The South Bayview Bulldog

Group photo of @NoHarmToronto volunteers at the pop-up safe injection site in Moss Park.

A little-known group called the Toronto Harm Reduction Alliance has erected a tent in Moss Park to function as a “pop up injection site.”  The members of the group and others are responding to accidental deaths apparently caused by fentanyl in recent days. It isn’t clear whether any amount of fentynal is safe, but the drug has become a lethal element of the street scene. Toronto police have permitted the pop up tent in the interests of educating illegal drug users, at least so far. It is staffed by a registered nurse and overdose prevention trainers. There is a large stock of the anti-overdose medication naxalone. This drug is apparently injected. Among other tasks, the injection site workers will search the park for used needles. The net effect of such activity, good or bad, remains to be seen.

CBC/Twitter

The tenants of a dozen buildings in Parkdale owned by Metcap Living Inc. have ended their rent strike without evictions and in fact are declaring victory over the landlord in the form of a reduction in the proposed rents increases. CBC

Paul Panayiotidis says he is close to closing his little bookstore, Eliot’s, at Yonge and Wellesley Streets in the heart of Ward 27. That’s because like many merchants on Yonge, his taxes have doubled in about a year. The levy on his tiny storefront has gone from  $24,000 to $48,000. By 2020, taxes are expected to be $96,000 annually. Perhaps it is not the City’s fault that Panayiotidis is in a flat line of retail, selling books. But much of the skyrocketing cost of business is the responsibility of Toronto Council where the cheery approach is to spend other people’s money and hope for the best. They call it the City’s money, but we know where they come when they want more.

MAN NOW PENNILESS

The Star reports Saturday on Michael (Cash) Pomer. He was a radio sports celebrity (it’s said) and gambling authority for many years. Now the $6 million estate he once possessed is gone —  every cent. The story is decorated with pictures of Mr. Pomer looking quite forlorn. He owned a four-bedroom house with a pool in York Mills and wintered in a two-storey beachfront condo in Palm Beach. He had an island cottage in Parry Sound as well as a ski chalet and a golf club membership. There is much more to read about Mr. Pomer, all of it dispiriting. This story does not try to blame others for his downfall however. In this world where some dream of eliminating poverty (like it were chicken pox) it’s well to remember that poverty is all about individual personal decisions.

Old Kenmore sewing machine

Councillor and constituent

Dangerous stuff

Recyclables

Lady has paint — thank you!

Needle alert

Batteries

No good now

Ward 26 Environment Day saw brisk business Saturday at Leaside Arena as hundreds of people had a broad range of used, expired and just plain old goods for safe disposal. One potentially hot item was a 40 or 50 year-old Kenmore sewing machine. The many trucks and bins were sponsored by Councillor Burnside through the City’s recycling program. The site was open til 2 p.m.

Best wishes to our members Lori Brendel and Rachel Jones as they start to compete at the Canadian National Championships on Monday.

— Leaside Lawn Bowling (@leasidebowls) August 12, 2017

Aug 12 – Ward 26 Community Environment Day
Aug 12 – Man VS Lobster
Aug 12 – Films Under the Stars: Happy Feet
Aug 12 – 21st Century Village Burgess Park

And these guys are at Longo’s

Our duBreton Mobile is at the @LongosMarkets on 93 Laird Drive in Leaside. Come and try our marinated pork chops and our #BESTBACON! pic.twitter.com/Eiw8OjULSr

— duBreton (@duBreton) August 12, 2017

Danforth Dash bed race kicks off Taste of the Danforth festival https://t.co/IOtKq9mHGv

— Jeffrey s borreson (@jeffreymadwisc) August 12, 2017

It’s here again. By noon hour Saturday, the traditional Greek food and world-wide delectables cornucopia will be underway along the Danforth from Broadview to Pape Aves. Yesterday saw the hospital bed dashes that always precede Taste of the Danforth. The event raises money for Michael Garron Hospital. Taste of the Danforth runs until 10 p.m. Sunday.

Cornucopia, yum/archives

What we get up to

Music Saturday like tonight

Bit of rain Friday says David Chiu/Instagram

The seemingly odd power failure at two downtown condo buildings has a temporary fix Saturday from a mobile generator which has been employed to provide power to buildings at 126 Simcoe and 21 Nelson Street. It will service the complex until the buildings can be returned to the Toronto Hydro grid. According to the condo management, repairs to that equipment may not be done until Tuesday or even later.

UNUSUAL PROBLEM

Toronto Hydro has said that the failure of power to  the building, about 30 and 15 storeys, is being caused by equipment owned by the condo. The utility has no responsiblity to repair it. This seldom reported upon and perhaps rare event represents evidence of the complex nature of the electrical delivery system in Toronto. Even more curious, it is said that the failure of the equipment on Thursday at Simcoe and Adelaide had a domino effect that shut off power at the  Ripley’s Aquarium. six blocks away on Bremner Blvd. Power there is now restored. .

Visitors to Leaside Village at Laird and Esandar Drives are living with a somewhat abandoned sewer replacement project on Esandar on the approach to Longo’s. The eastbound half of the road is just the way the contractor left it weeks ago. It causes inbound drivers to sneak their cars over onto the westbound side where there is asphalt. Maybe there’s more work to be done here but either way it’s been a rocky unattended mess for too long.

Lights and elevators have been out at the high-rise condominiums at 126 Simcoe Street and 21 Nelson St. since 5 a.m. Thursday but Toronto Hydro is saying, more or less, it’s not our fault. Hydro says equipment belonging to the condo failed yesterday and knocked out power not just to the residences, but to Ripley’s Aquarium. The aquarium now has lights again and is open. The condo property manager says he’s working on the repair but has no predictions as to when power will be restored. CBC

Jon Burnside (Ward 26)  will hold the  Ward 26 Community Environment Day to be held on Saturday, August 12  at Leaside Memorial Gardens from 10 to 2 p.m.  Small electronics, household hazardous waste, fluorescent bulbs, unused medications, oils, solvents, pesticides, propane tanks, and batteries will be accepted.  The following items will not be accepted: construction waste, gasoline, garbage, wood, cassette and videotapes, commercial/industrial hazardous waste and scrap metal.

A new agent, Commercial Development Group (CDG), is now a handling the leasing at 1560 Bayview Ave at Belsize Drive. The sign went up in recent hours after those of the Behar Group were taken down. Behar had this account for decades. The walk-down properties in this building are chronically vacant, a function many say of the reluctance of people to walk down to a retail business. The CDG phone is 416 223-1606.

1560 Bayview (with vacant basement) in 2007