The South Bayview Bulldog

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Burned out home at 173 Stibbard. Photo:The South Bayview Bulldog

Fire has destroyed an unoccupied house undergoing restoration at 173 Stibbard Ave. just off Mt. Pleasant. Rd. The blaze shocked neighbors and the couple living at 171 fled for their lives as flames licked at their home. The family cat was left behind and a Toronto Fire hero ran in to bring it out. Water damage will force the man and wife into a hotel while their pet enjoys the hospitality of a neighbor. A woman opposite on Stibbard said she and her husband were terrified by the spectacle of the flames. This morning, the charred hulk of the gutted renovation is flooded with bright sunlight revealing even small details of the damage. A new home under construction at 175 was also burned but the owner of Sherwood Homes says he feels lucky to have escaped with no greater damage. The raging blaze that met firefighters caused the closure of Mt. Pleasant Rd. between Blythwood Rd. and Sheldrake Blvd. for a few hours.

Wine will be sold at 70 grocery locations in Ontario by the fall and as many as 300 such stores on a timeline as yet to be established. Premier Kathleen Wynne made the announcement at the Longo’s store which is housed in the historic steam engine repair building on Laird Drive. It is more of the equally historic gradualism in such matters which has seen every provincial government loathe to let the cash flow from alcoholic beverages slip from the LCBO.

WILL THIS SELL MORE WINE?

Analysis may have shown that sales overall will increase by loosening  the control. That will increase revenue from the heavily-taxed product. “Imported and domestic wines will be sold at up to 150 grocery stores,” the province said in a statement. “As well, up to 150 existing winery retail stores that are currently just outside a grocery store checkout will be permitted to operate their store inside that grocery store, with a shared checkout, and broaden their assortment to sell the wines of any Ontario producer.”  There’s an okay analysis here from the CBC.

As in all things alcoholic, the mills of Ontario grind slowly. Now it appears the keystone of Confederation will inch a bit closer to wine sales in grocery stores Thursday morning. That’s when Premier Wynne (Don Valley West) will visit Longo’s in the Leaside Centre on Laird Drive to make an announcement. Those who watch the:Premier say the government plans to allow 70 grocery stores to sell wine this year, a number that will eventually grow to 150. Last December, Wynne visited a Toronto Loblaws to announce the start of beer sales in supermarkets across Ontario.  It is a program that qualifies both as too little and too late for many consumers but it’s only what’s good for you. Remember that.

SAKS TO OPEN

Saks Fifth Avenue much-anticipated opening of its Canadian flagship in the former Bay store at Yonge and Queen will roll out Thursday. The company’s second Canadian location at Sherway Gardens is poised to open next week. The world is watching.

PROMENADE MALL FOR SALE?: WHY?

Tenants of Thornhill’s main shopping complex, Promenade Mall, have been told the property is for sale. The owners of three stores in CF Promenade Mall whispered this to CP24. They are concerned about rent increases. One question is why does Cadillac Fairview, a canny and tough property owner, wants to sell Promenade.  According to CP24, a store owner said he received a memo yesterday saying the mall was on the market, but the memo did not say why. Mystery. It contains major retailers Sears, T&T Supermarket, Old Navy and a large movie theatre.  It also contains office space.

Hayden Landolt and Olivia Walsh with the Agnes Macphail trophy

Eight talented public speakers from three area elementary schools contested the Agnes Macphail Public Speaking Trophy last night at East York Civic Centre on Coxwell Ave. The passion, intellect and style displayed by the Grade 6, 7, and 8 students was a delight for the parents and public who filled the Council Chamber. And it kept the judges in an overtime deliberation that finally awarded the trophy to two speakers. Olivia Walsh, a Grade 6 student at St. Anslem Catholic School on Bessborough Drive and Hayden Landolt, a Grade 8 student at Westwood Middle School on Carlaw Ave. shared the award. Ms Walsh spoke of “Eliminating Homelessness” and Mr. Landolt about “Why we must lower the wage gap.” See clips of both speeches below. Other speakers were Clare Pei-Ling Lue Tam of Holy Cross Catholic School (Disabled or Mislabeled) Lexi White, St. Brigid Catholic School (Food Insecurities in Nunavut) Athena Gonzales of Holy Cross (Women’s Rights) Cassie Sidebottom, Westwood (Physician Assisted Deaths) Meaghan George, St Brigid (Canada: A Land of Dreams) and Emma Love, St Anselm (Anxiety of Children).

Sheila Ward

The school trustee for Toronto Centre Rosedale, Sheila Ward, has died. She has been on the amalgamated Toronto and District School Board since its formation in 1997. Ward served as chair of the board from 2003 to 2007. “Sheila was a tireless advocate for her community and public education in the City of Toronto,” TDSB Chair Robin Pilkey and Director of Education John Malloy said in a news release.

CBC

The LPOA and Councillor Jon Burnside are conducting a survey of Leaside residents on the intensification of the Laird Focus Area and the Dawsco Plaza 939 Eglinton Ave. E. (at Brentcliffe) development proposal to gain a better understanding of what is desired for the future of our community. Any voting age resident of Leaside may participate TAKE THE SURVEY  “Big Daddy” condos will set tone for land east of Laird  Angry residents demand stop to Laird project 

Time-lapse video submitted by Twitter user Eric Dupere to CBC shows the accumulation of 50 cm of snow in Ottawa during a winter storm on Feb 16. City says it is the heaviest one day fall in 69 years.

The hapless Quebec company Bombardier will lay off 7,000 positions over two years in its rail division despite being two years behind in the delivery of streetcars to the City of Toronto. The scandalous incompetency of the Mexican subsidiary has seen a handful of slipshod vehicles delivered, many of them entirely out of alignment and unusable by the TTC.  City Council is deciding whether to sue the company. It is an appalling example of the folly — in this case — of buying Canadian. That is how Bombardier got the contract. There seems very little chance that it would have received Toronto’s trolley business if it were not an old Canadian company. On the same day this was announced, the floundering firm said it has a letter of intent from Air Canada to buy 45 of the CSeries 300 jetliner with an option of 30 more. It must be asked if that deal was brokered in the Prime Minister’s office. Bombardier is also waiting to hear about taxpayer money so it can somehow try to survive.

The sad end to more than one small retail start-up is recorded by Sara Mojtehedzadeh of the Toronto Star in the form of the complaint by a former employee that she was not paid. The Tori and Cates cupcake venture on Bayview Ave. in the Spring of 2014 was a likeable thing. Look at the pictures in this BlogTO article. But the business plan, like so many of its kind, must have been badly flawed. How many cupcakes do you have to sell to meet the rent and other costs (like paying people) to stay in business? It didn’t last long. The place was closed and equipment sold at auction barely nine months later. Now a former employee, Helena Borody, has gone public in a dispute with the Tori and Cates owner Christine D’Onofrio of Leaside. Barody is a wedding cake designer located on Stephenson Ave. off the Danforth. Sara Mojtehdzadeh, Toronto Star

Leaside Wildcats played below their normal game Tuesday night in a 3-0 loss to Oakville Hornets in Oakville. Leaside averages 2.3 goals a game. Everyone seemed to have a rocky night which was made worse by eight minutes of penalties. Oakville scored two of their markers on power plays. Even in a losing effort the Wildcats outshot the Hornets 24 to 17. Oakville net minder Nikki Cece saw them coming and stopped them all. Katie Mowbray took the loss. She was subbed by Danielle Toland. Tough one.