Paul Panayiotidis says he is close to closing his little bookstore, Eliot’s, at Yonge and Wellesley Streets in the heart of Ward 27. That’s because like many merchants on Yonge, his taxes have doubled in about a year. The levy on his tiny storefront has gone from $24,000 to $48,000. By 2020, taxes are expected to be $96,000 annually. Perhaps it is not the City’s fault that Panayiotidis is in a flat line of retail, selling books. But much of the skyrocketing cost of business is the responsibility of Toronto Council where the cheery approach is to spend other people’s money and hope for the best. They call it the City’s money, but we know where they come when they want more.
MAN NOW PENNILESS
The Star reports Saturday on Michael (Cash) Pomer. He was a radio sports celebrity (it’s said) and gambling authority for many years. Now the $6 million estate he once possessed is gone — every cent. The story is decorated with pictures of Mr. Pomer looking quite forlorn. He owned a four-bedroom house with a pool in York Mills and wintered in a two-storey beachfront condo in Palm Beach. He had an island cottage in Parry Sound as well as a ski chalet and a golf club membership. There is much more to read about Mr. Pomer, all of it dispiriting. This story does not try to blame others for his downfall however. In this world where some dream of eliminating poverty (like it were chicken pox) it’s well to remember that poverty is all about individual personal decisions.
