The South Bayview Bulldog

Toronto Police are looking for two people after a knifepoint robbery in a washroom in a building at Front Street and George Street. It happened when a cleaner entered the men’s room at this address to do his work. Shortly after, a man entered and robbed the cleaner at knifepoint. The perpetrator and a woman were seen in security video leaving the building.  All of this occurred Tuesday, November 17, 2015, at approximately 3:45p.m. The unknown man is described as 6 feet tall with short brown hair and a heavy build. He was wearing a long, black, leather coat, blue hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and black shoes. He was with a woman. Investigators are attempting to identify both people. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-5200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637). Download the free Crime Stoppers Mobile App on iTunes, Google Play or Blackberry App World.

A fitting tribute and lasting memory to the late Dave Stickney has been established by the re-naming of Markham Avenue to Stickney Avenue. The public campaign to change the name asked by petition that the street be called Stickney Way. It became clear as Toronto staff reviewed the proposal that Markham Avenue didn’t qualify for the designation Way. A street called a Way is so designated because it is a windy road, reminiscent perhaps of a pathway. As every Leasider knows, Markham Ave runs straight as an arrow from Airdrie Rd. to Laird Drive. As such it is well-defined as an Avenue. So it is official. There are many interested and happy comments Tuesday on Leaside Chit Chat and other sites. Just incidentally, the change of name does a favour for the City and perhaps countless non-Leaside residents trying to find their way. We’re guessing that more than one person arrived at Markham Street in the west central downtown when he wanted to go to Markham Ave.

High School teachers who staged illegal strikes last spring will receive full pension credits for the time they were off the job. The Liberal government has quietly agreed to create an exception to the rules for them. The decision will certainly fuel belief that Queen’s Park is frightened of the teachers unions and their capacity to either paralyze the school system from Thunder Bay to Niagara Falls — or unelect the Liberals. The move raises questions on whether the province has set  a precedent and removed a disincentive for public employees to illegally strike. The Globe and Mail reported that a memo dated October 1, 2015 from the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan to school boards says the government made a deal to ensure teachers do not lose any pension over the walkout.  It goes on to say teachers who tried to make up the days by working extra, will be eligible for refunds of those pension contributions, and teachers who have since retired but took part in illegal strikes will have their benefits recalculated.

Heath Minister Eric Hoskins (St. Paul’s) says Ontario will accept roughly 4,000 of the 10,000 Syrian refugees set to arrive in Canada by the end of the year. It is not clear if this includes refugees who are privately sponsored like the 50 families who will be placed in Guelph. Mr. Hoskins said that since Ontario accounts for about 40 percent of the country’s population, it is prepared to take in that proportion of refugees.

PACE OF ENTRY SEEMS TO HAVE SLOWED

Governments have been considering army bases and in Ontario decommissioned hospitals as accommodation  But Mr. Hoskins said they may not be needed. “We have sites identified. Some of those sites have taken the extra step of ensuring they are prepared to accommodate the refugees, but we’ll see if that type of facility is in fact required,” the minister said. “It will depend partly on the numbers that arrive.” It appears the pace of entry has slowed as the federal government plans are shaped

Hamilton Spectator

The traditional participation of well-known figures in the City’s life sees Mayor John Tory playing a moose in the 2015 rendering of the Nutcracker.  Well done your worship. CBC

Attractive green pine and spruce boughs with decorative cones and red wood have arrived on Bayview Ave. to start the Christmas shopping period. It is the work of the new Business Improvement Area which is looking forward to its first such season on Bayview. Very nice.

William and Kate have released two pictures taken by the Duchess of their daughter Princess Charlotte on Sunday. Charlotte was born May 2 and will turn seven months Tuesday. The photos by the 33-year-old Duchess of Cambridge were taken at home at Anmer Hall, Norfolk, in November. Charlotte looks too wonderful for words in a floral dress and pink cardigan with a pensive pose in the first shot and a good laugh in the second.