South Bayview Bulldog Admin

John Parker bid to “preserve” whole of Leaside

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Bayview, Eglinton, Laird, tracks 

The City Committee responsible for Leaside has voted to request the “nomination” of nearly the whole of the former town to a status that would lay a new layer of legislation on external renovations and demolitions. The classification is known as the Heritage Conservation District (HCD) and is said to be intended to “preserve the streetscape of a broader community” according to John Parker (Ward 26). The motion to nominate Leaside to HCD status came from Mr Parker at North York Community Council where he explained his rationale to InsideToronto: “We regret that not everyone who builds a new house or everyone who carries out a renovation is sympathetic or alert to the distinctiveness (of Leaside). We have a lot of new construction that is quite sympathetic to the existing character of the community but we also have new construction that is entirely out of step with the character,” Mr. Parker is quoted in the online newspaper. In a memo to the Community Council Mr. Parker said: “Members of my community have nominated Leaside for consideration as a Heritage Conservation District, in accordance with nomination procedures outlined in the Council approved document, Heritage Conservation Districts in Toronto. Memo  The Committee approved a request that “the Acting Manager, Heritage Preservation Services, City Planning” review the nomination and bring forward a study authorization report should the area demonstrate sufficient cultural heritage value. The process seems fairly lengthy. Mr Parker notes that a nomination last year to declare Parkhurst Blvd an HCD is still pending. The boundaries of the preserved Leaside are stated in the nomination request as Eglinton Avenue on the north, the rail line on the south, Bayview Avenue on the west and Laird Drive on the east. It is added that city staff “will investigate if those borders are appropriate as part of the nomination process.” InsideToronto reports that Willowdale Councillor David Shiner questioned the rationale for an HCD in Leaside, arguing the community’s character has been improved by new and renovated homes in the area. Mr Parker replied that an HCD — in the words if the newspaper — “protects the property values of a distinctive community because people know its character will be preserved.”  It also noted that there is a money issue. Communities (neighborhoods) have been reluctant to nominate themselves because they would have to pay for the application and supporting documentation. Mr. Parker said the City has now agreed to fund some applications every year, meaning Leaside will be competing for designation as an HCD among other communities put forward for nomination, he said. 

Mayor Rob Ford on day pass in cottage country

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Rob Ford was seen in both Bracebridge and Gravenhurst as he patronized a dry cleaners (upper inset) and said hello to locals in a mall (lower). It certainly helped speculation that Ford is a patient at the GreenStone, an addictions treatment centre. The Muskoka rehab centre has not confirmed that Ford is a patient but the Toronto Star says it has been told her is there. These Twitter pictures seem to suggest that Mr. Ford is on a day pass, something that is  permitted at Greenstone. According to the Bracebridge Examiner it was contacted this afternoon by a woman she had just spoken to Ford outside of a branch of the local Bank of Montreal. She said he had been talking to passersby and saying rehab was going well. An employee at the nearby Pet Valu showed the Examiner a photo she had taken of Ford in which he is pictured “looking relatively fit and wearing a suit,” but also declined to give up a picture.  The Star and CP24 said Erin Strength, an employee at Fabricare in Gravenhurst, said Ford and what looked like to be an “assistant” in his 40s came in around 2 p.m. Friday to drop off a navy blue suit. She said it would be ready late next week. 

“Walmart Plaza” blazing ahead east of Laird Dr.

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The SmartCentre development between Wicksteed and Vanderhoof is known among detractors as Walmart Plaza.  That’s the case even though the landlord insists no decision has been taken as to who will anchor the huge box building underway at the extension of its commercial property across Wicksteed. Work goes on furiously at the site as these pictures taken this week show.  The vantage point is from the parking lot of the TD Bank on the corner of Laird Drive and Vanderhoof. As many as 1,200 signatures were said to have been collected when opposition to the  development was at its height last year. It was approved however and the Leaside Property Owners Association accepted payment from SmartCentres to help finance a traffic study of Leaside and to seed cash for the creation of a Business Improvement Area for South Bayview. The election campaign in Ward 26 has been quiet so far but as the field fleshes out, the Walmart Plaza may become more of an issue. Or maybe not, because no candidate can say he will halt the project. Those in the race as it is known are the incumbent John Parker, David Sparrow and John Burnside, a contender from the last election. 

Lashings, death for woman for being a Christian

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Many news agencies are reporting today (Friday, May 16, 2014) that  a judge in Khartoum, Soudan, has sentenced a pregnant 27 year old, Mariam Yahya Ibrahim, to death because she is a Christian. The technical term is  apostasy and his honour added 100 lashings for “adultery.” In the Soudan, adultery is  a little different than here. You are an adulterer if you marry anyone who isn’t Muslim. Heavily pregnant and the mother of a 2 year old, Mariam has been in prison, with her young son, for months. She was initially accused of adultery because she is married to a non-Muslim of South Sudanese origin — a marriage the court did not recognize. The court added the apostasy charge after the woman told the court she is Christian, according to reports by rights groups and lawyers involved in the case. These convictions and harsh sentences are said to defy Sudanese law but it’s clear they have got a problem. Actually, it’s clear that we have a problem too.

Ontario Election polls: Do doctors read x-rays?

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With respect to our friends at Toronto Life, the science of polling is not a game of charades. Oh ( they lament) pre-election polls are tricky. “C’est la vie.” Well, here’s a flash. There is nothing tricky about election polls except when someone is being intentionally tricky or is hopelessly inept. When polls produce wildly different results from the same period of time in the same jurisdiction it is because one of the pollsters is wrong.  Do doctors read x-rays? The easy-going folks at TL have responded to the stranger-than-strange contradiction in Ontario election polling with a shrug as if to say “Oh well, that’s polling for you.” The two firms now providing entirely opposite information about public support for the Liberals and PCs are Forum Research (Libs ahead) and Ipsos Reid (PCs out front).  Now we are sure that neither of these organizations is being “tricky”.  But you know what? One of them should go back to polling school. It’s true that election day is the poll that counts and that people change their loyalty as the campaign goes along. But when polls taken in the same period show completely different results,  voters have a right to demand an explanation. Toronto Life 

Mobile device theft industry at work downtown

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In the farthest corner of 53 Division a distance from South Bayview, an 18 year old woman was mugged at about 10.30p.m. on Friday, April 25, 2014. It’s not clear why the report is coming forward three weeks after the event. She was in the area of Queen Street West and Spadina Road when she was approached by a man. He grabbed her ipod and a struggle ensued. She was pushed to the ground and the man escaped with the ipod into an awaiting vehicle. No injuries were sustained by the victim. Police are requesting the assistance of the public in identifying the following described person in connection with this offence. Description of Suspect: Male, black, 17 to 18 years, 5’7”, 150 pounds, brown eyes, black hair, thin build. This is another example to all those with mobile devices that there is a criminal industry of considerable scope made up of people cruising the streets in the evenings looking for potential victims who are alone. 

A decade later Sandra Oh departs Grey’s Anatomy

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We’re not much for show business but we like longevity. Sandra Oh (Christina Yang) has now said goodbye to Grey’s Anatomy  after ten seasons. A landmark by any measure.  Hollywood Life     #GreysFinale 

Honey the Golden Retriever back safe at home

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Honey, the Golden Retriever who was found on Hanna Rd. yesterday, is back with her family. The dog was found by a friendly dog-owner in the Bessborough School playground.  This kind person placed an ad online and alerted local pet establishments including the Petsmart store at 835 Eglinton Ave. E. The owners checked in and were re-united with Honey. 

Tory sees “Canary Wharf” on East Don Lands

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John Tory has set out an ambitious plan for the East Don Lands, which among other things would see Bayview Ave. connect with Lake Shore Boulevard. Mr. Tory’s  plan would create a second business district in the city modelled after Canary Wharf in the British capital.  He made the announcement on Thursday (May 15, 2014) in the old industrial Don Lands. He said the plan would create 70,000 jobs and a new transit hub and involve private investment. “These are the moments we must seize as a city,” Tory said. “As your mayor, I will form a unique partnership with developers and investors, and work with city council to help maximize transit to create a new business hub. It’s time we start saying yes, as a city, to bold and ambitious projects.” The proposal hinges on a rerouting of the Gardiner Expressway’s eastern section and building more transit links. The Gardiner east of Cherry Street would be realigned south of the GO Transit tracks, continue east and loop up to the Don Valley Parkway. The elevated part east of Cherry would be taken down and Lake Shore Boulevard would be connected to new streets, including an extended Broadview Avenue.

Aish Jewellers on Bayview Avenue robbed

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Aish Jewellers at 1559 Bayview Ave. just north of the Scotiabank has been attacked and robbed overnight. Thieves smashed the front door. The attack occurred about 4 a.m.

Crossing guard judged and found sadly tasteless

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From the video 
Kathleen Byers, the dancing school crossing guard, has been effectively dismissed from her job. This after the 65-year-old woman made a video with a local rap group dressed in her school-guard gear. Nominally, at least, that’s the part that the police officials who administer the guard program said they didn’t like. But we suspect it was all just too much — the pre-occupation of Ms Byers with dancing and then the very tasteless lyrics which have now been rolled out on YouTube for other guards and every pupil in Toronto to savour. (Yes, we know the standard for such things these days is down in the sewer) But every day hundreds of crossing guards focus only on making sure the children are safe as they cross the street. That’s the way the police service and school board want it done and honestly, who can disagree with them? We can be sure they don’t want to attract anymore aspiring dancers or performers of any kind to their ranks. God bless Ms. Byers. She seems to be at peace with her situation. We wish her well. 

Are these two pollsters on the same planet?

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It’s as if Lorne Bozinoff of Forum Research and John Wright of Ipsos Reid (inset left and right) were in different provinces talking about different election campaigns. Polls released by these two organizations earlier this week are entirely opposite in their findings. Forum says the Liberals have 38 percent of the popular support, the PCs 35 percent. The Forum release is full of bright information about the likelihood that the Liberals will win. The Ipsos Reid poll says the Conservatives have 39% of the popular support and the Liberals 30%. The poll says the PCs are poised on the basis of these results to win a majority. It isn’t enough to say that there is a margin of error in polling which might account for this strange contradiction. Any statistician would have to admit that one of these two operations is just hopelessly wrong and inept, or something. The public really deserves better. Read Twitter chatter about “weighting” etc.