How Toronto compares to Chicago

TORONTO – Mayor Rob Ford and his Chicago counterpart Rahm Emanuel signed a renewed sister cities agreement on Wednesday, extending a relationship that was formalized in 1991.

So, what do Chicago and Toronto have in common (besides the fact that both cities are home to Ford’s company Deco Labels and Tags)? Global News does a quick comparison to see how Toronto stacks up to its civic sibling: 

ROOTS
Respect your elder, Chicago. Toronto was incorporated on March 6, 1834, three years before Chicago, which made it official on March 4, 1837.

Historians believe Toronto took its name from the Iroquois word “tkaronto,” which means “place where trees stand in the water.” Chicago’s name comes from the French interpretation of the Native American word “shikaakwa,” which translates as “wild onion”.

SIZE MATTERS
How does Toronto measure up to its sister city? Chicago covers about 606 square-kilometres, making it slightly smaller than Toronto at 630 square-kilometres. Chicago can look down at Toronto, though — it sits at an elevation 106 metres higher than Toronto.

Both cities are on Great Lakes but one is greater than the other. Chicago’s Lake Michigan is about 50,000 square-kilometres bigger than Lake Ontario but Toronto’s lake is deeper, on average, by a metre.

In terms of population, Chicago and Toronto are the fourth and fifth most populous cities in North America respectively (behind Mexico City, New York and Los Angeles). According to 2011 estimates, there are 2.7 million people in the Windy City versus 2.6 million in Hogtown.

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DIVERSITY
According to census data, Toronto and Chicago have very different diversity. Toronto has slightly fewer visible minorities than Chicago (47.4 per cent vs. 55 per cent). T.O. has significantly higher Asian populations (33 per cent vs. 5.5 per cent) and a much smaller Black population (8.4 per cent vs. 32.9 per cent). Both cities report Aboriginal populations of 0.5 per cent.

HEIGHTS
You can get higher in Toronto. The top observation deck at the CN Tower is 445.6 metres above the ground, while Chicago’s Willis Tower has an observation deck 412.4 metres off the ground.

The CN Tower, at 553 metres, soars 26 metres further into the sky than Willis Tower and 96 metres higher than Chicago’s other big skyscraper, the John Hancock Center.

CRIME 

Which city is safer? It’s not even close. There were 441 homicides in Chicago in 2011, compared to only 45 in Toronto. The murder rate in Toronto last year was 1.6 per 100,000 people; in Chicago it was 15.7 per 100,000.

FIRE! 

Both cities have suffered devastating infernos in their time.

The Great Chicago Fire, which burned from Oct. 8 to 10, 1871, killed hundreds of people and destroyed about nine square-kilometres of the city. Toronto lost 104 buildings in its downtown core on April 19, 1904 in a fire that claimed the life of one man and put thousands of people out of work.

NEWS
There are three English-language daily newspapers in Chicago: The Tribune, the Sun-Times, and the Tribune-owned pop culture newspaper Red Eye. The suburbs are served by the Daily Herald.

Toronto has four English dailies: The Star and its commuter paper Metro and the Sun and its 24hrs.

Toronto cable subscribers can watch local Chicago news on WGN but no Toronto TV stations are broadcast in Chicago.

SPORTS 

Both cities have one NHL team, one NBA team and one MLS team — and both have a pro football team. But Chicago boasts twice as many major league baseball teams as Toronto: It’s got the White Sox and the Cubs. Toronto’s got a National Lacrosse League team.

TRANSIT
Chicago and Toronto both have subways and buses, of course, but Toronto can boast about its streetcars. Then again, Chicago can brag about having subway service to its major airport.

Transit users in Chicago pay $86 for a monthly pass, while in Toronto the top price is $126. Individual trips in Chicago cost $2.25 compared to $3.00 in Toronto (both cities offer discounts for seniors and children) and a day pass is $5.75 in Chicago and $10.50 in Toronto.

ZOOS 

Want to look at animals? Admission to Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo is $15 for adults. Getting in to Toronto Zoo will cost you $25. The Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago offers free admission.