Police increase patrols and checks in Leaside

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Roger Cattel has taken this picture of police stopping a vehicle in Leaside for concerns related to speed. It is not clear just what is going on here. Mr. Cattel is the public-spirited resident of McRae Drive who has organized the funding and printing of the lawn signs which urge drivers to slow down. That initiative has been greatly welcomed across the city but it comes with some thankless aspects. The expectation of many signs for all who want them may not be met. The printing process is involved and costly. 

Behar working hard to rent walk-down space

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Most everyone has noticed the renewed interest taken this Spring by the important Behar Group Realty firm in leasing the hard-luck space at 1560 Bayview Ave at the corner of Belsize Drive. To say the building has not looked especially loved is to say what every South Bayview resident of 20 years knows already. But, in fairness to the owners, they probably did not design the place. They own the upkeep however. The builder adopted what  a generally discredited walk-down concept for the “first floor” spaces in this multi-unit building. Why discredited? Simple. No one wants to walk down stairs to visit a retail store. The owners also constructed a ramp and stairs to make access to the spaces in the northerly part of the building easier. It didn’t seem to help. There was not a lot of space to work with and the steps got hidden away behind the ramp. So they tried, after a fashion, but now the season is here and the place is costing money. It is more urgent than in past years because the last viable tenant in the corner space, 7-Eleven stores, has paid off its lease after the short-lived try to install one their corner stores. For years the empty space (see inset bottom taken in 2012) was actually paying rent courtesy 7-Eleven. Now it apparently is not and you see can how the neatness quotient has gone up. We wish Behar good luck with this tough proposition. It may be time however for a whole new concept on this corner. For those who care to know, Wikipedia describes 7-Eleven (or 7-11) as part of an international chain of convenience stores headquartered in Tokyo. 7-Eleven, primarily operating as a franchise, is the world’s largest operator, franchisor, and licensor of convenience stores with more than 50,000 outlets. 

Mid-afternoon theft on Lawrence Park’s Wood

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Wood Avenue in the Lawrence Ave. E. and Bayview Ave area has seen a mid-afternoon break-in. This crime occurred at a home on the short street in a fairly brief time frame — between 2 and 3.15 p.m. on July 21, 2014. A door was forced to get in. It’s worth repeating the importance of good locks and latches at home. The thief or thieves got away with a quantity of cash, jewellery and electronics.

Dancing TPS cop gets cheap shots on Twitter

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Video of that dancing Toronto police officer at the Beach Jazz Festival has prompted a few cheaper shots on Twitter. You can see the Soca Cop above. It’s true he’s on duty but unlike the dancing school guard he is not simultaneously directing traffic and guiding children across the street. 

Mike Duffy has talk by Face Time with “daughter”

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Senator Mike Duffy is said to have had a “warm talk” lasting two hours with the 32-year-old Peruvian woman, Karen Duffy, who insists that she is his daughter. Duffy had seemed to say that he was not Ms. Duffy’s father but has now taken the initiative in calling her.  CBC

Phone survey: Chow, Tory, Ford in tight contest

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A telephone survey done recently shows a bunching of the main candidates at the top. Olivia Chow has 29 percent support, John Tory 28 per cent and Rob Ford shows 17 percent. The poll is done by Forum research, which has has not had the best record predicting outcomes in other elections. This story is featured by CP24. 

Bus blasts through red light nearly hitting woman

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The TTC is promising to investigate and take action after one of its buses blew right through a red light at Eglinton Ave. E. and Ionview Road nearly hitting a pedestrian. In the video above we see two buses. It is the one in the curb lane to watch. As it approaches Ionview it seems to slow but then speeds up. What the driver has on his mind is uncertain but the pedal-to-the-metal move occurs as the light turns red for him. A woman is on the same side of Eglinton and she steps out to cross before realizing the bus in coming at her. The video was shot with a dash cam and posted by someone who calls himself Blue Team Player and the remarks of the occupants of the is more  revealing. The car is silent until the bus suddenly speeds up and the witnesses see the woman. “Oh…Oh…Ohh” says one occupant. “Did you get that?  I thought she was going to die there.” Brad Ross of the TTC said the transit system is a professional operation and will get to the bottom of the incident. It is also true however that TTC drivers are under pressure to keep on schedule and in fact speed up if the route is running slow. 

Family of 20 human traffickers deported

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A shocking glimpse of  some of the intolerable things that happen in our country is provided by the news that a family of 20 human traffickers from Hungary has been deported. In order to so this,  the individuals all had to be convicted in court, which they were, and then formally pronounced unwanted here. The deportation process is said to have taken two years and there are some individuals left to be removed. The family apparently lied to poor Hungarians and somehow arranged for their immigration. The victims were beaten and forced to live in wretched conditions. Toronto Sun 

“Must Boutique” to open at 1577 Bayview Ave.

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The space at 1577 Bayview Ave has been leased to a clothing store, Must Boutique. The location was previously occupied by Chai on Bayview but has been fully renovated since that business closed earlier this year.   This Must Boutique appears to be an extension of the Montreal firm of the same name. It’s website speaks of  Must Haves such as “beautiful silk tops, dresses, linen pants, skirts, shirts and so much more. Most of our fashions are made in Italy, new styles arrive every two weeks and practically all of it is under $100.00.” Welcome Must Boutique

Air Canada cancels flights to Israel in rocket fear

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Air Canada has followed the lead of American carriers and cancelled flights to Israel because of rocket fire near Tel Aviv. The U.S. Federal Aviation Authority has ordered all U.S. carriers to stand down on flights to Tel Aviv.  An Air Canada flight left early Tuesday for Tel Aviv but a second flight scheduled for 6:18 p.m. ET has been cancelled. 

Canada Post trucks now parade through Leaside

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Officers at 53 Division are naturally sensitive to the public concern in Leaside and all along Eglinton Ave. East about increased traffic. The National Post yesterday carried a story in which Sgt. Matt Moyer of the community response unit said the cops are concerned. The story suggests there might be a tougher rule for “outsiders” who go through a stop sign. A local might just get a talking to, said Sgt. Moyer. Many readers of The South Bayview Bulldog have noted the seemingly sudden appearance of little Ford Canada Post trucks. They are coming and going from the new postal station in the Wicksteed Business Park. They have been known to appear in what looks like a parade along McRae Drive.  There is much interest in the program of Slow Down signs and the main mover in this appealing idea is Roger Cattell. He has been swamped by requests from locals and others from all across Toronto. Those interested can inquire about the signs at leasidekidsatplay@gmail.com 

Death on GO tracks at Dundas Street West

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Information is fragmentary out at the scene of a fatality on the GO Transit line under the Dundas Street West bridge. A young male is dead. He may have been there with friends. It’s anyone’s guess what they were doing but train tracks are not unknown as a playground for teens. The unfortunate death is also sadly part of the GO experience. The system no doubt does it best to keep trains on time but some of the delays are enormous. This is said to have stopped service for three hours.