Category: Uncategorized

Burnside to address LPOA tonight at William Lea

The Leaside Property Owners Association will meet this evening (Tuesday,  November 5, 2014) at 7:30 p.m. in the William Lea Room at Leaside Memorial Arena  The featured speaker is Councillor-elect Jon Burnside. There will be regular business done and the election of directors. The meeting sponsors are  Richard Byford, Carol Wrigley, Charlene Kalia, Patrick Rocca and The Leaside Pub.

Rainbows and roaring winds in South Bayview

Beautiful rainbows and angry winds that make the flying leaves sting your skin. We’re getting all of it across South Bayview this evening. One resident reported seeing construction fencing tumble over in the wind on Roehampton a short time ago. She saw garbage cans and a sofa cushion (!) flying across Bayview and feared the rattling sign at Bayview Car Wash was getting ready to collapse. Another person reports that it was very difficult keeping his balance at the corner of Bayview Ave. and Belsize Dr. in nasty gusting wind. The stunning rainbow picture was taken outside Christine Manning’s Rental Kitchens on Vanderhoof. Mannings Cannings is in the complex at 105-109 Vanderhoof near Brentcliffe Rd. Photo at right shows Leacrest Road looking east at Rolph Road and was taken by Michael Nourse. Thanks Christine and Michael. Weather Channel

Corner grocery comeback on South Bayview?

The small privately-owned grocery store where you could buy fresh fruit, vegetables and fresh meat disappeared a long time ago it seems. The last of such stores we can recall around here was the Davisville Mini Mart at Davisville Ave. and Cleveland St. It expired in 2010. And while these little corner stores could never make a comeback among residences, their concept may live on after a fashion on Bayview Ave. and elsewhere. How else to account for Rowe Farms Meat inclusion of vegetables, fruit and prepared goods with its meat in the daily offering. Rowe is sustained by multiple outlets to be sure. For many decades stand-alone fruit stores (Badali, Passion Fruit) have found a niche. But you never see a fresh sausage or lamb chop in there. Across the street at Cumbrae’s, where the cutlets seem to look at customers with a superior eye (and price) you will never find a beet or stalk of celery. Now another variation on a theme as Loblaws has introduced a pilot scheme of meat, fresh produce and other perishables into the food section at its Shoppers Drug Mart subsidiary. You won’t find this one on Bayview yet but at the Shopper’s on Dundas St. W. near Jane St. and Runnymede Rd. customers can buy a package of three boneless centre cut pork chops for $7, three beefsteak tomatoes for $4.49 or a 250-gram prepared shrimp Nicoise salad for $7.99. Fresh sushi is delivered daily. You get the idea. Well, the competition was never more intense for food shoppers. We must wait to see if the Drug Mart groceteria makes it to affluent South Bayview.  

43rd Annual Community Canned Food Drive

This week marks the big push to gather canned food for the annual Ecumenical Canned Food Drive, a widely-based food bank project spearheaded by nine churches in South Bayview. Next Saturday, November 29, by 9.30 a.m. or so, trucks will be passing through our neighborhoods to pick up non-perishable food from local porches for the drive. The hub of organization will be Our lady of Perpetual Help Church at St. Clair East and Clifton Rd. and at Leaside Presbyterian Church. 670 Elginton Ave. E at Hanna Road. The organizers invite anyone who wishes to volunteer to sort and box the food to attend either OLPH or Leaside Presbyterian on Saturday morning. They also remind us that students can earn community volunteer hours. Other churches that support the drive are Leaside United, Rosedale Presbyterian, Rosedale United, St. Anselm, St Augustine’s, St. Cuthbert’s and Northlea United.  

South Bayview’s Bell Jewellers to close in 2015

Bell Jewellers at 1597 Bayview Ave. will close at the end of January. It will be the passing of a business which has operated at the location for 78 years. The genial owner of Bell’s is Photis Philos. He has said that unless someone offers to buy the business he will lock the doors for the last time in the new year.  Mr. Philos is known universally up and down South Bayview as Photi and has owned Bell’s since 1980. Advertising in recent years recounts his credentials as a master horologist and master jeweller trained in Europe.  Philos is 68 and can hardly be faulted as winter approaches for dreaming of some time in the coastal islands of Greece. He is a staunch Rotarian and an inveterate golfer and can be seen daily with other Bayview fans of the links coming and going from the Second Cup and elsewhere. Bell Jewellers has a liquidation sale underway and is well worth a visit. 

Pictures from the 2014 Leaside Sports Hall of Fame night

These wonderful pictures of the honorees at last night’s reception held by the Leaside Hall of Fame have been tweeted. The Bulldog inset them here with the dynamic action shots of Leaside’s Athlete of the Year Ayanna Badali, at top with 2013 honoree Martha McCabe. That’s Ayanna at the right speeding along in top form. Below l-r, inductees into the Hall of Fame: Terry Caffery, representing his late brother Jack Caffery (inset), Dr. Sidney Soanes, Peter Krol, representing his later father Joe Krol (inset) and Christine Pellerin. Jack Caffery (1934-19192) played with both the Leafs and the Bruins during his career. Dr. Soanes, 92, was founding member of the Leaside Skating Club, Joe Krol was the legendary quarterback of the Argonauts, Christine Pellerin has been hockey player, coach and is now member of the Toronto Leaside Girls Hockey Association. Hearty congratulations to all.