The Bulldog

Ward 25’s Robinson declares support for Tory

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Ward 25’s Jaye Robinson has appeared with mayoral candidate John Tory Monday morning to endorse him for mayor. Ms Robinson spoke glowingly of Tory, a person who shares a political philosophy similar to the councillor’s She said she was convinced that Mr. Tory would accomplish construction of the Smart Track program in which rapid transit would be placed on the electrically converted GO tracks to the east and west of the city. The plan calls for Smart Track to be connected to stations on the TTC system. Councillor Robinson was asked about the candidacy of Doug Ford for mayor. She called his entry into the race more of the same and like Tory called the Fords a force of division. 

August 2014 home sales surge 2.1% over last year

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If you didn’t know it already, here is official word that houses are selling like hotcakes. Sales of existing homes across the country rose in August from July, notching the seventh straight monthly increase and taking sales to their highest level since January 2010. That’s according to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). The industry group for Canadian real estate agents said this morning (Monday, September 15, 2014) that activity was up 1.8 percent last month from July. Actual sales for August, not seasonally adjusted, were up 2.1 percent from August 2013. CREA’s home price index rose 5.3 percent from August 2013, matching July’s gain. 

Mode Suzan message: “We’re not vandalized”

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A thoughtful little note is written on the badly fractured display window of Mode Suzan at 1647 Bayview Ave north of Fleming Cres. It informs the store’s retail neighbors that the taped-up window is not the result of vandalism. It was, says the note, an accident. And yes, one can see near the bottom of the window where something very large like a careless teenage bottom engaged in horseplay or maybe an ornery loaded platform cart smashed into the store by mistake. Retailers care about whether there’s a vandal about. Other things, they somehow manage. A footnote to this story is that Mode Suzan occupies a shop with an elegant 1930s rounded window of the type that once graced most of the shops on Bayview. Over the years, many have been purposely replaced during cheap renovations, but a few remain. They are expensive to repair. The Source Menswear at 1567 Bayview repaired such a window four years ago and had it restored to the original rounded style

Brickbats at the Brickworks? Tory, Chow debate

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A debate will be held starting about 1 p.m. Sunday (September 14, 2014) at the Brickyards just down the road on Bayview Ave. if you have a yen for more of that. No really, please take it seriously. You can catch the high spots by checking back to this Twitter search from time to time. There are some preliminary events beginning at noon. Yesterday Tory drew Chow’s indignation by joking about her position on taxes. He referred to a legendary pair of 1940s sex researchers when he said: “You have more positions than Masters and Johnson on this,” It is in fact a very old joke. Tory didn’t cross any boundaries of the 2014 gender no-no-doo-dahs but he may have dated himself.  That’s not so good either. 

Terry Fox run through streets of Moore Park

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The Mooredale neighborhood organization is running its Terry Fox circuit through Moore Park and Rosedale this morning (Sunday,September 14, 2014).  The group hopes to raise $50,000 for cancer research. The Mooredale Terry Fox Run begins at its headquarters at 146 Crescent Rd. and takes runners up and over the venerable “ramp” that crosses the CP tracks. It then loops through Moore Park and comes back along Hudson and Rosedale Heights. Above is an iconic magazine cover created at the time of Terry’s heroic effort to run across the country in aid of the cause. He died subsequently from the cancer which had already resulted in the amputation of his leg.  Wikipedia 

All are welcome at Leaside Presbyterian Sunday

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A new electric sign graces the well-trimmed lawn of Leaside Presbyterian Church at the corner of Eglinton Ave. E. and Hanna Rd these days. Saturday evening the sequential messages invited all to attend services on Sunday at 10.30 a.m. Electric signs are an interesting technique for churches of Protestant origins. At one time so dour was Scots-inspired Presbyterianism that their brethren in other churches swore they made you sit on field stones during the service. Not true of course but how ever comfortable the church may be these days, Leaside Presbyterian is no doubt having to work for every parishioner, as are other churches. We see the church being built in 1951 at a time when congregations were larger everywhere. In 2012 Glebe Presbyterian Church on Thurloe Rd. closed and merged its dwindling congregation with that at Leaside Presbyterian.

Changes likely for Second Cup in South Bayview

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Changes are likely in coming months for Second Cup in South Bayview. The current franchisee at 1595 Bayview Ave. seems set to let his option lapse at the end of December of this year. The well-liked and successful businessman Hong Nho acquired the Second Cup as full-time employment five years ago. In the interim, he has added other business interests. His departure will almost certainly prompt the Second Cup operation to renovate the property at this location. It has been a Second Cup under at least three franchisees since it was vacated by Marion and J.D. when they moved the Sleuth of Baker Street across Bayview. Now a new franchisee with the fairly substantial money to buy in will have to be found, And it isn’t just the money. As Second Cup knows, even well-heeled franchisees may be ill-suited to this highly social occupation. The Bayview location seems all the more important to Second Cup headquarters because their presence in South Bayview is facing change elsewhere. The location at Mount Pleasant Rd and Eglinton Ave. E, a former bank building, has been taken by Metrolinx for the construction of the LRT stop at that corner. A similar fate seems to await the Second Cup in the little strip mall on the southwest corner of Laird Drive at Eglinton. That property is to be the site of an LRT station as well. This update on Second Cup has generated some memories at the Bulldog offices. Take a look at the picture published here on May 23, 2011.  

The May 2011 gang at Second Cup, 1595 Bayview. Top left to right: Hong Ngo, Ally, Gabe and Sadie. Second row from left, Andy, Steve, Sophie and Matt.

Bid to lure girl, 9, among cases reported by cops

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This week has seen an incident in which an apparent homeless person was run over by a garbage truck while sleeping in an alley and a case of a man trying to lure a nine-year-old girl into a car. The fatal accident occurred on O’Keefe Lane south of Dundas Street on September 10, 2014, at 6:25 a.m. A garbage truck driver was backing into the lane and did not see the man, 27,  who was lying on the pavement and suffered fatal injuries, In another incident, a girl says a man tried to summon her to his parked car on Invergorden Ave as she walked to school. She ignored him but he got out of the vehicle, grabbed her arm and tried to pull towards the car. The girl was able to pull free and escape. In a third incident a man has died as a result of injuries in a fight September 11, 2014 at about  8:30 p.m. Police were called to the Dundas Street West and Mabelle Avenue area for fight involving a group of men.  Richard Pepper, 60, of Toronto died of injuries in the fight. 

“Apple to fix its maps by changing the world”

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Huh?

Jesters at the Onion satirical magazine say Apple’s blunder-filled map of Canada will be easy to fix. It says the Cupertino, California electronics giant will simply re-arrange the face of the earth to make it conform to its otherwise deranged maps. All this as Apple botches a map of the True North, mainly by placing Ottawa on a harbour 25 miles from Oakville. Toronto sits uncomfortably on the Rideau River. But says the Onion, all of this and much more will be put right. It says there are plans at Apple to move London, England to North America. Hadn’t heard about that one. The last time Apple tried mapping things was to squeeze Google maps out of the iPhone. The catastrophe that followed resulted in the firing of a vice-president.   

Mustard Academy kindergarten rocks Thorncliffe

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The Fraser Mustard Early Learning Academy on Thorncliffe Park Drive is going full tilt these days with nearly 700 kids enrolled in all-day kindergarten. It is year two for the ambitious program of education and integration. As reported last year by the South Bayview Bulldog, the Mustard Academy embraces children of dozens of ethnic extractions. The photo captures above are from a worthy video by CBC news which may be seen here