What's a catchy T-shirt slogan say about London? Less than we need. | London Free Press

Defining London by where it is on the map neither tells its story nor its ambitions. This is Part Two of Postmedia’s How Canada Wins series.

You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.

It’s a bit of fun found on a popular T-shirt, how Londoners describe where they live.

The fun also suggests London’s traditional strength and its weakness now as a city.

“Halfway between Toronto and Detroit.”

Jeff Sage, co-chief executive with wife Lindsay of London marketing and communications company Sagecomm, says he appreciates the humour of Londoners’ explanation to strangers of the city’s location.

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

But it’s also a sign of how little an identity we have, he says.

“It’s kind of funny, but it’s also kind of sad that we’re defining ourselves in comparison to these other major metropolitan areas. Winning cities don’t do that.”

Close to major markets for its products in the United States and Canada, and located on the Hwy. 401, London’s charmed geography has always been an advantage, says Kapil Lakhotia, chief executive and president of the London Economic Development Corp. (LEDC).

But we can no longer rest on location, he says.

“This (U.S.) tariff threat has obviously opened our eyes to creating a more resilient and diversified economic footprint that doesn’t just rely on a geographical, proximity-based economic advantage,” Lakhotia says.

The 25-per-cent tariffs on Canadian exports to the U.S. that President Donald Trump imposed this week make questions about London’s advantages and weaknesses all the more timely, terrain The London Free Press is exploring as part of a national series by its publisher, Postmedia, as we take a closer look at how to make London better.

The series is called How Canada Wins: A blueprint for a prosperous nation.

Here, we’re starting with the question what does a prosperous London look like?

A stronger technology culture, stronger core services and quality of life, a better sense of who we are – here are a few answers from some city leaders to get the discussion going:

“In London, we’ve got world-class education and health care institutions and a lot of innovation. How do we turn that capacity into a job-creating machine, is that nut to crack,” says the LEDC’s Lakhotia.

“I’m not giving an eureka moment there – we’ve talked about this many times over the past. But in the light of these recent economic trends, one can’t help but go back to that. How do we solve this puzzle and create a more technology- and innovation-led economic place?

London will need a culture change, one that embraces technology and the risks that come with it, Lakhotia suggests.

“The culture has to be converted to an appetite for risk-taking, for capital injection, and that has a mindset of adopting new technologies and not just adopting it once it’s proven elsewhere,” he says.

For buyers, sellers, renters and dreamers — London's complex, fascinating real estate market is brought into focus and into context with this newsletter.

By signing up, you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.

A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.

The next issue of Homes in London will soon be in your inbox.

We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again

London has to accept that failure will sometimes come with experimenting, but that we can’t rely on the same old, safe old ways, Lakhotia says.

“In the face of a technology-led economic climate, we have to create unique hooks based on innovation and technology, rather than geographical proximity.”

What are the main things in life that a government must provide its people?, asks Glen Pearson, co-director of the London Food Bank.

Housing, health care, education, food security and jobs are among the common answers, he says.

“The beauty of those things is that conservatives and liberals agree on them,” Pearson says.

In rising numbers at the food bank, Pearson sees daily the harm that low incomes, joblessness, expensive housing and a lack of food security cause Londoners.

Despite the need for a strong foundation, people can get distracted by the non-essentials, he says.

“The business community is lobbying for a high-speed train (service). Why are you doing that when the basics aren’t being handled?” Pearson asks.

A city has to be a bit of something for everyone, based on a common belief we all share the costs, says Maureen Cassidy, a former city councillor and chief executive of the Pillar Non-Profit Network, a umbrella group for that sector in London.

“You’re not going to use every single service we offer, but we should have something for everyone in the city and that, in a nutshell – that’s what a city is.”

That means a city has to be affordable for everyone and that means London has to grow responsibly, with more housing in the core and not costly urban sprawl, Cassidy says.

“If we’re going to keep attracting people, we have to be able to have a city that they can afford to live in,” Cassidy says.

Mayor Josh Morgan agrees London, growing at a clip unseen in decades, has to get the fundamentals right – from housing to transit, from jobs to parks.

“In a city that’s growing as fast as us is, how are we going to manage people getting around the city? People want to be able to go where they want and they don’t want it to take forever,” he says.

“The other piece is quality of life. People want their parks. They want the recreational services. They want their garbage picked up on time. They want good core services. And employers want that, too.”

London has made good investments in core services, but needs to continue to push other government levels for the funding that keeps those investments going in a growing city, Morgan says.

Aside from a city with healthy services, London can – and should – aspire to be a “major player” in Canada, Morgan says.

“The city for a long time saw itself as kind of quiet, pretty inward-looking. Yet, at the same time, the city was doing innovative things in multiple sectors and never really, like, realizing the influence and the leadership that it could play,” Morgan says.

“I think London now realizes that we actually have the capacity to be leaders in solving challenges and creating solutions.”

London has a “huge influence” in health care, agribusiness, and education and has attracted tech startups and hi-tech industry, he says.

Most recently, London created a health and homelessness service system that prompted the province to replicate part of it in medical care hubs, Morgan says.

“We just need to shift our perspective to recognize that we are tackling challenges, we are seizing opportunities and we are actually leading in a number of areas.”

That shift will build pride and attract new employers and new residents, Morgan says.

“When people are proud of their city, when we support each other, we kind of we take it up to an even higher level,” he says.

“This used to be a town where headquarters left. The (Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board) headquarters are coming to the city. People are looking at London as a good place to be, because it is a place that is leading.”

London has a lot to celebrate, Sagecomm’s co-CEOs Jeff and Lindsay Sage agree.

We’re just bad at celebrating it.

“Winning cities tell a bold, compelling story about who they are, and they let other people know how they should talk about the city. And I don’t think that we’ve done that yet,” Jeff Sage says.

“If we don’t shape our identity, somebody else will. And I think that’s what’s happening in the in the vacuum of a strong brand.”

An identity that rests on being halfway to somewhere, or where you can get a cheaper house than in Toronto, can’t sustain a city and doesn’t do enough to attract the talent London needs, he says.

Here’s one story to tell the world: How Londoners work together to solve problems such as homelessness and not enough affordable housing, he says.

Here’s another story to tell: How London can help people, especially younger ones, get what matter most to many – an education, a solid job and good housing, Lindsay Sage says.

“A winning city isn’t just about growth – it’s about building opportunity for everyone,” she says.

“London has shown it can take on big, ambitious challenges and make real progress. The question isn’t whether we can build a better London. It’s whether we will.”

[email protected]

Over five weeks we are chronicling our community’s place in the country, the promise of greater prosperity, and the blueprint to get there. See the How Canada Wins series intro and other local stories here.

St. Thomas: Industrial past offers way forward to hit growing city’s housing goals

Strathroy-Caradoc: A growth eureka moment and an uphill challenge

Woodstock: At the crossroads of a diverse economy

Stratford: A ‘United’ approach to affordable housing

Sarnia-Lambton: Biochemical prowess, emerging European opportunities

Chatham-Kent: Chamber boss sees opportunity, big challenges, hope

Windsor: Area’s future prosperity rests on mixing and building on our strengths

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.