In demonstrable ways, the city government is working for all of geographic Toronto — downtown and suburbs.

It’s a message seldom delivered, one that is at odds with the familiar refrain designed to put a wedge between segments of our city and feed the politics of envy.

On Wednesday, a city committee voted to increase the number of existing community centres where residents can get free recreation services to 39, from the current 23. The centres are in or near census tracts with above-average poverty levels.

All 16 will be in the burbs — eight in Scarborough, five in Etobicoke-York and three in North York.

Out of the 39 such centres, 11 are in Etobicoke-York, 10 in Toronto-East York, and 9 each in Scarborough and North York.

In another committee room, councillors were debating the proposed downtown relief subway line — only, they were afraid to name it such. Downtown is a section of the city that dares not voice its name, for fear that aggrieved suburbanites will rise up and object.

This is not hyperbole. Not long ago, the mayor indicated he is not interested in the relief line until there are subways on Sheppard East and on Finch West. Why? Because downtown “has enough subways.”

Yes, that’s loose talk based on no facts or needs analysis or study; but loose talk from the mayor has a way of stalling transit progress.

TTC boss Andy Byford says the relief line is his first priority of transit improvements. In fact, experts recommend that a planned extension of the Yonge line into Richmond Hill should not go ahead until the relief line is in service, to ease pressure off Yonge. As such, the relief line would help commuters all over the region — workers that now travel south into the core.

Councillor John Filion, who represents the Sheppard-Yonge area of North York — a section of town that has benefitted greatly from city-wide investment, to the extent that this suburban node has two subway lines — captured the dilemma during debate at the planning and growth management committee.

His constituents stand to benefit from a downtown relief line but are opposed to it, Filion said, because they hear the word downtown and assume it’s “one more thing for downtown.”

Talk about cutting off your nose . . .

Everyone, it seems, from politicians to advocates in the social services sector trade on the idea that downtown sucks up the cash, and the suburbs get pennies. There is ample evidence, of course, of social and service inequity between downtown and the old cities of Scarborough, Etobicoke and York, for example. But, more often than not, the reason is historical penny-pinching on the part of the old suburban governments, or failing that, a deliberate political policy to deny social services for fear that they would attract undesirables.

Little wonder some downtowners chafe at criticism of downtown spending. Much of that money funds a disproportionate number of shelters, harm-reduction centres and recreation programs for transient and dispossessed people who hail from those very suburbs that won’t accommodate them.

Prior to amalgamation in 1998, downtown did have the benefit of a larger tax base, thanks to assessments from the office building and businesses. But even when that money was made available to the entire Metro Toronto, through a regional share of taxes, politicians from the suburbs were less than aggressive in claiming the funds. Rather, they spent much energy trying to get the downtown councillors to think like the suburbs: cut back, scrimp, provide as little service as possible.

Amalgamation is the greatest hope for equity across Toronto. Subways are reaching out into the suburbs — have been for several decades — not into downtown.

Free recreation — long a feature of downtown Toronto — is now filtering out to the burbs.

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When the free recreation item gets to city council for approval, if there are four or five councillors opposed to the plan, you can bet they will be from the suburbs.

And those councillors will probably be the same ones who claim downtown gets all the cash and the suburbs get crumbs.