The South Bayview Bulldog

GO transit spokesperson Anne Marie Atkins has raised an unexpected and rather astonishing fear that GO train service will be delayed because of a possible strike by CUPE support works at Ontario schools on Monday. She said the closure of schools may well mean that parents who operate the trains will stay home, thus creating inevitable slowdowns or disruptions. The impact of parents booking off work can be seen as an inconvenience in many industries but the possibility it might hit essential public services has previously gone unstated. Gov’t, CUPE continue talks in an effort to avoid Monday strike

Thirteen new cardinals

Cardinal Michael Czerny

Pope Francis has continued his reform of the Catholic Church by appointing 13 like-minded clerics to the College of Cardinals over the weekend. Among those appointed is the Canadian Jesuit Michael Czerny. Czerny, 73, founded the Jesuit Centre for Social Faith and Justice at St. Michael’s College on St. Mary St. He is a rare Jesuit appointee to the College.

The arrest Saturday of Andrew Cardiazo Esguerra, 28, at a residence near Oakwood Ave and Vaughan Rd also resulted in the recovery of much loot stolen over the summer from apartment and condo lockers. Now police at 14 Division are inviting those who may have lost such items to call the Major Crime Unit there to identify their property. The number is (416) 808-1400. The items recovered include sports memorabilia, coins, stamp collections, comic book collections, posters, video games, tools, jewelry, boxed model cars and various other collectibles. The loot may have a value of as much as $200,000.

Contract talks between the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the provincial government continue Sunday at the Sheraton Centre Hotel at 123 Queen West. The threat of a province-wide strike by Ontario education workers looms for Monday morning.

There was no winning ticket for the $21.8 million jackpot in Saturday night’s Lotto 6/49 draw. However, the guaranteed $1 million prize went to a ticket holder in Quebec. Another ticket sold in Quebec and one in Saskatoon matched five of the six winning numbers plus the bonus to claim $150,552 each. The jackpot for the next Lotto 6/49 draw on Oct. 9 will be approximately $25 million.

Debra Kuchme introduces young friend to animated pony Butterscotch outside Pagnello’s Antiques/Bulldog

Here are Pumpkin and Nina (in red) with friends on sunny Saturday/Bulldog

Pumpkin and Apple — yeah/Bulldog

Penne Pomodoro tasting at Tutto Pronto/Bulldog

Suggestions for face painting outside Bonnie Byford Real Estate/Bulldog

Beautiful baskets at MacFab/Bulldog

Delightful Betty Loo Photo Booth/Bulldog

Strongbow Cider tasting at McSorley’s/Bulldog

It was a lovely day Saturday for the Bayview Leaside BIA Apple Fest event and there was lots of entertaining activity for shoppers. Also Saturday, thousands turned out for the Leaside Block Party (below) sponsored by the Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital

Tennis court was converted to a basketball court for Holland Bloor patients/Bulldog

Andy Elder and daughter Sarah cooked hundreds of burgers to assist the charity event/Bulldog

Nuit Blanche launches another stay-up-late large-form art show in seven neighborhoods across Toronto starting Saturday at 7 p.m. It’s the 14th annual Nuit Blanche.

The $65 million jackpot up for grabs in Friday’s Lotto Max draw was won by a ticket selection sold in The Prairies. In addition, 1 Maxmillions (one-million-dollar prize) was won thanks to a selection sold in Ontario. The jackpot at the next Lotto Max draw to be held on Tuesday, October 8, will be worth approximately $17 million.

Montreal family wins $37 million jackpot

The September 30 Lotto Max jackpot worth $37,499,701 was won by four members of a three-generation family. Johanne Leblond, Guy Leblond, Patrick Lamothe and Yanick Lamothe-Leblond from Montréal took home the prize.

Montreal parents have applied to begin a class-action suit against the makers of Fornite, the video game that has swallowed a generation. We shall see. Then, the Toronto Symphony will play the music of Star Wars this weekend. Lots of fun. Below that, recordings of Robert De Niro in an angry tirade to his one-time assistant. She’s suing him for harassment. You talking to me? Finally, Prince Harry is suing several British tabloids for breaking into his voice mail when he was younger. Sounds like a dish of revenge served cold.

Update – @TPS55Div. Road closure – southbound still closed on O'Connor Drive from Northline Road to Sunrise Avenue. Northbound is open. Avoid the area. #GO1913243 ^CdK

— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) October 4, 2019

Coming to a street near you/Toronto Star

Mayor Tory and Councillor Pasternak (Ward 6) have unveiled Council’s elaborate Queen Street Towing Pilot. It begins Monday and will see vehicles towed off of Queen St. all the way from the Beaches to Roncesvalles for six to eight weeks during afternoon rush hour. Here is the release:

The pilot location is Queen Street between Fallingbrook Road (to the east) and Roncesvalles Avenue (to the west). Tow trucks will relocate vehicles that are illegally parked along Queen Street to designated side streets (Cameron Street, Ryerson Avenue, Michael Sweet Avenue and Stephanie Street) or move them to other no parking/open locations.

Police pounds are located outside of the downtown area, requiring up to 90 minutes for a tow truck to move one illegally parked vehicle and then return for others. It’s expected that this pilot will result in shorter tow truck response times and contribute to fewer delays along Queen Street.

Drivers of vehicles that are relocated/towed from Queen Street during the pilot period will receive a parking violation notice but the towing fee will be waived.

In 2018, almost 11,000 parking/stopping violations were issued and approximately 2,400 vehicles were towed during the rush hour period on Queen Street. Police identified the afternoon rush period on Queen Street as particularly challenging due to cars parking and stopping illegally. Each day, approximately 45 tickets are written and 10 vehicles are towed on Queen Street.

If successful, City staff and police would explore opportunities to run this program during morning and afternoon rush hour periods on other routes. Feedback and data gathered from the pilot may also inform future congestion strategies, including updates to the City of Toronto’s Congestion Management Plan.