diff --git a/src/declaration/events.js b/src/declaration/events.js
index cee3c734d8..8fac392ac8 100644
--- a/src/declaration/events.js
+++ b/src/declaration/events.js
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
 
   // imports
 
-  var EVENT_PREFIX = scope.api.instance.events.EVENT_PREFIX;
+  var api = scope.api.instance.events;
   var log = window.logFlags || {};
 
   // polymer-element declarative api: events feature
@@ -24,57 +24,12 @@
       // for each attribute
       for (var i=0, a; a=this.attributes[i]; i++) {
         // does it have magic marker identifying it as an event delegate?
-        if (hasEventPrefix(a.name)) {
+        if (api.hasEventPrefix(a.name)) {
           // if so, add the info to delegates
-          delegates[removeEventPrefix(a.name)] = a.value;
+          delegates[api.removeEventPrefix(a.name)] = a.value;
         }
       }
     },
-    parseLocalEvents: function() {
-      // extract data from all templates into delegates
-      var t$ = this.querySelectorAll('template');
-      for (var i=0, l=t$.length, t; (i<l) && (t=t$[i]); i++) {
-        // store delegate information directly on template
-        t.delegates = {};
-        // acquire delegates from entire subtree at t
-        this.accumulateTemplatedEvents(t, t.delegates);
-        log.events && console.log('[%s] parseLocalEvents:', this.attributes.name.value, t.delegates);
-      };
-    },
-    accumulateTemplatedEvents: function(node, events) {
-      if (node.localName === 'template') {
-        var content = getTemplateContent(node);
-        if (content) {
-          this.accumulateChildEvents(content, events);
-        }
-      }
-    },
-    accumulateChildEvents: function(node, events) {
-      var n$ = node.childNodes;
-      for (var i=0, l=n$.length, n; (i<l) && (n=n$[i]); i++) {
-        this.accumulateEvents(n, events);
-      }
-    },
-    accumulateEvents: function(node, events) {
-      this.accumulateAttributeEvents(node, events);
-      this.accumulateChildEvents(node, events);
-      this.accumulateTemplatedEvents(node, events);
-      return events;
-    },
-    accumulateAttributeEvents: function(node, events) {
-      var a$ = node.attributes;
-      if (a$) {
-        for (var i=0, l=a$.length, a; (i<l) && (a=a$[i]); i++) {  
-          if (hasEventPrefix(a.name)) {
-            this.accumulateEvent(removeEventPrefix(a.name), events);
-          }
-        }
-      }
-    },
-    accumulateEvent: function(name, events) {
-      name = this.event_translations[name] || name;
-      events[name] = events[name] || 1;
-    },
     event_translations: {
       webkitanimationstart: 'webkitAnimationStart',
       webkitanimationend: 'webkitAnimationEnd',
@@ -84,25 +39,6 @@
     }
   };
 
-  var prefixLength = EVENT_PREFIX.length;
-
-  function hasEventPrefix(n) {
-    return n.slice(0, prefixLength) === EVENT_PREFIX;
-  }
-
-  function removeEventPrefix(n) {
-    return n.slice(prefixLength);
-  }
-
-  // TODO(sorvell): Currently in MDV, there is no way to get a template's
-  // effective content. A template can have a ref property
-  // that points to the template from which this one has been cloned.
-  // Remove this when the MDV api is improved
-  // (https://github.com/polymer-project/mdv/issues/15).
-  function getTemplateContent(template) {
-    return template.ref ? template.ref.content : template.content;
-  }
-
   // exports
 
   scope.api.declaration.events = events;
diff --git a/src/declaration/properties.js b/src/declaration/properties.js
index 6a815725dc..4345d88eae 100644
--- a/src/declaration/properties.js
+++ b/src/declaration/properties.js
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@
       }
     },
     requireProperties: function(properties, prototype, base) {
-      // ensure a prototype value for each one
+      // ensure a prototype value for each property
       for (var n in properties) {
         if (prototype[n] === undefined && base[n] === undefined) {
           prototype[n] = properties[n];
diff --git a/src/declaration/prototype.js b/src/declaration/prototype.js
index a64c27f382..07acbe001f 100644
--- a/src/declaration/prototype.js
+++ b/src/declaration/prototype.js
@@ -66,8 +66,6 @@
       this.accumulateInstanceAttributes();
       // parse on-* delegates declared on `this` element
       this.parseHostEvents();
-      // parse on-* delegates declared in templates
-      this.parseLocalEvents();
       // install external stylesheets as if they are inline
       this.installSheets();
       // TODO(sorvell): install a helper method this.resolvePath to aid in 
diff --git a/src/instance/base.js b/src/instance/base.js
index 077c139ec7..b7f0bbbe13 100644
--- a/src/instance/base.js
+++ b/src/instance/base.js
@@ -147,8 +147,6 @@
     shadowRootReady: function(root, template) {
       // locate nodes with id and store references to them in this.$ hash
       this.marshalNodeReferences(root);
-      // add local events of interest...
-      this.addInstanceListeners(root, template);
       // set up pointer gestures
       PointerGestures.register(root);
     },
diff --git a/src/instance/events.js b/src/instance/events.js
index 878e1a2499..efa027e923 100644
--- a/src/instance/events.js
+++ b/src/instance/events.js
@@ -18,22 +18,21 @@
   // instance events api
 
   var events = {
-    // magic words
+    // read-only
     EVENT_PREFIX: EVENT_PREFIX,
+    // event name utilities
+    hasEventPrefix: function (n) {
+      return n.slice(0, prefixLength) === EVENT_PREFIX;
+    },
+    removeEventPrefix: function(n) {
+      return n.slice(prefixLength);
+    },
     // event listeners on host
     addHostListeners: function() {
       var events = this.eventDelegates;
       log.events && (Object.keys(events).length > 0) && console.log('[%s] addHostListeners:', this.localName, events);
       this.addNodeListeners(this, events, this.hostEventListener);
     },
-    // event listeners inside a shadow-root
-    addInstanceListeners: function(root, template) {
-      var events = template.delegates;
-      if (events) {
-        log.events && (Object.keys(events).length > 0) && console.log('[%s:root] addInstanceListeners:', this.localName, events);
-        this.addNodeListeners(root, events, this.instanceEventListener);
-      }
-    },
     addNodeListeners: function(node, events, listener) {
       // note: conditional inside loop as optimization
       // for empty 'events' object
@@ -75,69 +74,26 @@
         Platform.flush();
       }
     },
-    instanceEventListener: function(event) {
-      listenLocal(this, event);
-    }
-  };
-
-  // TODO(sjmiles): much of the below privatized only because of the vague
-  // notion this code is too fiddly and we need to revisit the core feature
-
-  function listenLocal(host, event) {
-    if (!event.cancelBubble) {
-      event.on = EVENT_PREFIX + event.type;
-      log.events && console.group("[%s]: listenLocal [%s]", host.localName, event.on);
-      if (!event.path) {
-        _listenLocalNoEventPath(host, event);
-      } else {
-        _listenLocal(host, event);
+    prepareBinding: function(path, name, node) {
+      // if lhs an event prefix,
+      if (events.hasEventPrefix(name)) {
+        // provide an event-binding callback
+        return function(model, name, node) {
+          console.log('event: [%s].%s => [%s].%s()"', node.localName, name, model.localName, name);
+          node.addEventListener(events.removeEventPrefix(name), 
+            function(event) {
+              var ctrlr = findController(node);
+              if (ctrlr && ctrlr.dispatchMethod) {
+                ctrlr.dispatchMethod(ctrlr, path, [event, event.detail, node]);
+              }
+            }
+          );
+        };
       }
-      log.events && console.groupEnd();
     }
-  }
+  };
 
-  function _listenLocal(host, event) {
-    var c = null;
-    // use `some` to stop iterating after the first matching target
-    Array.prototype.some.call(event.path, function(t) {
-      // if we hit host, stop
-      if (t === host) {
-        return true;
-      }
-      // find a controller for target `t`, unless we already found `host` 
-      // as a controller
-      c = (c === host) ? c : findController(t);
-      // if we have a controller, dispatch the event, return 'true' if 
-      // handler returns true
-      if (c && handleEvent(c, t, event)) {
-        return true;
-      }
-    }, this);
-  }
-  
-  // TODO(sorvell): remove when ShadowDOM polyfill supports event path.
-  // Note that findController will not return the expected 
-  // controller when when the event target is a distributed node.
-  // This because we cannot traverse from a composed node to a node 
-  // in shadowRoot.
-  // This will be addressed via an event path api 
-  // https://www.w3.org/Bugs/Public/show_bug.cgi?id=21066
-  function _listenLocalNoEventPath(host, event) {
-    log.events && console.log('event.path() not supported for', event.type);
-    var t = event.target, c = null;
-   // if we hit dirt or host, stop
-    while (t && t != host) {
-      // find a controller for target `t`, unless we already found `host` 
-      // as a controller
-      c = (c === host) ? c : findController(t);
-      // if we have a controller, dispatch the event, return 'true' if 
-      // handler returns true
-      if (c && handleEvent(c, t, event)) {
-        return true;
-      }
-      t = t.parentNode;
-    }
-  }
+  var prefixLength = EVENT_PREFIX.length;
 
   function findController(node) {
     while (node.parentNode) {
@@ -146,26 +102,6 @@
     return node.host;
   };
 
-  function handleEvent(ctrlr, node, event) {
-    var h = node.getAttribute && node.getAttribute(event.on);
-    if (h && handleIfNotHandled(node, event)) {
-      log.events && console.log('[%s] found handler name [%s]', ctrlr.localName, h);
-      ctrlr.dispatchMethod(node, h, [event, event.detail, node]);
-    }
-    return event.cancelBubble;
-  };
-  
-  function handleIfNotHandled(node, event) {
-    var list = event[HANDLED_LIST];
-    if (!list) {
-      list = event[HANDLED_LIST] = [];
-    }
-    if (list.indexOf(node) < 0) {
-      list.push(node);
-      return true;
-    }
-  }
-
   // exports
 
   scope.api.instance.events = events;
diff --git a/src/instance/mdv.js b/src/instance/mdv.js
index eb8798e6cf..744b591bf1 100644
--- a/src/instance/mdv.js
+++ b/src/instance/mdv.js
@@ -8,16 +8,27 @@
   // imports
 
   var log = window.logFlags || 0;
+  var events = scope.api.instance.events;
 
-  // use an MDV syntax
+  // expressionista
 
-  var mdv_syntax = new PolymerExpressions();
+  var syntax =  new PolymerExpressions();
+
+  var expressionista = {
+    // <[node] [name] = {{path}}>
+    prepareBinding: function(path, name, node) {
+      // if not an event, delegate to the standard syntax
+      return events.prepareBinding(path, name, node) 
+        || syntax.prepareBinding(path, name, node);
+    }
+  };
 
   // element api supporting mdv
 
   var mdv = {
+    syntax: expressionista,
     instanceTemplate: function(template) {
-      return template.createInstance(this, mdv_syntax);
+      return template.createInstance(this, this.syntax);
     },
     bind: function(name, model, path) {
       // note: binding is a prepare signal. This allows us to be sure that any
@@ -26,7 +37,10 @@
         this.prepareElement();
       }
       var property = this.propertyForAttribute(name);
-      if (property) {
+      if (!property) {
+        return this.super(arguments);
+      } else {
+        // clean out the closets
         this.unbind(name);
         // use n-way Polymer binding
         var observer = this.bindProperty(property, model, path);
@@ -37,8 +51,6 @@
         // does not update due to not changing.
         this.reflectPropertyToAttribute(property);
         return this.bindings[name] = observer;
-      } else {
-        return this.super(arguments);
       }
     },
     asyncUnbindAll: function() {