like Bombardier, I say why not. Lets look at that.”
Councillor Joe Mihevc, a former commissioner on the TTC, disagrees. He does not think there is not enough money in such a venture to warrant “corporatizing” public assets, noting that it would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to change signs, and TTC literature. “I’m not against naming some public assets… but for large public spaces like parks and for subways, it really isn’t appropriate.”
Councillor Ford says parks are exactly the kind of public space that the city should look at.
“Last week, I donated part of my salary to two different parks, $5,000 each, but $5,000 doesn’t go that far. If I can go to Microsoft, or Kraft or Maple Leaf Foods and ask them to top that up, I think that would be beneficial for the community,” he said.
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