The Games Cities Play

Journal of Canadian Studies • Revue d'etudes canadiennes The Games Cities Play Stephen Bocking T: e accumulated rust and dust of Toronto's derelict port received a reprieve n 13 July 2001, when the International Olympic Committee awarded the Games of 2008 to Beijing. In Toronto, the resulting gloom was not just because of dashed hopes for hosting 19 days of swimming, sprinting and sweating. Rather, the Olympics were seen as the latest, best hope for new direction, energy and vision - an essential boost of adrenalin. Only such a deadline could sweep away the obstacles to creating a new city on the waterfront. Cities matter. A'sjanejacobs and others have noted, they are economic engines, and their vitality determines the prosperity of regions and nations (Jacobs). Canadians, like most people, go to cities to make their fortune. Our natural environment is also shaped by our urban places. Wild spaces, other species, the future global climate - all are affected by how we move, work and consume in our cities. As the destination of ch.oice for most immigrants and the originating point for many exports, cities such as Va~couver, Montreal and Toronto are the doorways between Canada and the world, generating ever more social and cultural diversity. More i:Iltangible, perhaps, are the creative interactions that cities foster: the encounters between reality and imagination, by chance and design, that take place in streets, studios, libraries and laboratories. As the old German proverb says, Stadtlyft mach frei - u City air makeS you free." Often, of course, cities are viewed not in terms of prosperity, diversity or creativity , but as sites of problems and challenges. Honielessness and high housing costs. Food banks and economic Inequities. The exclusion of classes and groups from opportunities that ought to be open to all. Poverty and social dislocation among Aboriginal people. Tension and distrust between cities and provinces and between cities and rural areas. Budget cuts. Pollution. Congestion. Three quarters of Canadians live in urban ~reas and face diverse uncertainties. Over the next decades we must develop new vocations for our cities within a rapidly evolving global economy. If we wish to breathe clean air, drink clear water and live in a world that has not yet experienced environmental collapse, we will need to do so while moderating consumption and cutting pollution. Long-term investments in transportation and other infrastructure are necessary. Most crucially, as Witold Rybczyiiski has argued, cities must continue to be livable as they balance rapid change and stable neighbourhoods. They must be places where people actually choose to live (Rybczynski). The urban agenda of the future is a lengthy one. Volume 36 • No. 2 • (Ete 2001 Summer) 5 6 Introduction • Stephen Bocking Given both the potential and the problems of urban areas, Toronto's reaction to the news from Moscow could only be described as pathetic. Like a slacker who will tidy up only when company is coming, Toronto apparently requires a deadline to do what is necessary to achieve a livable, green and prosperous city. As if a city could be built in a day, or in 19. The reaction was a graphic demonstration of the obstades to effective city governance . But, as Caroline Andrew has recently explained in this journal (Vol. 35.4), the origins ofthese obstacles are less obvious. Some critics mention uninspired urban leadership. Others cite neglect, even antagonism from senior governments: provinces download responsibilities but not resources while Ottawa displays casual indifference. Economic factors such as declining industries and the departure of decision-making authority, especially to the south, have been noted. Whatever the origins of the malaise, this dissonant combination of urban potential, challenges and inadequate responses can only lead to more frustration and cynicism among citizens. The Journal ofCanadian Studies has recently completed its millennium project: in the four issues of Volume 35 scholars sought to define an agenda for Canadian Studies. For those who study and write about cities, that agenda is very exciting. The challenges of achieving urban prosperity and effective governance, and ofovercoming obstacles to collective action, suggest interesting problems in political studies and economics. Urban diversity and creativity inspire research by scholars in sociology, cultural studies and other fields. The place...