Ontario public high school teachers will vote as early as Wednesday on a potential agreement with the provincial government that could improve union bargaining abilities and end a lengthy labour dispute. Reporter Derek Spalding
April 1: TTC will not loop buses through plaza
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There’s been admirable restraint among the world’s April 1 jesters this year. The whimsical bits of fakery created by YouTube (we’re shutting down) and Google (smell search a zillion scents) were sufficiently outlandish to inspire a sense of fun, not fear. The South Bayview Bulldog had considered declaring a full closure of the street this summer so that the business district could be re-paved in an experimental chrome yellow asphalt — but we decided to give it a pass. And, as we got worked up, did you know that RioCan, owners of the Sunnybrook Plaza had agreed to let the TTC short turn the Eglinton Ave. E. bus through the mall? Happy April’s Fools Day, everyone, victims of which you are not.
“So close to the end” says giggling YouTube
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YouTube has announced it will be shutting down after eight years and will no longer accept videos. The news comes, of course, just before April Fools’ Day. The company teamed up with The Onion to create a YouTube-star-studded video explaining how the site was set up as part of a contest to find the best home video on the Internet. “We are so close to the end,” Tom Liston, communications director at YouTube, said in the video. “Tonight at midnight, YouTube.com will no longer be accepting entries. After eight amazing years, it’s finally time to review everything that has been uploaded to our site and begin the process of selecting a winner.” See video in column at left.
Fixing the marquee lights at the Eglinton Grand
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Women’s shelter sale needs your old goods
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Catherine de Vries of Royal Lepage has written to remind everyone about the annual Shelter Foundation Garage Sale to be held Saturday, May 11, 2013, on the company’s local parking lot at 1391 Bayview. That’s right on the corner of McRae Drive. It’s a very worthwhile project which helps support 200 shelters for women across the country. This year organizers are asking local residents to help out with donations of salable used and hand-me-downs — clothing, toys, electronics, books and china are all suitable. The sale can also accept furniture thanks to the participation of AMJ Campbell Moving who will come round to your house and take the heavy pieces to the sale. A pickup can be can be scheduled by calling the office at (416) 424-4900. The South Bayview Bulldog will have more on the sale as we move along but this is a first call for all those who might be able to help.
TD plans coin sorting machines in 300 branches
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TD Canada Trust is going to install coin counting and sorting machines in many of its branches across Canada. The standard device used for this purpose is the Coinstar, made by a company located in Bellevue Washington. The only known sorting machine in South Bayview at present is the one in the Loblaws store at the end of Redway Drive. It is very useful in emptying out the coin jars and drawers where metal money gathers. To begin, TD is talking about 300 to 350 machines across the country. Thus not all branches will have them and speculation runs that either the busy branch at Bayview and Millwood or the spacious location in the mall at 321 Moore Ave. may recieve one of these machines. Time will tell. TD will take a cut of the total value of the coins unless you have an account with them. But most people find it worth the convenience even if they have to pay a small amount. There is often a lineup at the Coinstar in the Redway Drive Loblaws. Yorkdale shootings spark fear and anger
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The fatal shooting of a man and the wounding of another at Yorkdale Shopping Mall tonight has prompted police to isolate thousands of people and their cars in the mall’s huge parking lot. Toronto Police Service has announced that it will be many hours before vehicles are able to come and go freely at the mall and they have advised people who must leave to do so without their cars. The victim is said to be a man and as the Toronto Sun suggests he may have been shot as many as ten times. The second man is said to be in Sunnybrook Hospital in serious but stable condition. There is no information on who they are or even if they knew each other. Radio and television reports indicate that stranded shoppers are angry at being denied the opportunity to leave. There is also apparently widespread tweeting among the thousands of people who know the mall expressing their fears about violence there. The shootings took place about 8.20 outside the Sears store on the south side of the mall.
Peter Kormos dies suddenly at home at age 60
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Fiery NDPer Peter Kormos has died suddenly at his home in Welland. The cause of death is not yet known. He was 60. CBC
“Health food store” to open at 1622 Bayview
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Behind the neatly papered-over windows at 1622 Bayview Ave. work goes on to finish what sources say is our street’s latest health food store. No other details were at hand but this is the firm word as to what the business will be. The large west-side premises is next door to Patisserie de Cignone and was until recently the home of The Trend Shoppe.
Dead lad in Don River crash is A. J. Blugerman, 16
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| A. J. Blugerman |
A Good Friday drive for five teens led to a deadly crash into the Don River yesterday about 5.30 p.m. The Acura SUV turned abruptly off Lakeshore Drive East and plunged into the deep waters of the Keating Canal killing a 16-year old boy who was one of the occupants. The others, which included the driver, managed to get out of the submerged vehicle and swim to the surface. The dead youth is identified as A.J. Blugerman. He was a new student at Bayview Glen, a private school near Don Mills and York Mills roads, and before that went to the all-boys St. Michael’s College School, where he played hockey. Police say the group of teens — three boys and two girls — went through a handrail which was not designed to stop a vehicle. There is a suspicion that driver inexperience may be a factor in this crash. The driver of the SUV is 17.
Is the junior tyrant backing himself into a corner?
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There seems to be a growing concern that Kim Jung Eun, the young dictator of North Korea, may be backing himself into a corner. His threats to make war on the U.S. and South Korea have reached levels that can only be exceeded by actual violence itself. There’s a feeling that Kim, who is seen to be a rather superficial individual, has been rattled by the appearance of USAF B-2 stealth bombers over South Korea yesterday. They have the capability to pierce the north’s air defenses unannounced. Some fear Kim is coming to rely more on his own judgment rather than on the strategies that characterized the rule of his father. Analysts say it is possible that he will maintain the current state of tension, yet without a concrete plan of action for the future. The South Korean monitoring agency Daily NK says it is difficult to predict Kim’s actions, and a dangerous provocation cannot be ruled out. “Many believe that Kim’s aim is to wait for the United States to yield in some way that will permit him to stand his forces down and relax the tension. However, this plan is unrealistic, because the U.S. has repeatedly stated that it has no wish to negotiate with North Korea unless there is a set agreement for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in place,” say Daily NK. Long lineups for Penrose Fish and Chips favorite
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The tradition of eating fish and chips on Good Friday was alive and thriving at 600 Mt. Pleasant Rd. this evening as dozens of people lined up outside Penrose Fish and Chips to buy the neighborhood favorite, The shop was accepting both table service and take-out orders There’s no knowing at this point just how many people dined on the Penrose fare tonight. City News Channel was live and reports nationally indicate that fish and chip shops all over the country were busy as the ancient practice of not eating meat on Friday made a special impact on this solemn day. Penrose Fish and Chips is an institution in our area. Inside the shop, (inset) Dave Johnston and his wife Rosey were cooking up the popular fare started by Dave’s mother and father at this address in 1950.