Leafs with Coach Babcock at HSC

At 30,000 square feet, the new Starbuck’s in Shanghai will be the largst in the world. Beats the pants off the little coffee beanery at Bayview and Belsize. Check it out. Then, an utterly charming City News story from the bakery where the Maple Leafs were making a giant cookie to give to Santa. Sure. Below that, the effort to stop the transfer of a Victoria Cross won in 1944 out of the country. The issue has cogent arguments on both sides. Finally, great fun as British kids are asked to judge the “Tiny Turner” on the eve of the awarding of the prestigious Turner Prize for Art.

Grab a baguette and help Sarah and Claire’s Food Drive

Happy baker (Facebook @COBSLeaside)

Pledge from COBS

Facebook

Personal trainers at GoodLife Fitness in Toronto, Ajax and Peterborough have voted to ratify the first union contract in the fitness industry. Last year some 650 trainers in the three cities formed the first fitness professionals’ union in North America. It is part of the Workers United Canada Council and its website says it represents about 100,000 people Canada and a similar number in the US working in fields related to garments and apparel, plastics, auto parts and industrial manufacturing; transportation, warehousing, and distribution, retail, food services, hotels and hospitality, cleaning services. fitness industry and healthcare and social services. No details were released, but Danesh Hanbury, a personal trainer and bargaining team member from Toronto’s Yonge and Dundas club, told Canadian Press found agreement on major issues of paid sick days, unpaid work and what he called “favouritism by management.”

Santiago, Chile

Scotiabank says it has bought a nearly 70 percent interest in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (BBVA) of Chile for $2.9 billion. Scotia says it intends to merge BBVA Chile with its existing Scotiabank Chilean operations, subject to regulatory approvals. Chile’s Said family, which owns 31.62 per cent of BBVA Chile, has waived its right of first refusal to acquire the share being sold to ScotiaBank, but is willing to spend up to $650 million to own up to 25 per cent of the combined business when Scotiabank Chile and BBVA Chile are merged. When the deal was announced last week, Scotiabank said the transaction is in line with its goal of increasing scale within the Chilean banking sector and the Pacific Alliance countries.

SCOTIA IN THE CARIBBEAN

Travellers to the Caribbean are familiar with the presence of Scotiabank there. BNS has been part of the Caribbean and Central America region since 1889. The first office was in Kingston, Jamaica to support the rum, sugar, and fish trade. Now it has operations in 25 countries, including affiliates. It has operations in Central America in Costa Rica, Belize, Panama and El Salvador.

Toronto Police are warning that from Tuesday, December 5, 2017, at 12 p.m. to Wednesday December 6, 2017, at 1 a.m. a film shoot will be taking place at the Jack Layton Ferry Terminal which will, among other things, simulate panic on a ferry. This will include approximately 25 cast and crew on board the Trillium Ferry and part of the pretend terror includes the setting off of two marine flares into the sky of the Toronto Harbour at approximately 10 p.m. What could go wrong?  But the ferry will not be in transit and will not have any public riders on board. The Coast Guard rescue service in Trenton, the Toronto Port Authority and Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport have been notified.

TORONTO FERRIES TO BE REPLACED, MAYBE SCRAPPED

Four of the iconic Toronto Island ferries will be replaced by new ones. https://t.co/BqUvGC34wF pic.twitter.com/rIuWiGr911

— CBC Toronto (@CBCToronto) November 15, 2017

The City plans to get rid of, and possibly just scrap, four of Toronto’s friendly ferry boats in the name of speed, it seems. There are no real plans available for what will replace the Sam McBride, Thomas Rennie, William Inglis and Ongiara, but the decison has been made that people have to cross the water faster than they do at present. There are lineups at peak times. The Trillium, which is now 107 years old, will be saved. Some think this scheme is like replacing the San Francisco cable cars with Bombardier dream streetcars. It is said to be coming in about two years. Below is a wonderful picture of the early 20th waterfront where the present day Trilllium, is seen in berth with other ferries of the day.

William James (1866–1948), Toronto ferry docks, with the Mayflower, Trillium, Primrose and Bluebell ferries at the docks, Toronto, between 1912 and 1914. Mediascomm/Twitter

Resuscitation underway/Jeremy Cohn @JeremyGlobalTV

One person has died and two remain in crticial condition followiing a fire in North York at 5 Flemington Rd., a Toronto Community Housing building near Allen Road. The call came in at about 9:40 p.m. Monday. No names have been released but the victims are thought to be a woman of about 40 and two teens. Toronto Fire said the victims were located after firefighters made a forcible entry to a unit on the third floor of the building. Personnel rang a second alarm before the blaze was extinguished..

I was interviewed tonight by @CBCToronto, @CTVToronto and @CP24 about the significant increase of break-ins in the Bayview/York Mills area as the President of the @yorkmillsgca. Video and recordings to come. #Ward25 #DVW

— Alex Greco (@alexpgreco) December 5, 2017

A wave of break-ins has occurred this year in York Mills and especially the Bridle Path neighborhood. Police say millions of dollars of loot have been stolen from homes by burglars. They have targeted the area contained by Highway 401, Leslie Street, Lawrence Avenue, and Bayview Avenue. One incident (below) was captured on surveillance video. It shows two men climbing up onto a balcony before entering a home in the area. The pair is seen using the homeowner’s backyard patio furniture to hoist themselves into the home. About $50,000 worth of valuables were taken.York Mills Gardens Community Association

Bridle Path burglary in progress

Security cameras in the change room?  Close enough maybe, although it’s not clear whether we have expert knowledge about just what happened here at Yorkdale. Faiza Amin of City News. Then to the right, Ben Stein is eating a pizza as he declares the tax changes about to be passed by the US Congress may have been great for the Dow, but are going to fuel inflation. Below that,.Silverdome Stadium takedown Part Two. Maybe. And finally, Weight Watchers has added 200 food items to its list of things that members can gobble up guilt free.

:Golden Age” but no deal in sight/AP Twitter

Smiling faces emerged from free trade talks with a message that did not match the jovial demeanors. There had been no progress toward Canada’s sought-after goal of a deal which might be even better than NAFTA.  Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exited talks with Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing saying “China is very aware that this is a precedent as they move forward with the first trade deal with a G7 country and there is a desire that we get it right.”  He said there wasn’t one particular issue that held up the talks, but he wants a progressive trade deal that includes addressing issues such as gender, the environment and labour.” Premier Li lauded the “golden age” of relations with Canada and said China was amenable to continuing exploratory trade talks.

ANGRY EXCHANGE OVER  REPORTERS PASSPORTS

But tempers flared on the Chinese side during Trudeau’s Monday visit to Beijing’s opulent Great Hall of the People. Chinese security guards blocked photographers from The Canadian Press and the Prime Minister’s Office by throwing up their hands and moving their bodies between them and Trudeau as he walked a red carpet next to Li. A Chinese foreign ministry official berated a diplomat from the Canadian embassy for not bringing the passports of the reporters travelling with Trudeau. The diplomat fired back at him in what was clearly an angry exchange. Afterwards, the Chinese side cancelled a planned press conference, Trudeau’s office said. It seems so very Communistic.

Excellent talks with Premier Li in Beijing today – any possible trade deal with China will need to reflect the values & priorities of Canadians. pic.twitter.com/7CgTgk0yEa

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) December 4, 2017

Grab some pals and join the guys on Thursday December 7, 2017 at The Leaside Pub. Festivities start at 7:30pm. All proceeds go toward the goal of  getting Christmas gifts for every Primary Student in our neighbouring areas of Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon Park. There will be a great Raffle with prizes, a Silent Auction and a Live Auction.  If you have questions or would like to donate some prizing, please contact one of the organizers below:
Daryn Everett: daeverett@coca-cola.com
Jeff Hohner: jhohner@rogers.com
Edward Wong: ewong@mapador.com
Michael Zivot: mzivot@hingeinc.ca

Bantam East York Bulldogs win Three Rivers Cup

At a Penguins game

Stunnning symbol of the season

Carolling in the Pines at Northlea Church

Maurice Cody Winter Fair Saturday

Sarah and Claire at UrBun Eats

Upper left, it’s the champion Bantam East York Bulldogs in their victory photo after winning the Three Rivers Cup in Pittsburgh over the weekend. To the right, we see the gang at a Penguins game. Well done men. That sparkling reindeer is nibbling on imaginary grass at the CF Eaton Centre as a stunning symbol of the season. Centre left, a reminder to join the Carolling in the Pines this Sunday, December 10 at Northlea United Church. To the right, Saturday brings us the Maurice Cody Junior Public School Winter Fair. Finally at bottom, it’s Claire and Sarah Jordan chowing down on UrBun Eats burgers before they get on with the final push to hit 100,000 pounds of food for the Daily Bread Food Bank. Why not help them out?

The Toronto Police Professional Standards-Investigative Unit is reviewing the conduct of the service in the case of Tess Richey. The brief announcement Monday gave no detail and speculation is flying in the media about just why this is being done. On CP24, there was a discussion of how and why police concluded that the death might be from natural causes. An autopsy revealed a crushed neck and homicide was called in. But the police have been most widely criticized over reports that they did not find the body during their preliminary search. That terrible duty fell to Ms Richey’s own mother, it is said. who came to Toronto from North Bay and conducted a search of Church St. with a friend. They found the young woman dead at the bottom of a stairwell of a vacant building. On social media, many people are asking why a police search did not find Tess first.