The South Bayview Bulldog

The average selling price of a resale home in the Toronto area leaped 15.7 per cent in a year to $751,908 according to the Toronto Real Estate Board. Low inventory is given as the reason for the pressure upwards. The board said 12,870 homes were sold in May across the region, that’s an increase of 10.6 per cent increase compared to May 2015. “While the record number of home sales through the first five months of 2016 is not necessarily surprising, it does sometimes mask the larger story in the GTA: the shortage of listings, which has resulted in strong upward pressure on home prices,” said TREB President Mark McLean in a statement. In Vancouver, sales jumped 17.6 per cent last month and the benchmark selling price surged by a breathtaking 29.7 per cent.

United airlines is promoting what it calls Polaris, a cushy new level of service in business class which, it claims, offers up to 6 feet, 6 inches of sleep space. Hard to believe. They spaces are called business class isolation pods. Consumerist 

Some 15,000 cyclists and 5,000 runners are expected to travel the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway Sunday for the Becel Ride for Heart in aid of the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Road closures will take place at 2 a.m.Sunday and run well into the afternoon.  Police are recommending people take public transit to avoid extensive traffic congestion in the area, especially in the downtown core and on arterial roadways. Every dollar raised by pledges is said to go to research. The Foundation’s goal is to raise $7 million this year for heart disease research.

The owners of black lab Drayko are thanking kind area residents who helped in the hunt for their dog. Drayko is safe at home tonight. He escaped his leash Thursday near Cleveland Street and Davisville Ave.

Select

French’s Food Company has struck a deal with Select Food Products Ltd. at 120 Sunrise Ave. in the Bermondsey Rd. and O’Connor Drive area to make French’s ketchup in Canada.  Select Foods is an established maker of condiments and gravies, many of which are sold under the Horne’s brand name. Its plant is close to the East York boundary. Work will begin on the all Canada ketchup — the tomatoes will come from Leamington — next year.  “We are thrilled to be partnering with French’s on this opportunity,” said Select Food Products president Andrew Mitchell in an interview. “We’ve been talking to French’s for a little while. They have come to visit us, too. “We wanted to make sure it’s a right fit because this is a long-term partnership,” Mitchell said. “I like them. I can work with them. Our values align with their values.” The move comes after Canadians rose to French’s defense when Loblaws decided to delete it from the chain’s shelves.

Simon Gadke, the manager at Elegant Garage Sale, has confirmed that the business will close on Bayview Ave at the end of September. The information became public today as the consignment store began to inform people who have goods there so they might make other arrangements. The business continues to be owned by the family of the late Lynn Albert, who started Elegant Garage and was a fixture at the 1588 Bayview store for so many years. Lynn Albert died eleven months ago.

Elegant Garage Sale founder Lynn Albert died in June 2015

Councillor Jon Burnside has written to residents of Bessborough Drive, McRae Drive and Parkhurst Blvd reporting that his survey of households there has not yielded enough support to proceed with lowering the speed limit from 40 km/h to 30 km/h as has been done on streets in the Toronto and East York wards of the City.  Leaside is in the North York area. Burnside said that the process requires at least 25 percent of homeowners to respond with at least 51 percent asking for the change. He does not say in the letter which criteria was unmet. Road safety and particularly concern for children remains high among people. City issued lawn signs reminding drivers to slow down are popular apparently across the city. The issue for some is that the difference between 30 and 40 km/h for responsible drivers does not seem to be a material factor in safe driving. The appearance of children on a street is always a warning to slow and be cautious. The death of Georgia Walsh at the corner of McRae and Millwood Rd was attributed not to speed but carelessness.  Circumstances of Georgia’s death beggar the imagination