There was an overnight smash and grab at Aish Jewellery on South Bayview. This incident raises once again the wisdom of publicly owned surveillance cameras. As many will know, they are widely used in the U-K and frequently result in apprehending those who do such things.
Actually, it’s not that bad
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Yes, a little more than was predicted and a definite put-off after the snow free streets of recently, but the weather today is pleasant nonetheless. As seen left, some pretty glimpses, centre, “Should we or shouldn’t we” and right, Rescue!
Bell cell tower on 1220 Bayview Ave
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This rainy Saturday saw a huge crane and many cellular wonks (engineers) working on the installation of a Bell Canada cellular tower on top of the apartment building at 1220 Bayview Ave (at Moore Ave.). The address has a special location which engineers figured out. The high tower will be able to peer over the shore of prehistoric Lake Iroquois and pick up or send signals to the lower town. A windfall perhaps for the owner of the rental apartment as that rooftop won’t come free to BCE. Upper left, part of the tower goes up. Upper right, men work on the next lift with Florence Moosengale looking on from the background. Lower left, a close up of the partly finished tower and lower right, messy traffic and weather together. Island launch May 1 says Air Canada
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Air Canada says it will begin flying out of Toronto’s island airport on May 1, a move that will interest many North American travellers. The Wall Street Journal announced the decision, The island plan follows conclusion of a terminal agreement with City Centre Terminal Corp., which is owned by Porter Aviation Holdings Inc. Air Canada is trying to win back the high-margin business travelers it lost to upstart Porter Airlines, the island airport’s main tenant.
Leaside Synergy novice team wins bronze
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The Leaside Synergy novice skating team, winners of the bronze medal at the Skate Canada National Synchronized Skating championships in Brampton recently. They’re seen here in a publicity picture taken before the event. Well done, ladies.
April 7 meeting on 1860 Bayview plan
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A post on the Byford’s Blog gives notice of a Community Consultation Meeting on April 7 regarding the 1860 Bayview Avenue proposed development. This is the project which would be built on the old Brennan Pontiac site involving Loblaws, the LCBO and others. According to the Broadway Residents Working Group, the purpose of this meeting is for “the community to have input on this project, view the plans and ask questions. It recommends that all parties plan to attend this meeting.
Veritable heat wave of plus 5C
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South Bayview and environs will experience a veritable heat wave of plus 5C today and similar conditions Saturday. Yes, it will be a bit damp but really, it’s the promise of Spring. Don’t knock it. The woodpeckers are back in the trees. We heard some knocking yesterday. It’s real.
CFIB campaign targets credit card charges
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The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has launched its campaign to assist retailers in avoiding higher fees on so-called premium cards. Visa, MasterCard and the banks which issue them, are planning such cards. They would promote “rewards” which were really paid for by the merchants (and ultimately by customers) through higher prices. Presumably there would be a fee to obtain the card too, just like Amex. The CFIB says: “If consumers help us shift even a small number of transactions from credit cards to Interac or cash, we feel the banks and credit card companies may wake up and reconsider their fee structure.” So what would you prefer, a “reward” which you might get cheaper elsewhere if you shopped it, or plain lower prices. We have written about this before. Columnist Jim Travers dead at 62
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Well-known columnist Jim Travers has died in Ottawa. He was 62. Travers died after a long illness and surgery at a hospital in Ottawa. Jim Travers was national affairs columnist for the Toronto Star, a position he had held since 1999. From 1991 to 1996 he was Editor-in-Chief of Southam’s flagship paper, the Ottawa Citizen, remaining there until Conrad Black’s purchase of Southam. Moving to the Toronto Star in 1997, he was first named Ottawa Editor and then Executive Managing Editor, the paper’s top editorial job, based in TorontoBlogTO solicits interest in a map
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BlogTO.com was on South Bayview today soliciting interest in a promotional map. It will apparently cover “Yonge, Eglinton, Mount Pleasant, South Bayviww.”
Sunflowers from Canada Post today
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It’s not Spring but Canada Post is trying. Your postal counter at Shoppers or in the shop in Sunybrook Plaza is issuing the first of a series of stamps today. They feature flowers starting with the sunflower stamps above. Canada Post writes: “It’s the first time that flowers have been a theme for Canadian stamps and this new series will definitely not disappoint. Just in time for summer, these bright, vibrant flowers smile at us from very colourful blue backgrounds. Sunflowers have a special place in Canadian history, being a source of food and oil used by Native Americans right down.” Axed GM dealers get OK for class action
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The shock expressed by Mark Brennan, owner of Brennan Pontiac-Buick, came back to mind today as the Ontario Superior Court certified a $750 million class-action lawsuit on behalf of more than 200 former GM dealers who lost their franchises in 2009. “Judicial economy will be promoted by the aggregation of the claims of the class avoiding multiple trials and potential duplication of fact-finding,” Justice G.R. Strathy wrote in the decision, dated Tuesday, March 2, 2011. At the time, Brennan told dismayed customers that the decision had come as shock. He said Brennan’s was an unfortunate victim of GM’s decision. He offered empathy to those who lost a place to shop for a car and all those who used Brennan as a service centre. The lawsuit is being led by Trillium Motor World of Scarborough. David Sterns, one of the lawyers for Trillium Motor said the decision gives the dealers a chance to mount a recovery. “The elimination of the dealers was a man-made disaster for hundreds of family-owned businesses forced to pay the price for GM’s financial problems,” Sterns said in a statement.