The South Bayview Bulldog

Mayor inspects electric bus/CBC

Charging stations top up buses on route/New Flyer

Canadian-built electric buses that re-charge at stations along the route are now in revenue service with Winnipeg Transit. They’re made by the New Flyer Company in the Manitoba capital. Saturday, Mayor Tory inspected the New Flyer bus and all-electric buses made by two other companies, BYD of China and Proterra of California. The TTC will begin testing buses from all three companies in a purchase of ten from each firm in 2019. The vehicles eliminate emissions of any kind. The battery technology by which they re-charge permits them to run fuel free without overhead wires, and without constricting tracks that foul traffic and make any kind of breakdown a total nightmare. Of course no one at City Hall wants to talk about getting rid of streetcars yet. We can dream.

Recycling at EYTC

Gently-used footwear

Davisville Dragon bags

It is a week since we watched the ice build up on everything outside the front door. This sunny change was used by thousands to get about important chores like recycling old TV sets (and other electronics) at the Leaside Rotary dumpster in the East York Town Centre parking lot (left). Centre, a glimpse of the hundreds of shoes and clothing items for kids, all gently used, at the Davisville Public School sale. At right, dragon bags were sold for $15 to hold as much as you could stuff into them.

No winning ticket was sold for the $33 million jackpot in Friday night’s Lotto Max draw That means the jackpot for the next Lotto Max draw on Apr. 27 will grow to approximately $50 million, and there will be two Maxmillions prizes of $1 million each up for grabs.

Looking south towards McRae/Merton

Cleaning time

South Bayview streets were clogged with traffic that otherwise would be on the Don Valley Parkway Saturday. The DVP is being cleaned this weekend. It will be the same tomorrow but maybe not quite as bad. The lineup of vehicles on Moore Ave waiting to turn left onto the Bayview extension was backed up past Mallory Crescent. Bayview Ave through the business district was like morning and afternoon rush hour together. And so it went. The parkway re-opens Monday at 5 a.m.

NZ PM Jacinda Arern and Clarke Gayforde

Queen and PM

Maori cloak is a Korowai

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was a distinguished presence at the Commonwealth meeting in London this week. Ms. Ardern, who was present with her partner Clarke Gayforde, is expecting. She wore an elegant Maori cloak called a Korowai. Her toast at Buckingham Palace is worth a listen. Could we transplant this woman to the Canadian Commons please? Then, also distinguished, Ottawa inventor Midia Shikh Hassan, honoured by the Queen for her work in the making of prosthetics. Below that, drop in at the Met in New York and catch a phrase or two of Verdi’s melodic Luisa Miller. The stars are luminous. Finally, soprano Greta Bradman talks of her love and admiration of her granddad, a cricket star who was also a composer. Distinguished. You bet.

The former Stanley Cleaners building on the northeast corner of Millwood and Randolph Rds. is being demolished. City records say an environmental assessment is being done prior to construction of a new mixed use building. They say the design for the proposed building will be based on the ongoing assessment.

Bear in marijuana leaf headgear

He pumps accordian on Line 1

Moderator of City News debate

From the CBC comes news that Indigenous artist Jason Carter created an image of a bear (left) wearing a headdress made of marijuana leaves. This was used to illustrate a cover story in NOW that asks the burning question “Can Legalization Set Indigenous Communities Free?” South Bayview demands to know. Centre we see a young man who is wandering TTC subway cars playing a catchy tune called Despacito on his groanbox. It was recently recorded by Justin Bieber with naughty lyrics by Luis Fonsi.  The TTC is not amused. Then at right, it’s Cynthia Mulligan again. She will moderate a provincial leaders debate on City News in which the audience will ask the questions.

Stacked townhomes

Site at Eglinton and Danforth

Local institution

Mattamy Homes proposes to build “stacked townhomes” at Eglinton Ave. and Danforth Rd., site of local hangouts of various local affection. They are All Star Bowl, Caddy Adult Entertainment and the Eglinton Inn. Urban Toronto.

Fairfax Financial Holdings has signed an agreement to buy the Canadian Toys “R” Us business for some $300 million, the Financial Post says. The bid is seen as an opening for others to enter competing proposals by Monday. Fairfax would receive a break fee of about 4 per cent if another bidder is chosen, a source told the Post. Rogers Communications Inc. has signed up far more wireless subscribers in the first three months of the year than expected. Rogers said on Thursday after markets closed that it added 95,000 new mobile customers on contract, beating the average estimate of 58,000 that analysts had predicted. and CP Rail has begun shutting down train operations ahead of a possible strike set to start Saturday by two unionized workforces. CP says it continues to bargain with both the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which have given strike notices for this Saturday.

With six weeks left before the General Election on June 7, the Forum Research Poll has thrown up results indicating the PC Party under Doug Ford might receive as much as 46 percent of the popular vote if the election were held today, The April 18 survey suggested that 27 percent of voters would vote NDP and 21 percent Liberal. It’s an open question just how many people have seen the Liberal ad campaign called The Real Doug Ford, which has been airing for a few days. But Forum says that “the bump” in support created by the Liberal budget has faded. Two days before the poll was conducted, the Ontario NDP released its party platform, calling for universal pharmacare and dental care, higher corporate taxes and the re-purchase of Hydro One to make it public. Four percent of respondents said they would vote Green while two per cent expressed support for another party.