Getting to work early in the morning sometimes means Mayor John Tory sees more of the city's denizens than he probably wants to.

At city hall's 50th anniversary celebration event, Tory told reporters he sometimes sees couples engaged in "intimate activity" in the O's of the Toronto sign.

"There's something about the O's," he said with a chuckle. "When I come in at 6:30 in the morning, there are people engaged in a passionate embrace inside the O's."

The letter, he added, has taken some "wear and tear" as a result.

Tory also announced that the popular Toronto sign, erected for the Pan Am games at a cost of $94,000, will stay at city hall until the end of next year.

"This is a sign that has inspired people across the city," he said. "I think what it does is bring us out of our shells. It's a big, bold, colourful sign that just says Toronto but we feel that way about our city and I think it captures that."

Tory also said that the city is looking at producing a smaller, more mobile version of the sign that can be taken around the city.