It does upset me when people from out of town say things about Toronto's crime rate, how dirty the city is, and the constant construction. While I understand the construction complaint, Toronto's crime rate is so low in comparison to American cities of comparable size/status that I think Canadian's are spoiled; we have no idea how good we have it here. There is no neighborhood in this town I'd be afraid to walk through after dark, the police here are ever present either on bikes, patrol cars or on foot at major intersections like Yonge and Dundas. As far as the dirtiness of Toronto I don't see it; the most prevalent of "trash" I see are cigarette butts which have increased since the patio ban at the beginning of the year.
One other issue is homelessness which, while one is too many, isn't as bad as other cities. Some of the panhandlers can be aggressive but no different than any other big city.