Toronto’s 50 Most Influential: #9, Jennifer Keesmaat

By Toronto Life

| November 28, 2016

Jennifer Keesmaat

Chief Planner

9When politicians say we can’t afford nice things, Keesmaat fights for them anyway. She has shattered the traditional role of bureaucrat as behind-the-scenes advisor, replacing it with strident advocate and social media powerhouse. She won the mayor’s backing for an eight-hectare Rail Deck Park covering the rail lines downtown and for the one-stop subway to Scarborough, which should leave enough cash for a 17-stop LRT connecting the Eglinton Crosstown to U of T’s Scarborough campus. Last summer, she revved up her 30,000 Twitter followers to rally for the demolition of the eastern part of the Gardiner.

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She wants cars off King Street so streetcars, cyclists and pedestrians can move more freely.

Jennifer Keesmaat

Chief Planner

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