The South Bayview Bulldog

HAZARD:
Toronto Island Airport
-Drone spotted above airport
-Affecting approach to landing
-White/blue graphics #GO1175293
^dh

— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) July 1, 2017

A drone has been reported hovering over Billy Bishop Airport Saturday morning, imperilling landings and take offs. TPS Operations notes the hazard on what many are calling potentially the busiest day in the history of the island facility. As many as 13,000 passengers are expected to travel through the airport on their way to Canadian and US destinations.

Canada Day has dawned with the national cash transfer service at Interac still down for a third day. Interac, which was formed in 1984 by the big five banks in Canada, took the email service down on Saturday after recurring problems which began Friday night. It appears that unknown numbers of people are unable to pay their rent and make essential transfers as the banks begin a three-day holiday. Many are commenting at @INTERAC on Twitter. “My heart goes out to all the stressed out developers over at @INTERAC. Tech: When it works, no one notices. When it fails, everyone screams.” says one post. “Anyone else bordering on full panic that @Interac etransfers have been down for 2 days? I have significant amt of $$ now lost in the ether,” said another.

1568 Bayview

Ottawa Zapotocky

A confusing series of  responses is being made Friday night to inquiries about what’s happening at L’Avenue, the excellent bistro at 1568 Bayview. Staff there say that Otta Zapotocky, sommelier and guiding principal at the restaurant has left. “He’s moved on to other things. I don’t know where he is,” said a person who said he was now in charge. But, said this staffer, the restaurant has not changed hands. The place continues to be owned by Mr. Zapotocky’s wife. Mystery hangs over the other Zapotacky eatery, Tinto Bar De Tapas, at 1581 Bayview, where there does not appear to be much activity. Zapotocky started L’Avenue in 2012.

There may be enough blame to go around in the sleazy back and forth between Donald Trump and Morning Joe hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski. But Trump seems to have slipped back into the most juvenile vulgarity in attacking the two, a quality many had hoped he was learning to leave behind.

Leaside resident David Bryant is readying a Canada 150 fireworks display for Monday, July 3 at the Leaside High School field beneath the hill that forms a natural grandstand for local families. He has scheduled the start for approximately 9.15 p.m. The show is produced by Bryant and a group of local residents for the benefit of Leaside families and guests. Although the show is free there is obviously a cost to buying the fireworks and in that regard Bryant is asking anyone who feels able to donate $20 by email do so. His address is bryantdavid@live.ca. (Keep in mind that the Interac mail transfer is offline tonight because of difficulties. Best to check at @INTERAC before sending.) Those wishing to donate at the field may do so before the show. Bryant says: “Come early and enjoy the park. Please bring chairs, blankets, food & drink, sparklers, baseball gloves and other fun supplies for the evening. We’ll start lighting up the sky around 9:15pm and finish about 10:15-10:30pm. So, if you’re away for the weekend you have time to get back and join us and finish it in style.”

A physician, Henry Bello, has been identified as the man wo got into Bronx Lebanon Hospital in New York Friday afternoon and shot one person dead as well as wounding six. He is said to have been fired for harrassing an employee. The shooting began at about 2.50 p.m. when the man, a former employee at the hospital, produced a long gun, possibly an M-16, from beneath his white lab coat and began shooting.

If you’re heading downtown this weekend, pass by HTO Park where you will catch a glimpse of the World’s Largest Rubber Duck. The spectacle stands six stories tall and is making its first visit to Canada to join in the Canada 150 celebrations. This weekend the duck will be bathing in Lake Ontario as part of the Redpath Waterfront Festival.

DUCK STATS

Height: 61 feet tall (just over 6 stories)
Width: 79 feet wide
Length: 89 feet long
Weight: 30,000 pounds

A post shared by Kyle Cheropita (@kylecherops) on Jun 30, 2017 at 1:23pm PDT

A post shared by ?Toronto | What I See ?? (@whatiseegta) on Jun 30, 2017 at 3:22pm PDT

More of HTO Park on Instagram

Police have modifieid their assessment of what appeared to be gunfire at the scene of a dispute at the Fraser Mustard Early Learning Centre in Thorncliffe Park Friday. They now say it appears to have been fireworks.

Customers using the popular e-mail cash transfer feature of Interac are finding the service suspended Friday because of a technical failure of some type.  All five of the big chartered banks — Scotiabank, BMO, CIBC, TD and RBC — have had difficulties. From tweets to @INTERAC it seems the service started to act up Thursday night. Some people have come to rely on the service for very time-related transfers like money from family to buy good and to pay rent. Tweets indicate the system remains down as of about 3.30 p.m. Friday. Banks are closed for three days straight starting Saturday.  CBC  Interac

We have temporarily taken the INTERAC e-Transfer service offline to address technical difficulties. https://t.co/iwP62Z1YV3

— INTERAC (@INTERAC) June 30, 2017

The Toronto Police are asking for help to identify a person of interest in an arson investigation. The murky shots provided show a man apparently carrying a flashlight in the area of Queen Street East and Booth Avenue in the middle of the night on June  27.  Two fires were set.  He is described 5’10″-5’11″, in his 30s, thin to medium build, black scruffy beard, wearing a white shirt with a logo, dark jacket with side vents, dark baseball hat with logo, dark pants, and white high-top running shoes.

TPS bulletin

Archive photo

TPS Operations has noted Friday morning a call for police to the corner of Keele and Dundas Streets for a man who was begging. He was using a known technique — standing in front of cars in the street so they can’t drive off.  Recent days have seen news reports expressing concern for the “tickets” given to homeless and generally destitute people who panhandle. The present law was written to stop this practice.

Tronno (for Americans?))

Fire

But not this

Toronto has created a series of emoji-like graphics to be used by those with civic pride. There are 50 of the so-called Torontomojis and ten of them are intended to reflect the indigenous community. The app can be downloaded and used to brighten up messages. These symbols include that flavour-of the-moment name 6IX as well as a blanket reference to the six boroughs that were amalgamated in 1998 to form the present Toronto. The East York symbol is missing. This may not be the final verdict however since the City asks anyone with an idea for further symbols to make a suggestion. See them all here