Apparently, the heads of several high-profile cultural agencies in the city are fighting a motion that would put more power over cultural boards into the city's hands. The executive committee is requesting the boards, including the Sony Centre and the Toronto Public Library amongst others, reduce in size and adjust their structure so that members are hired through an open and advertised process run by the city. A report from city manager, Joe Pennachetti, provides letters from several board chairs insisting that board compositions should remain intact.

For those who loathe the idea of going in person to fight those pesky parking tickets, the city of Toronto has made it somewhat easier for you. Now you can dispute pay and display parking violations from the comfort of your home through email or fax. "We're always in a state of constant improvement," said Anthony Fabrizi, manager of parking operations for the City of Toronto. "There is no need for these folks to come down or go to a location, they should be able to email or fax this stuff in." He also says staff will aim to respond to your claim within 48 hours. The new service will not include tickets issued during rush hour.

So it looks like a little human contact goes a long way when it comes to this year's election, and not so much social media. Though people are optimistic that social media will get the youth excited about voting, a recent Ipsos Reid survey found that only six per cent of voters get their daily political fix via online sources. On a weekly basis, only 21 per cent of voters use social media to follow politics. What does that mean? More knocks on the doors and more of those random phone calls from canvassers.

As if Leafs Nation wasn't enough, a new report suggests that Canada can definitely support 6 more NHL teams, including two in the Golden Horseshoe. The report, entitled "The New Economics of the NHL," is the work of the Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation at the University of Toronto. It says the NHL should focus on bolstering the game in Canada where demand is greatest. The study found that another team would be successful in Hamilton, London or Kitchener-Waterloo. Leafs fans would be hesitant to jump bandwagons, but maybe if there was a Stanley Cup involved...?

IN BRIEF:

• Here's a map of the scheduled city street construction
• Writers' Guild of Canada honours "Barney's Version" scribe and others
• Man dies in west Toronto pasta factory accident
• Jays lose to Seattle

Photo by Anton Bielousov in the blogTO Flickr pool.