Rob Ford has made his pick for the city's next budget chief.

Frank Di Giorgio.

The York South-Weston councillor joined the mayor in studio on Newstalk 1010's The City Sunday.

Ford told DiGiorgio he wants to "hopefully make you the budget chief, but I just gotta talk to a couple more people, but you're close, you're very very close."  The mayor added he wasn't read to make any "big announcement" just yet.

Budget committee vice chair Doug Ford has been running the show since Mike Del Grande quit as chair in mid-January. Del Grande has said he'd be willing to return to the post, only if council unanimously backed the idea.

On The City, Doug Ford applauded DiGiorgio's work on Toronto's last 3 budgets, saying he was "instrumental" to the team.

Councillor Paul Ainslie has also put his name forward as a possible successor to Del Grande.

(with files from James Moore)