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In last month’s federal contest, the same pc28¹ÙÍøvoters who elected Chow — a former New Democrat MP — in a  2023 mayoral byelection delivered nearly every seat in the city to the Grits, with Liberals winning all but one of Toronto’s 24 ridings. They included influential figures Carney tapped on Tuesday to serve in his cabinet, such as Chrystia Freeland (University-Rosedale), Julie Dabrusin (Toronto-Danforth), Gary Anandasangaree (Scarborough — Guildwood — Rouge Park), Evan Solomon (pc28¹ÙÍøCentre), and John Zerucelli (Etobicoke North). 

In her letter, Chow listed areas she believed city hall and Ottawa can work together, first among them addressing the housing crisis. She praised Carney’s commitment to create Build Canada Homes, a new federal entity that would act as a developer to build affordable housing at scale, and which mirrors Chow’s own pledge to get municipal government directly involved in housing construction. 

The mayor wrote that the promise from Carney, along with other market-based interventions, matches “the urgency of the moment,” and called on the prime minister to work with pc28¹ÙÍøto build more rental and nonmarket housing, shorten wait times for affordable units, and invest in more development-enabling infrastructure such as roads, sewers and parks. 

Chow also asked Carney’s government to help pay for the Eglinton East and Waterfront East LRTs, two light rail lines that pc28¹ÙÍøhas long identified as priorities but which remain unfunded. The mayor said the city is prepared to put up one third of the cost for the lines, and is asking Queen’s Park and Ottawa to each contribute an equal amount. The estimated cost to build the Eglinton East LRT is $4.7 billion, while for the Waterfront East LRT it’s $2.57 billion.

“These lines will help reduce the congestion on our roads that costs billions in lost economic activity each year,” Chow wrote. “We’re ready to get these projects built.” 

Reiterating Toronto’s long-standing complaints about a lack of reliable revenue streams to pay for municipal services and infrastructure, Chow’s letter called for a “fair deal for Toronto” that would end its reliance on existing funding sources, which she called “outdated, disconnected from economic growth, and unable to meet the financial needs of a growing global city.” City officials and previous mayors have argued the property tax base, which doesn’t grow with the economy, is inadequate to fund the city’s needs.

Chow wrote that Carney’s government should give “serious consideration” to Toronto’s previous requests for a “small portion” of the GST or federal gas tax revenue “already collected from Torontonians.” 

Lastly, the mayor said she was encouraged that the prime minister intends to make the National School Food Program, and said that together the two governments could make morning meals for students universal in pc28¹ÙÍøby the 2026-27 school year.