The swimming-lessons pitch is part of a plan Smitherman released Friday to transform Toronto's schools into community hubs, offering a broad range of government services including daycare, recreation facilities and libraries.

Josh Matlow, a Ward 22 candidate for city council and veteran school board trustee, expressed doubts about the plan.

"Who is going to put up their hands and say that they're going to fund it?" he questioned. "Always, it always comes down to that."

Boys from the Yonge-Eglinton neighbourhood mix it up with a little street hockey. A city committee is looking at dropping an unenforced city bylaw that prohibits playing ball games on the street.

Tuesday evening, five teens were playing on a quiet, leafy street northeast of Yonge St. and Davisville Rd.

“We play here pretty often in the summer — it’s never a problem,” said Christian Iriotakis, 13. A few cars passed, and each time the boys quickly moved the goalpost out of the way; most drivers smiled and waved. Christian and friend Owen Singer, also 13, just recently learned street hockey was illegal.

“No, I don’t think it’s going to stop us,” Owen said.

Out with them was school Trustee Josh Matlow. “We need to be reasonable about what we decide to criminalize in our society,” he said as he hit a green ball into the net. “Canada’s national sport being played out in the city is part of our fabric and culture. Why is this illegal?”

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Dr. Spence introduced the idea last fall as part of this Vision of Hope, a sort of mission statement for Canada’s largest school board. Critics raised objections to the $345,000 price tag on what amounted to an educational pep rally, and trustee Josh Matlow was censured after he characterized it as a “drunken spending binge.”

The event was scaled down from full-day to a half-day, and hardcopy commemorative booklets were re-imagined in a digital format to bring the cost to taxpayers closer to $120,000.

But some critics remain concerned.

“This is a time when the board has deferred $30-million from [building] maintenance and we’re asking parents to support school closures because we don’t have funds,” said Mr. Matlow. “To turn around the next day and ask them to spend their money on a vanity affair is a slap in the face.”

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As a stipulation of the final budget, staff has been asked to evaluate the $324-million discretionary budget and recommend areas where money could be saved in the future.

Trustees Josh Matlow (St. Paul's) and Irene Atkinson (Parkdale-High Park) saw this as a cash cow where a great deal of money is spent in ways that are far from transparent.

Matlow said it is his understanding that large discretionary budgets for things like textbooks and instructional supplies are really "code words" for money spent on other staff expenses.

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Trustee Josh Matlow said if there’s a need in public schools, other options should be explored.

“I get emails with various products people want to sell the school board,” he said. “This could be something the board would take a look at with other competitive products.”

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Josh Matlow, trustee for St. Paul’s, said to keep the paintings on school grounds or locked in a vault is wasteful.

“My view personally is that the TDSB should not be in the art gallery business. The school board is good at education but that’s typically where it stops its expertise,” he said.

“I think that we should reach out to other arts-oriented organizations, including perhaps the AGO and other galleries. I’d rather see these pieces accessible to both students and the general public.”