The South Bayview Bulldog

Some of the hard truths are coming home to  grocers and the public as they wait to see what the government has in mind for its wine and liquor kiosks in grocery stores. Cynics will be inclined to say it isn’t much. The scheme is very limited,  maybe as few as ten places across the whole province.  If you are a small player, moreover, you can forget it altogether. The LCBO is specifying that a store allocate a minimum of 2,000 square feet for a kiosk.  Very few independents have that option. The franchisees of the Valu mart organization (which is owned by a Loblaws subsidiary) can pretty much forget about a kiosk. It also seems a long shot for other indy operators, like the neighborhood chain Rabba. In a place like South Bayview, what does Metro do if Loblaws gets the kiosk? Or Longo’s or Whole Foods? You don’t have to be a serious complainer to think that this is seriously unfair. Why this plan? The government is clearly addicted to the direct transfusion of funds from the LCBO. In buoyant Alberta, the sale of liquor and wine has been privatized. As The Bulldog has observed in the past, a fair and easily controlled system could be built using modern vending machines. There is no sign of that in the LCBO plan and this may have something do with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, which represents the LCBO employees. Metroland

The Toronto Zoo has revealed its latest addition — a baby gorilla who needs a name. But, says the zoo, the name must begin with an “N”. To help you with this important family task we offer this list of girl’s names beginning with “N”. Let’s see — Nola, Noni, Nikita This one means “Victory of the people” — a good revolutionary name.  But maybe not for a gorilla. Anyway, good luck.  

It’s about the mushrooming value of the land on which homeowners sit along Bayview Ave. This week many in Ward 25 are complaining about another proposed townhouse development on the street. This one is between York Mills Rd.  and Old Colony  Rd. The pressure is the same type of economic stress that occurs when developers want to knock down townhouses built in the 70s to build high-rise apartments or condos. It’s happening on streets like Belsize Drive in Ward 22. The Councillor in Ward 25, Jaye Robinson, is said to have created a “design guideline” for the neighbourhood. But unless zoning is changed, and can be enforced, it seems like a losing battle. 

In what seems as much like a tense stand off as anything else, the forces of Porter Airlines and NoJets Toronto are both spinning today’s City Council decision as a victory.  In  an odd outcome, Council voted 44-0 for a staff report that contains many conditions for jets to go wheels down at Billy Bishop Airport. Noise, pollution, traffic and other elements must be probed and the results found acceptable before the City would proceed. The timing of this action by Council is said to make it certain that no further debate or vote will occur until after a new mayor and council are elected.  NoJets TO made it clear on its website tonight that it will make the Porter application an election issue. Tonight’s outcome would seem to offer even greater definition between mayoral candidate Olivia Chow and the other candidates. She is the only one who has expressed clear opposition to jets on the island.  Deputy Mayor Kelly, an open advocate of the Porter plan, said the “modernization” of the airport is still alive and that he too considers the vote today a victory.   NoJets TO

Indigo has announced that it is closing its flagship  Chapters store at Richmond and John Sts. The announcement comes a day after the closing of the company’s World’s Biggest Bookstore. The Chapters will lock the doors on May 30, 2014. It is an all too understandable move as the digital era continues to pummel books and music retailers around the globe. The location is the home of a Cineplex complex bearing the name of Scotiabank. 

A 13 year old boy reports that on March 28, 2014 at approximately 7.30 p.m. he was in the area of Thorncliffe Park Drive and Overlea Boulevard when he was approached by three youths. They surrounded the victim and demanded for his tablet. The victim complied. The suspects then fled the scene in an unknown direction. No injuries were sustained by the victim.