At the beginning of February, a new committee will begin its work at city hall that will be of particular interest to Ward 16 residents.

The Toronto School Boards Task Force is a new entity, charged with identifying issues that would benefit from a more collaborative approach between the City of Toronto and Toronto-area school boards.

As our community already knows by now, one of the most pressing issues is the sale of surplus school board property.

Recently, a portion of the Bannockburn School property, which functions as valued green space for the community for sports leagues, community groups and families alike, was put up for sale.

Given the scarcity of parkland in our ward, the surrounding community strongly opposed the idea of this valued land being sold for residential home development.

In this particular case, the city is considering purchasing the land to retain as parkland.

However, the city does not have the financial ability to purchase every single field that may come up for sale.

We need to conceive of a more creative and sustainable approach in order to protect our joint assets and unlock their full value.

This new task force provides a much needed opportunity for constructive dialogue between residents, the city and school bords and provides a chance for joint problem resolution.

I am very pleased to be one of the six local councillors sitting on this task force and look forward to working with six school trustees from our city’s public, separate and French school boards.