Rain is expected tomorrow afternoon in Toronto. Monday morning it will be cloudy with a 40 percent chance of showers in the morning and early in the afternoon. Showers will transition to rain in the afternoon. Wind will be south at 20 km/h becoming light in the afternoon. High 10. Monday night there will be rain ending after midnight then partly cloudy. Wind becoming southwest 20 km/h in the evening with a low of plus 1.
226 Hillsdale sells for $172,000 over asking
by •
The brick home at 226 Hillsdale Ave. E. about a block west of Mt. Pleasant Rd. has sold in seven days for $921,000, $172,000 over the asking price of 749,000. It had previously sold for $551,000 in 2004. It is said to have about 1,600 square feet and sit on a lot that is 25 by 125 feet in size. The home has a walkout from the kitchen to the deck and garden with an interlocking brick patio. The driveway leading to the parking pad is subject to a right-of-way but is wide and can accommodate a car fairly easily, the agents information said..
Stratford Festival facing $3.4 million deficit
by •
 |
| Usually a crowd-pleaser |
What happened at Stratford Festival last year to cause a $3.4 million deficit as the Canadian theatrical institution heads into 2013? The short answer is that not enough people came. It could be seen in the nearly half-empty Festival Theatre for performances of 42nd Street, usually a crowd pleaser. Was it the absence of Americans, just too cash strapped at home to make it across the border from the many Great Lakes states that traditionally send hundreds of thousands of patrons? Whatever, despite acclaim from theatre critics and audiences the Stratford Festival experienced a 5% drop in attendance. The fall in attendance has not been a secret but the official accounting for the Festival’s 60th season was presented to members Saturday at the theatre’s annual general meeting. The revenue shortfall occurred in spite of donor contributions to operations totalling $13.3 million – the highest in the Festival’s history – and the transfer of $2.3 million from the Endowment Foundation.
Mexico-Canada basebrawl more like hockey fight
by •
Power back on in Thorncliffe Park apartments
by •
Thorncliffe Park residents are tweeting to friends outside the area that they have their power back on — 9.53 pm.
At 9 pm. Hydro says power “any minute now”
by •
Frustrated and in some cases angry residents in Thorncliffe Park were still in the dark at 9 p.m. Saturday some 30 hours after the power outage that disrupted their neighborhood. They were complaining about rotting food, children with medical conditions and the lack of household medical equipment like C-PAP machines. Hydro crews replacing a $65,000 piece of switching equipment say their hearts go out to the residents and that they are working as fast as they can. CP24 said at 9 pm. that Hydro was promising restoration of power at any minute. Those able to access the Internet noted that Hydro’s outage map showed that the blackout in Thorncliffe was over. But it was not. 9.09 pm.
Thorncliffe power back by “dinner hour”: Hydro
by •
Toronto Hydro says it is aiming to have power restored to about 23 apartment buildings on Thorncliffe Park Drive by dinner hour. Residents of the units have struggled through more than 24 hours of darkness and cold as Hydro worked at replacing a unit valued at some $65,000 in an underground vault on Thorncliffe Park. Many tenants of the area have complained that they are of modest means and fear that everything from food spoilage to children’s illnesses will become an issue for them. Apartment dwellers have had to find their way around their darkened apartments, halls and stairways. Elevators are of course not working. By any measure, it is a miserable situation. The councillor, John Parker (Ward 26 Don Valley West) was present at the repair site. On CP24 he said that this is an example of aging infrastructure throughout the city and that people should expect further blackouts from time to time because of that. He pointed out the fairly long-standing tug-of-war between Ontario Hydro and the Ontario Energy Board for funds to repair known potential problems. An earlier outage in Davisville Village which occurred at more or less the same time as the Thorncliffe blackout has now had power restored.
Hard luck basement a South Bayview eyesore
by •
 |
| Empty units at 1560 Bayview |
Who knows just how the owners of 1560 Bayview, at the corner of Belsize Drive, feel about the chronically vacant walk-down basement units? Those of us who live and work here however dream frequently of a solution that would somehow turn these units into an asset not an eyesore. In fairness, these lower units suffer from a discredited design concept that tried to maximize space by putting half the “street level” units below ground. It didn’t work and that lesson has been sadly taught all over the city, most notably Yorkville. At 1560 Bayview, the owners tried to make the units to the north, where Bayview Photo was once located, more accessible by building a ramp. It has to be said that this was not a success. The ramp, in two long lengths, is more like a barrier to the places of business below. Steps to the lower level are hidden away behind the ramp. There is a clue perhaps to a solution in the upper floors of the building, which are pretty well-leased. Many of the upper units, unlike the lower ones, are smaller and more versatile for service businesses. Does the downstairs space need to be subdivided? Should the emphasis be on service accommodation, rather than retail goods? Can the rents be modified? This is a large property company. It seems reasonable to say that some vacant space is not so serious to the owners of 1560 Baview as it might be to companies with a smaller portfolio. All of this said, we continue to believe that a useful purpose can be found for these empty units. But everyone has to care about the problem to make the solution occur.
Joggers paradise as temps head higher
by •
This day is some harbinger of Spring and a suitable weekend for us to move the clocks forward for another year. Good old Daylight Saving Time begins at 2 am. But the pay off will come tomorrow when temperatures are forecast to rise to at least eight degrees Celsius, a joy for everyone, especially the joggers. The Environment Canada forecast is even more optimistic. It calls for a high of 12 tomorrow. City of Toronto. Today..Mainly sunny. High 8. UV index 4 or moderate. Tonight..Clear. Increasing cloudiness before morning. Low plus 2. Sunday..Cloudy. Rain beginning late in the evening. High 12. Argo cheerleaders will grace Booster Juice launch
by •
The new Booster Juice outlet will open tomorrow (Saturday, March 9, 2013) in Leaside Village on Laird Drive. You can have a smoothie for breakfast if you want but the cheerleaders won’t show up until 11 a.m. and they’ll entertain until 1 pm. The first 40 customers will receive a Toronto Argonauts Silver Section Regular Season Game Ticket Voucher. Hours are 9 am. to 9 pm.
Make boys sit to urinate, says Swedish politician
by •
This is International Women’s Day and in Sweden the movement is alive and well. One politician (a man) feels there should be legislation to make boys urinate sitting down rather than standing. It would make things simpler in the washroom and keep the place cleaner, he says. He also feels it would be healthier for the boys, to which we have no comment. Also fueling debate in Sweden these days, where gender equality is a national goal, is a new word in the dictionary. It is hen. Hen is a neutral pronoun that, again, makes everything equal. Some Swedes feel that neutrality initiatives are being exaggerated. Not everyone agrees with hen says school director Lotta Rajalin: “They think we are going to change girls to boys and boys to girls and that’s of course not what we are doing. We like to give every human being the same rights, the same possibilities, the same responsibilities. And that is a question of democracy.”
Carden-Cunietti wins prestigious design award
by •
 |
| Audrey Carden, Eleanora Cunietti |
Eleanora Cunietti is a Toronto girl who has made it big in London. The graduate of Branksome Hall and the Ontario College of Art and Design moved to the United Kingdom in the 1990s where her field, interior design, led her to a partnership with Audrey Carden. The team of Carden-Cunietti has become a virtual household name in British and European design and build circles. Now Carden-Cunietti has added the Home and Gardens Magazine award in design which recognizes British designers who have made a significant contribution to their field. The award was made March 7, 2013, at the British Museum. Audrey and Eleanora beat the fabulous Martin Hubert and Paolo Moschino to win the coveted award. Carden Cunietti is well known for its personal, hands on approach to each client’s needs and seeing all stages of each installation come to fruition. The breadth and depth of the company’s fame and acceptance is shown on its website where the partners note that they are now completing two large new build houses in Dublin and Herzelia. They are also working on projects in London, Dublin, Warsaw and Jersey.