The South Bayview Bulldog

Yahoo has ended the brief tenure of its latest chief executive over a false biography of him in a regulatory filing spiraled into a major embarrassment for the ailing Internet company and a big victory for an activist investor. Scott Thompson, whom Yahoo hired as CEO in January, agreed to resign over the weekend after the company’s board obtained evidence that contradicted his claim of innocence about his misstated academic record, people familiar with the matter said. In particular, an executive-search firm provided Yahoo with information that appeared to show Mr. Thompson years ago had knowingly claimed he had earned a degree which he hadn’t. Today it’s reported Thompson has said he had thyroid cancer.  .

411 and 445 Eglinton Ave. E.

A British Columbia property company has purchased two prime apartment buildings on the south side of Eglinton Ave E between Mt. Pleasant Rd and Bayview Ave. Hollyburn Properties waged a winning struggle to beat out other prospective buyers in an un-priced bid process.  Hollyburn bought 411 Eglinton Ave. E. between Petman Ave. and Marmot Street and 445 Eglinton Ave. E between Marmot and Banff Road. The Daily Commercial Times newspaper notes that Hollyburn also bought two other Toronto apartments on St. George Street north of Bloor and on Isabella Street.   The whole package fetched $60 million and some guessing  might place the combined value of the Eglnton buildings at $25-$30 million. The Commercial Times says that Hollyburn “faced fierce competition for these rare properties in an un-priced bid process. Bidders came from a diverse cross section of local, national, and international buyers who all attempted to acquire these prime revenue properties, all in upscale neighbourhoods.”

We take no pleasure in the distress of others but the moaning coming up from the Bloor St West shopping area is a bit ironic. It appears the City has been busy chopping down trees. Not all the way down mind you. Just about half way down. That way the ugly stump if left there looking like a dead man walking. If any of this sounds familiar it will be because South Bayview was the site of a similar pointless slaughter of trees back in 2008. Many, but not all, the maples on the east side were lopped off half way and left to rot. They were there for the better part of two years before the elegantly named Urban Forestry Branch came along to rip them out of the planters prior to sidewalk work. New trees were planted the same day and in a few months they were uprooted for the sidewalk work. A sidewalk tree if just a sidewalk tree but you would have to say this episode was more than careless. Two years. There is a lesson here about how merchants money might be spent. The Bloor Business Improvement Association spends (and is assessed) millions each year to make itself beautiful. Among all the costly flowers and artistic planters it gets tree stumps. Those who think a BIA is the way to make Bayview  beautiful may wish to ponder whether they would be further ahead just to buy some planters and hire a gardener for pennies compared to what the City will cost. And the trees? Just hope for the best. That’s what they do down on Bloor Street.