Short Mission Trip - May/June 2010

Take a Summer break! Summer temperature in Toronto can range anywhere between 20°C to 35°C. It's perfect weather for going to all the outdoor activities and events around Toronto including Canada's Wonderland, Jazz festival and more.

Date
22 May - 16 June 2010 (3 wks, over school holiday period)

Objectives
Encourage Hope Toronto
Explore entry vehicles

General
Explore different places and take in the sights and sound of what this multicultural city has to offer.

Budget
Lodgings = About C$40/day
Flight = Cathay Pacific S$1700 (Stopover in Hong Kong)
Food - C$40/day
Transport = C$20/dayMisc
Total = Approx C$3000 - C$4000 (including airfare)

Interested to find out more? Please contact Richard Yeo
mobile: 9679 8578 or email: richyeoh@singnet.com.sg

We look forward to your response by March 2010!

Toronto's Neighbourhood

Discover the character of each of Toronto's unique neighbourhoods. Whether you're interested in the history of the people and places of our great city, or whether you need to find that special neighbourhood to buy your next home, you can find it all here.
http://www.torontorealestateboard.com/about_TO/Neighbourhood/index.html

Friends of Toronto Gathering (photos) - Jan 2010

The inaugural Friends of Toronto gathering was held on 23 January 2010 over a simple outdoor afternoon tea.

Special guests who were either Canadian or have studied in Canada were invited to this gathering. The atmosphere was congenial and people chatted about taxation issues, cross cultural communications, evangelism, living and work life in Canada. There were about 13 people, together with one or two new friends.

Everyone took away important facts that helped in their preparation towards their move to Toronto.

This event followed Canada Mission Night, held in September, 2009 attracted a good mix of people who were keen to live, work, study or be involved in missions in Canada.

Friends of Toronto BBQ

Inviting all who are interested to find out more about Canada living and working!


















Date: 23 Jan 2010 (Saturday)

Time: 4-6pm

Place: Chuan Park Condo BBQ Pit (Next to Club House)

For more information, pls email to : Torontoteam@gmail.com

Toronto’s 2010 Capital Budget and 10-Year Capital Plan funds infrastructure and creates jobs

The infrastructure that supports the many services delivered to the residents and businesses of Toronto got a major boost today as the proposed 2010 Capital Budget and 10-Year Capital Plan were introduced by City staff at a meeting of Toronto’s Budget Committee. The proposals speed up job creation and the maintenance of City infrastructure by moving more capital spending into the first five years of the plan. The 2010 capital budget and 10-year capital plan introduced today totals over $16 billion with $2.4 billion earmarked for 2010 and over $2.5 billion budgeted for each of 2011 and 2012. The City’s total capital budget plan, including Water and Waste Management is $25.7 billion over the next 10 years.

The proposed budget and plan includes funding for the ongoing maintenance and replacement of the City’s major infrastructure such as transit, roads and bridges, police stations and emergency communications systems. The capital budget also funds ongoing environmental initiatives, improvements to the waterfront and Toronto’s many parks, trails, libraries and community centres. Maintaining the City’s assets is an important component of the capital plan. Over the next 10 years the City will spend $9.9 billion - more than 60 per cent of all capital spending - to maintain the City’s existing assets.

More than 50 per cent of the City’s 2010 capital budget and 10-year plan (over $8.7 billion) will go towards the infrastructure required for the operation, maintenance and expansion of the TTC. The proposed capital budget will pay the cost of major infrastructure for the TTC, including new streetcars. In total, the 10-year capital plan sets aside over $11.7 billion for transportation in Toronto (including TTC) - more than 70 per cent of the total capital budget.

“We continue to make the right investments to support our city,” said Mayor David Miller. “The initiatives we have undertaken over the years to improve the quality of life in Toronto continue to serve our city well and the plan introduced today ensures those investments can and will continue.”

“These are times of almost unprecedented financial challenges and governments must do all they can to maintain services, create and maintain jobs and protect the economy,” said Councillor Shelley Carroll, Chair of the City’s Budget Committee. “The City must make these investments while keeping spending at an affordable level. The Budget Committee and Council will review the proposed capital budget to ensure the City gets the most out of a capital budget program that it can truly afford.”

“The City continues to meet the challenge of maintaining the City’s existing assets and invest in the projects that meet the demands of growth,” said City Manager Joe Pennachetti.

“Funding the needs of our capital budget programs will be done through a mix of financing strategies that closely match the lifespan of projects and keep the City’s total debt within Council approved guidelines,” said Cam Weldon, Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer.

In December 2008, Toronto City Council adopted a capital budget for 2009 and a 10-year (2009-2018) capital plan totalling $25.9 billion. Over the 10-year period, the plan will create or maintain approximately 300,000 jobs. In the plan introduced today, more spending has been moved into the first half of the plan. Recent City of Toronto stimulus partnership agreements with the Federal and Provincial governments have enabled the City to accelerate its capital programs and create jobs at a time when they are most needed. The majority of City funding for these programs comes from the City’s capital budget plan. To meet the requirements of this funding capital budget investments be accelerated in 2010 and 2011.

The City and Federal governments recently announced funding for more than 500 infrastructure projects that will begin construction across Toronto as soon as possible, including upgrades to roads, water and sewage infrastructure, public transit, municipal buildings, community centres, and cultural facilities. More than half a billion dollars will be invested, with the Federal Government contributing about $200 million through the federal Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, and the City providing the remaining two-thirds of the cost.

In addition, the City and the Provincial governments recently announced $80 million in funding for more than 100 projects through the Recreational Infrastructure Canada (RInC) and the Ontario Recreation Program. Approximately $40 million of the projects funding comes from the City with the remainder being funded by the Federal and Ontario governments.

To meet the requirements of stimulus funding from the Federal and Provincial governments, and meet the needs of the TTC, Council approved the acceleration of capital budget investments in 2010 and 2011 and therefore the capital budgets for the next two years will increase.

Details on the partnership funding for these programs and the need to accelerate capital investments and information on the specific projects can be viewed in the report that was approved by Council at its meeting last September: http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2009/cc/bgrd/cc40.10.pdf

A web based map with all of the projects can be viewed at: http://www.toronto.ca/stimulus_fund

The capital budget addresses several categories of funding. In total, the capital budget plan proposed today dedicates 61 per cent to funding the maintenance of City assets, 24.5 per cent to projects required to meet the demands of growth and 9.8 per cent to enhance existing programs, with the balance going to meet the needs of health and safety or legislated requirements.

To accelerate capital plan spending in the next five years; the City will accelerate borrowing during this period. In accordance with the City’s Long-Term Fiscal Plan Toronto City Council has established an affordability guideline that limits the City’s debt (including principal and interest) to 15 per cent of the property tax revenues forecast for any given 10-year plan period. The City’s current tax supported debt is approximately $2.4 billion to the end of 2009.

To properly fund the capital needs of the City needs of the next five years, meet affordability guidelines, protect the City’s excellent credit rating and take advantage of the very low interest rates now available for longer-term loans, the City will refinance parts of it current and future debt by paying down existing debt, and borrowing funds for selected projects on 30-year terms as opposed to the current 10-year term. The 30-year debt will be used to finance long term assets such as subway tunnels and subway cars. This means that the period of time for which money is borrowed will more closely match the life span of the infrastructure being built or purchased.

Municipalities can only borrow money to pay for capital projects - not day-to-day operating expenses.

At present, the City borrows money for shorter terms meaning that higher re-payments are made in shorter periods for major infrastructure which has a much longer life span than the term of the loan. Moving to this financing strategy for some of the City’s borrowing needs will also help manage the pressures of debt repayment on the annual property tax base. Repayment of principal and interest on the City’s debt continues to be the second highest expense on the annual property tax bill. Lowering the annual debt payments, and spreading them out over a longer period, will allow the City to direct more property tax dollars to services each year and less to debt repayment. To implement this approach the City will use the proceeds of the Toronto Hydro promissory note, which had been dedicated to two specific areas of investment (Spadina subway and Waterfront development), and pay down approximately $600 million of existing debt. The projects previously funded from this reserve will be refinanced for that amount over a 30-year period and only when the funds are actually required.

In their remarks at Budget Committee today, both Mayor Miller and Councillor Carroll spoke about the importance of the continued partnership with both the Federal and Provincial governments that is required for the City of Toronto, and all Cities in Canada, to succeed. Councillor Carroll recently appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance pre-budget consultations in Toronto and detailed a series of recommendations that will assist the federal government in preparing the next budget. Read the full presentation here: http://wi.toronto.ca/inter/city/newsrel.nsf/d632920b56e322cb85256dad00585dad/fdf7106884cdbff98525765800738d3e?OpenDocument

The City has both a capital and operating budget. The capital budget funds major infrastructure and the operating budget pays the day-to-day operating costs for City services such police, fire, emergency medical services, employment and social service programs, libraries, transit, and includes costs such as wages, fuel, hydro, supplies, etc. The operating budget will be considered beginning in February, 2010.The presentation made today at Budget Committee can be viewed at http://www.toronto.ca/budget2010

more details at : http://wx.toronto.ca/inter/it/newsrel.nsf/9da959222128b9e885256618006646d3/797039395965bce3852576630062de4f?OpenDocument

Presbyterians Launch 'Every Church Plant a Church' Thrust

Audrey Barrick Nov. 12 2009

The Presbyterian Church in America is pushing its "every church plant a church" campaign to help bring more people to Christ

Launched this year by the denomination’s domestic mission arm, Mission to North America, the thrust was designed to create a grassroots church-planting culture in the PCA.

"We’re not inventing any new methodology here but we’re crystallizing concepts we’ve clearly seen God use, and encouraging people to take more steps in this direction," said Fred Marsh, associate coordinator of MNA, in the denomination’s byFaith magazine.

Church planting is considered one of the most effective ways to "bring in a harvest."

According to research by David T. Olson, author of The American Church in Crisis, new churches grow faster than established churches and have three to four times the conversion rate per attendee than do established churches. They are also historically the best method for reaching each emerging new generation.

Additionally, planting new churches promotes the health of parent churches. Olson points out that the traits that cause a church to plant a new church (such as a desire to evangelize and minister to their community) are the same traits that will cause the parent church to grow.

"The best way to make known the name of Christ is by planting new churches. It's the best way to promote world missions. It's the best way to promote the health of existing churches," said David Sherwood, senior pastor at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Providence, R.I.

Mission to North America notes that Trinity and other churches that have been successful with church plants are not megachurches with superstar pastors. These pastors are just ordinary people responding to God's call to advance the Gospel through planting churches, the mission agency emphasizes.

Since 1970 the rate of church planting has been increasing but only marginally. The net gain in churches over the last eight years has been about one sixth of what would have been needed to keep up with population growth, according to Olson's research.

Meanwhile, mainline denominations have rediscovered church planting, missiologist Ed Stetzer said at the release of the "State of Church Planting USA" study in 2007. Some of the national churches that have a church planting emphasis, particularly in North America, include the Reformed Church in America, Assemblies of God, Presbyterian Church in America, the Baptist General Conference, and the Missionary Church.

The number of churches in the PCA has grown from 1,288 in 2004 to 1,372 in 2007. The denomination's mission arm has developed resources to help every church become involved in church planting to impact communities across North America.

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20091112/presbyterians-launch-every-church-plant-a-church-thrust/index.html

What are the job trends to 2009?

It is difficult to predict with accuracy which occupations will be in demand in the future and how many jobs will be created in these occupations. Economic conditions, technological developments, demographics and consumer behaviour will continue to influence the labour market, the occupational composition, and the kinds of job opportunities that will be available. Assessing industry trends is the first step in figuring out the potential for growth or decline in occupations or changes in skill requirements.

Projections to the year 2009 indicate that the main source of new job creation will continue to be the service industries. Taken together, the health care and social assistance; wholesale and retail trade; professional, scientific and technical services; education services; accommodation and food; transportation and warehousing; public administration; information, culture and recreation; business, building and other services; and finance, insurance and real estate sectors will account for over three-quarters of the projected new jobs in the economy. The manufacturing and construction sectors are projected to contribute 19 and 3 percent respectively to new job creation. Primary resource industries and utilities will make a very modest contribution to projected job creation (see Figure 6).

More info at: http://www.ontariojobfutures.ca/employment_trends.html