If ever Toronto city councillors agree to downsize their numbers to 22 (rather than the present 44) it may well be seen as a miracle equalling the loaves and the fishes. But Mayor Ford is still working at his 2010 election promise to reduce the size of council by conforming Toronto wards to the same boundaries as provincial and federal constituencies. At present each federal riding (like Don Valley West) contains two city wards (26 and 27). Devilish commentators have taken relish in noting that if it were one big ward, John Parker would have to run against Jaye Robinson. In Wards 21 and 22 (St. Paul’s) Joe Mihavc would slug it out with Josh Matlow. In Wards 15 and 16 (Eglinton-Lawrence) Josh Colle would face Karen Stintz. (Josh might be out of work unless Her Ladyship from Lawrence Park runs for mayor). It’s all too delicious. But let’s not get excited. Executive Committee has pushed the question onto City Council’s agenda for June. Nionetheless it is hard to imagine councillors voting to implement it, or risking a referendum. After all, if there were only 22 councillors and 18 went to the Federation of Mayors and Municipalities meeting as they did last week, there would be no one to answer the phone. Ford and his allies in this noble effort have anticipated the first line of defense against a downsize. “I don’t want to hear the argument that we work harder than MPs. I have no problem with increasing our salaries in line with an MP or an MPP. You might have to sit on two committees instead of one. But this is what people want. They don’t want more politicians in the city. They want less.” Members of executive  voted for the recommendation, but some worried. “You can make hay in some parts of Toronto by running down the idea of having a good number of members of council,” said Parkdale-High Park Councillor Gord Perks. “The actual evidence is that if you jump on that bandwagon you’re going to wind up wasting money. We should do this right, be thoughtful about it, and have a traceable public participation program that ensures the people who are actually in charge have a strong, clear voice.”  Did you follow that? The matter will go to the June meeting of  Toronto Council. Quotations given to Inside.Toronto.com

Coke properties on Overlea

At a meeting in early May city council approved a recommendation to declare the now vacant Coca Cola buildings at 42 to 46 Overlea Blvd. as part of Toronto’s inventory of heritage properties. The buildings include a dilapidated looking bottling plant and an office building which were built in 1965. The office building is said to have certain desirable architectural features in the Midcentury Modernist style. The buildings sit on a huge property which held all the vehicles associated with Coke’s business, including its fleet of trucks. The notation came forward from the North York Community Council which is a hotbed of heritage recommendations. It expresses a concern that a request for a demolition order may be forthcoming. It seems impossible that the very large space will not be altered to permit its exploitation on behalf of the Thorncliffe Park neighborhood. Some have said the space was suitable for big box retail use. This is unlikely to be welcome in “Leaside across the tracks” to the west. On the other hand, development might also introduce many more economic opportunities for the people actually living in Thorncliffe Park.  

On May 24, Deer Park Public School organized a Triathlon at their school. With their generous sponsors the kids raised $14,500 for kids with cancer. It was the first ever Triathlon for a junior-middle school in Ontario. More than 300 Grade 4 to 8 students braved unseasonable temperatures and completed three consecutive endurance events: the Swim Leg (8 min), followed by the Run Leg (12 min), and finally the Bike Leg (20 min). Although the fitness demands tested the students, the weeks of training in Phys. Ed and Aquatics classes paid off. The day culminated with Closing Ceremonies in the gym where students were awarded medals based on fundraising, spirit and performance both as individuals and as teams. They were also able to collect on some cool fundraising initiatives including the “top class being exempt from a test”, a sport contest of choice against the staff, and a free lunch party. Stationary bikes were provided by The Inside Ride which was the charity used in conjunction with the Coast-to-Coast Against Cancer Foundation. Organizing teachers, Jeff Mann and Kyle Thomas were extremely proud of the students at Deer Park who can now boast that they have completed a Triathlon before the age of 15. From Deer Park Public School and the South Bayview Bulldog.