Toronto the rich? You'd never know it

City of millionaires struggles to maintain infrastructure like roads, parks and transit

- EDWARD KEENAN

Toronto recently made No. 13 on a list of top 50 cities for millionaires around the world. Perhaps they can pitch in to fix it, writes Edward Keenan.

I knew a couple who ran a pizza joint in Washington. Previously they had, between them, lived in Scarborough, Central America, South Asia and the Middle East. Once, we were sharing our impressions of the U.S. capital city.

"It's a beautiful city," I said, then thinking of the sky-high cost of living there, added, "if you have the money to afford it."

She responded, "Every city is a great place to live if you're rich."

I thought of that conversation this week when Toronto was named to the "World's Wealthiest Cities" list from Henley & Partners, as determined by a simple count of the sheer number of rich people. It came to mind when I read the title above the list where Toronto sits 13th in the world (fifth in North America, first in Canada): "Top 50 Cities for Millionaires."

That's fine, I guess. I suppose it's reassuring to hear that at least 106,300 people in Toronto can maybe afford to shop for groceries. But the thing is, Toronto's goal here isn't (or shouldn't be) to be a "top city for millionaires." What we want to be is a great city to live in for everyone: the thousandaires and hundredaires and one-thin-dimeairs who make up the bulk of the population.