the bloordale press, vol 2, issue 6

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Every donation of reus- able clothing or household items, will help support the Ontario Federation for Cerebral Palsy See page 6 for details... the BLOORDALE press Http://www.thebloordalepress.com JULY 2012 VOLUME 2 ISSUE 6 Community News from Ward 18 C.P .R./C.N.R. R A I L W A Y DUPONT STREET DOVERCOURT ROAD LLBO CLASSIC DINNER $46.95 Not Valid with other discounts or specials. No substitutions. Pick up & delivery only. Pad thai regular, Basil Beef Ginger Chicken, Mixed Vegetable Vege Spring Roll (4) Green Mango salad Jasmine Rice (2) reg. $60.01 FOR FOUR CYCLE THE RAILPATH LANDS IN BLOORDALE With the intention to garner support for expansion on the West Toronto Railpath, many cycle organizations teamed up to host “Cycle the Railpath” on June 16. Cycle Toronto, the Davenport West Bike Project and Culture Link Settlement Services were among the groups that gathered at the very west end of Wallace Ave. to kick off the daylong event that featured a number of activi- ties including a community bike ride. “e railpath means a lot to the people in the community, it’s a safe, fun, green way to move around and everybody loves it, but wishes it was a lot longer,” said Gabrielle Langlois, project coordinator of the event. “It’s a way to celebrate [the rail- path] and it’s a way to show op- portunities for connecting with our neighbours.” Originally opened in October of 2009, the railpath, as it sits now, runs from Cariboo Ave. to Dundas St. W., but Langlois said she would like to see the path stretch to downtown. Scott Dobson, Friend of the West Toronto Railpath has been a part of the path’s growth since planning began 12 years ago. He said, by putting on an event such as this, much needed awareness will surface among the commu- nity. “e completion of the south part of the rail path has been the plan right back to 1998 when the idea first percolated,” he said. Dobson said expansion could very well be a reality and a fea- sibility study is now underway to determine the different ways and different routes the extension could take. “Now that stage one rail path is in, people can see how it has impacted the community in a favourable way, they can see the success – no one is against it,” he said. Showing his support, federal MP Andrew Cash was in atten- dance for the event with his bike at his side. He said expanding the railpath is something the public needs to advocate for. “I’ve been a cyclist since I’ve been a teenager, it’s the best way to get around,” said Cash. “I think [the West Toronto Railpath] is a fantastic park and I’d like to see it connect right down to the water at some point and I know that’s been the plan and we need to continue to push for that” For more information about the railpath and its plans for ex- pansion, visit http://www.rail- path.wordpress.com/ see RAILPATH ACCESS page 2 I N S I D E COOKING FIRE THEATRE FEST HITS DUFFERIN PARK Live theatre and oven backed food strikes for eighth time Page 3 ROOFTOP GARDEN REOPENS AT BROCK PUBLIC SCHOOL FoodShare lends a helping hand in a rooſtop faceliſt Page 9 ANTOS FASHION IS OPEN FOR BUSSINESS An established fashion shop moves to the Bloordale strip Page 7 Several community groups gather for a common cause NEW RAILPATH ACCESS POINT PUT IN PLACE A new link to the railpath is now free to ride on BY JUSTIN MILLERSON [email protected] In conjunction with ‘Cycle the Railpath’, Castlepoint Realty Part- ners held a community barbeque on June 16 to celebrate the official ribbon cutting of a new access point to the West Toronto Railpath. e access point is now freshly paved within a large land develop- ment and sits between the railpath and where Perth Ave. and Sterling Rd. meet. In that area, Castlepoint Realty Partners are in the midst of constructing a mixed-use develop- ment for the area and representa- tives said this new link was an es- sential part of the process. “We did whatever it took to get this open early, we didn’t have to wait for the development to start,” said Alfredo Romano, President of the development company. Today the access point is sur- rounded by the sight of stripped land, ripe and ready for construc- tion, but Romano said eventually a substantially sized park will be put To kick off the day long event, a community bike ride took place on the West Toronto Railpath. Photo by Justin Millerson BY JUSTIN MILLERSON [email protected]

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The thirteenth installment of the Bloordale Press Newspaper

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

Every donation of reus-able clothing or household items, will help support the Ontario Federation for

Cerebral Palsy

See page 6 for details...

theBLOORDALEpressHttp://www.thebloordalepress.comJULY 2012 VOLUME 2 ISSUE 6

Community News from Ward 18

C.P.R./C.N.R. RAILWAY

DUPONT STREET

DOVERCOURT ROAD

LLBO

CLASSIC DINNER

$46.95Not Valid with other discounts or specials.No substitutions. Pick up & delivery only.

Pad thai regular, Basil BeefGinger Chicken, Mixed Vegetable

Vege Spring Roll (4)Green Mango salad

Jasmine Rice (2)

reg. $60.01

FOR FOUR

CYCLE THE RAILPATH LANDS IN BLOORDALE

With the intention to garner support for expansion on the West Toronto Railpath, many cycle organizations teamed up to host “Cycle the Railpath” on June 16.

Cycle Toronto, the Davenport West Bike Project and Culture Link Settlement Services were among the groups that gathered at the very west end of Wallace Ave. to kick off the daylong event that featured a number of activi-ties including a community bike ride.

“The railpath means a lot to the people in the community, it’s a safe, fun, green way to move around and everybody loves it, but wishes it was a lot longer,” said Gabrielle Langlois, project coordinator of the event.

“It’s a way to celebrate [the rail-path] and it’s a way to show op-portunities for connecting with our neighbours.”

Originally opened in October of 2009, the railpath, as it sits now, runs from Cariboo Ave. to Dundas St. W., but Langlois said she would like to see the path

stretch to downtown.Scott Dobson, Friend of the

West Toronto Railpath has been a part of the path’s growth since planning began 12 years ago. He said, by putting on an event such as this, much needed awareness will surface among the commu-nity.

“The completion of the south part of the rail path has been the plan right back to 1998 when the idea first percolated,” he said.

Dobson said expansion could very well be a reality and a fea-

sibility study is now underway to determine the different ways and different routes the extension could take.

“Now that stage one rail path is in, people can see how it has impacted the community in a favourable way, they can see the success – no one is against it,” he said.

Showing his support, federal MP Andrew Cash was in atten-dance for the event with his bike at his side. He said expanding the railpath is something the public

needs to advocate for.“I’ve been a cyclist since I’ve

been a teenager, it’s the best way to get around,” said Cash.

“I think [the West Toronto Railpath] is a fantastic park and I’d like to see it connect right down to the water at some point and I know that’s been the plan and we need to continue to push for that”

For more information about the railpath and its plans for ex-pansion, visit http://www.rail-path.wordpress.com/

see RAILPATH ACCESS page 2

I N S I D ECOOKING FIRE THEATRE

FEST HITS DUFFERIN PARK Live theatre and oven backed

food strikes for eighth timePage 3

ROOFTOP GARDEN REOPENS AT BROCK PUBLIC SCHOOL

FoodShare lends a helping hand in a rooftop facelift

Page 9

ANTOS FASHION IS OPEN FOR BUSSINESS

An established fashion shop moves to the Bloordale strip

Page 7

Several community groups gather for a common cause

NEW RAILPATH ACCESS POINT PUT IN PLACE

A new link to the railpath is now free to ride on

BY JUSTIN [email protected]

In conjunction with ‘Cycle the Railpath’, Castlepoint Realty Part-ners held a community barbeque on June 16 to celebrate the official ribbon cutting of a new access point to the West Toronto Railpath.

The access point is now freshly paved within a large land develop-ment and sits between the railpath and where Perth Ave. and Sterling Rd. meet. In that area, Castlepoint Realty Partners are in the midst of constructing a mixed-use develop-ment for the area and representa-tives said this new link was an es-sential part of the process.

“We did whatever it took to get this open early, we didn’t have to wait for the development to start,” said Alfredo Romano, President of the development company.

Today the access point is sur-rounded by the sight of stripped land, ripe and ready for construc-tion, but Romano said eventually a substantially sized park will be put

To kick off the day long event, a community bike ride took place on the West Toronto Railpath. Photo by Justin Millerson

BY JUSTIN [email protected]

Page 2: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

02

News

The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

BY MELISSA [email protected]

It was a perfect afternoon for a barbeque. Hundreds of

smiling faces filled the Perth Square Park over the course of the afternoon at the annual Ward 18 Community BBQ on Saturday, June 23. In addition

to the barbeque, live music, face painting and a large raffle were among the activities tak-ing place in support of a great cause.

Each year, the monies raised at the barbeque goes towards a different local initiative.

“It was my pleasure and honour to present local par-

ents and teachers with approximately $55,000 worth of funds, raised as a result of the Ward 18 Community BBQ”, Councillor Ana Bailão posted following the event.

With the addition of funds contributed by the Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Team Up Foundation and mon-ies secured by Council-lor Bailao’s office, over $200,000 has been raised in support of the Perth Public School’s ‘Field of Dreams’ project. Up-grades to the school yard will include a new sports field along with a new running track.

For more informa-tion about Perth Pub-lic School’s “Field of Dreams” campaign, take a look at the following:

- Ward 18 Newsletter, Spring 2012 (page 5): http://bit.ly/JwWaUb

- MLSE Team Up Founda-tion: http://bit.ly/wNHfLh

- InsideToronto News Blog: http://bit.ly/GXCLjM

COUNCILLOR HOSTS BBQ TO RAISE FUNDS FOR LOCAL SCHOOLYARD

...in place. He expressed his ex-citement for the project and sent a big thanks to the enthusiastic com-munity members he and his team have worked with.

“In the 25 years I’ve been in the [development] business, I’ve been bitten by this community…the en-thusiasm and the open mindness this community has is unparallel to anywhere,” said Romano.

Once the ribbon cutting took place, it was councillor Ana Bailão holding the scissors. Being an avid supporter of the entire develop-

ment project, she said it was en-couraging to see the start of what she believes will be a great devel-opment for the neighbourhood.

“I want to thank Castlepoint, they are in the process of reener-gizing this whole area,” said Bailao.

“One of the things [Castlepoint] thought was important was even though they have a lot of work to do, if they could start giving something and being part of this community they would want to do that, that’s how this idea [of open-ing the new railpath link] came about.”

RAILPATH ACCESS from page 1

RICE & CHICKEN MEAL

$3.99A few railpath dwellers get their footing on the new access link. Photo by Justin Millerson

In an effort to help beautify the Perth Public School playground, Ana Bailão’s office raised big dollars in Ward 18’s annual community barbeque

Close to one-hundred community members attended the barbeque at Perth Square Park to enjoy some grilled goods and live entertainment. Photo by Melissa Millerson

Page 3: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

For the eighth year in a row, a community of people were brought together to celebrate food, theatre and the outdoors in Dufferin Grove Park. Cooking Fire Theatre Festival had another successful run from June 20-24, despite being rained out one night. People showed up for the quality dinner and theatre they have come to expect from the now-experienced festival direc-tors.

Kate Cayley was one of the co-founders of the festival eight years ago. From the way she speaks about the evolution of the show, it’s clear it’s hard for her to believe it’s been eight years already. The park has seen numerous plays, puppet shows and other acts but also a coming together of a com-munity.

“This is a park with a very strong history of community in-volvement,” Cayley, now co-artis-tic director for the festival, said. “It also has the bake ovens and we wanted to incorporate that... Food is really integral to Dufferin Grove Park and what goes on here.”

The festival was started as a re-sponse to the way Cayley along with a few other key people felt about the park. Cayley as well as Kiersten Tough, the host of this year’s festival and an actor at pre-vious ones, have both spent a lot of time working at the park. Cayley put on her first self-produced play 15 years ago in Dufferin Grove Park, and her love for theatre has kept her moving ever since.

The structure of the festival is unique in that a dinner is served at 6 p.m. near the bake ovens that are so much a part of the park. During summer months, every Friday night sees a community dinner in the same area. After din-ner during the festival, the host (Tough this year) leads everyone to performance spaces, where plays are put on. At 8 p.m., des-sert is served and then is followed by more performances. It’s meant to be an evening out – wholesome and entertaining all round.

While satisfying for communi-ty members coming to watch, it’s also exciting and challenging for performers in the space. Tough said there’s a particular challenge

that comes with performing out-doors.

“If the audience comes and they stay, they’re staying because they like what they’re seeing and not because they paid for a tick-et and have to stay to be polite,” Tough said. “For the most part, if someone gets bored of your show and you’re not in some way engaging them, then they’ll walk away, so it is a pretty quick way to know whether you’re catching people or not.”

Tough’s job this year was to walk around on stilts and intro-duce each play. She was excited about the level of talent displayed in this year’s six shows – the most the festival has ever seen in one

year. Acts ranged from puppet shows to clown pieces to an ex-cerpt from an award-winning play, performed by companies from Montreal, London and Strasbourg, France.

“The purpose of the festival is to present the work of smaller artist-run companies that are of-ten doing devised work or collec-tive work which means work that doesn’t necessarily have a play-wright director,” Cayley said. “We really want the work to be focused on companies that are trying to create in a more organic way that’s focused on collaboration.”

Cayley said previous years have seen up to 300 people on a Friday night enjoying the festival. Final

numbers haven’t been tallied for this year, but Cayley said regard-less of how many people show up, it’s an interesting experience see-ing people interact with public spaces around them.

“[We see] lots of dogs and chil-dren, the occasional drunk, some-one who’s just confused because you don’t think that you will come upon a play in your public space, so there are so many different re-actions to it and that is fascinating to watch,” she said.

Future plans for the festival include having a wider variety of performances including puppet shows, operas, stilts, etc. So far, response to the festival has been all positive.

03

News

The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

DUFFERIN PARK HOLDS EIGHTH ANNUAL COOKING FIRE THEATRE FEST

A scene from one of the six shows preformed at Dufferin Park between June 20 to June 24. Photo by Amber Daugherty

Despite one day being rained out, the festival that combines live entertainment and fire cooked grub was a success at Dufferin Grove Park

BY AMBER [email protected]

BY JUSTIN [email protected]

In the meeting held at Kent Senior Public School on June 18, Toronto District School Board superintendent, Curtis Ennis confirmed that a proposal has been put in place to change neighbouring grade seven and eight attendance areas for the start of the 2013 school year.

It was fitting that the meeting took place at Kent Senior Public School – Ward 9 trustee, Maria Rodrigues said this proposal was prompted by the school’s closure which was made offi-cial on June 30. Now that Kent, a facility that held intermediate aged students, will no longer op-erate, Rodrigues explained the purpose of the proposal was to create a more efficient bridge for students heading into secondary

school.“The community is changing,

so we are trying to use our fa-cilities the best that we can,” said Rodrigues of the proposal.

Providing these changes are passed by the TDSB, the propos-al shows Perth Jr. Public School graduates will be suggested to at-tend Brock Public School, which just this year added grade seven classes and will be poised to add

grade eight in September.The current pathway has Perth

Jr. PS students set up to attend Carleton Village Public School, but Rodrigues believes keeping the students close to the current and future Bloor Collegiate In-stitute is best for the community and its children.

Pauline Jr. Public School grad-uates will now be able to finish their elementary years nearby at Dovercourt Public School which starting next year will have grade seven and eight classes available as well.

To accommodate more stu-

dents, Rodrigues was excited to reveal both Brock and Dover-court public schools have made and are making substantial up-grades for its new and existing students. Some of those upgrades include new outdoor classrooms and bigger gym facilities.

For more information about the proposed changes, a map is provided at the following ad-dress: http://www.tdsb.on.ca/s c h o o l s / a r e a _ r e v i e w _ c o m -mittee/images/Brock%20Car-leton%20King%20Edwards%20Sr%20Boundaries%20Maprev.pdf

LOCAL GRADE 7 AND 8 ATTENDANCE AREAS COULD SEE CHANGE BY FALL 2013

Page 4: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

The Metrolinx Electric Train Update (“Not Anytime Soon”) was a well attended meeting last night with residents, interest groups and local politicians from all levels in attendance. While ev-eryone was given an opportunity to speak, there were no decision makers or government repre-sentatives in attendance. Well

paid consultants answered ques-tions while PR flacks made notes that will be added to a large file marked “IGNORE.”

Metrolinx representatives re-peated that diesel trains are scheduled to begin on the Air-port Rail Link beginning in Feb-ruary, 2015. All the approvals are in place and construction is well underway.

Sound mitigation walls five me-tres tall will be installed along the

entire corridor before service be-gins. (by comparison, the Berlin Wall was 3.6 metres.) The West Toronto Railpath will see the ex-isting fence with ivy and Virginia creeper growing on it, replaced with a massive, solid block wall running its entire length (like you see along the 401 now).

The current Metrolinx Electri-fication Study will finish just a few months before diesel trains start running to the airport. Of-

ficials made it clear that there are no technical issues preventing the construction of an electric train airport link except the po-litical will (construction would take three years to complete). But it is clear the government has no interest in listening, they have all of us going to meetings with all the other electric train advocates talking to people with no power to make decisions while con-struction ploughs on.

Diesel trains are here to stay un-less something big happens real soon. Metrolinx officials made it clear last night they are prepared to study and discuss electric trains for another two years, but they have no mandate or funding to design, build or operate elec-tric trains. They have a mandate to talk the clock out and when the talking stops, we’ll have a much bigger diesel train network run-ning through West Toronto.

04

Editorial

The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

After the most recent update from Metrolinx, Junction Triangle Rail Committee member, Kevin Putnam says it appears diesel trains - like the one seen above - are here to stay, at least for now. Photo courtesy Creative Commons

ELECTRIC TRAINS AN AFTERTHOUGH AMONG METROLINX OFFICIALS

BY KEVIN PUTMANJuction Triangle Rail Committee

Page 5: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

MPP JONAH SCHEIN416-535-3158

I’m so grateful to have this local forum in Bloor-dale Press to connect directly with our community. In the aftermath of the provincial budget showdown at Queen’s Park, with so much mud-slinging and misinformation, I think it’s important to set the re-cord straight.

The recent provincial budget was deeply flawed, but Andrea Horwath and our NDP caucus kept our word. We allowed the budget to pass and prevented a snap election in Ontario, and we worked hard to make the budget it fairer and more representative of the wishes of everyday people.

The budget bill (Bill 55) was a massive document. It was over 300 pages long and made changes to 69 different Acts. The Liberals wanted to use this omni-bus bill to force an overhaul of our province’s legisla-tion all in one go, without proper debate or public

involvement. It was exactly the same stunt that the Harper Conservatives pulled in the recent federal budget, however, with a minority government at Queen’s Park, the NDP was able to make significant changes to the provincial budget bill.

As the NDP’s Environment Critic, I had serious concerns about the proposed changes that the Lib-erals buried in their budget bill. Left unchanged, Bill 55 would have had devastating impacts on our environment. It proposed deregulating many en-vironmental protections including forest manage-ment plans that protect our forests from unsustain-able logging; it removed protections for endangered species; and it delegated responsibility for our land and water to private entities.

These proposed changes directly contravened existing provincial legislation. Under the Environ-mental Bill of Rights, (that the NDP government passed in 1993), any changes to environmental laws must be made known to the public. People must be notified and given the opportunity to provide their feedback. The McGuinty Government tried to use their omnibus legislation to avoid this important element of public scrutiny.

We pushed back hard at committee and won. Our work to amend the budget protected forest management plans, endangered species and over-sight for our land and water.

In return, members of the Liberal Government tried to smear Ontario NDP leader, Andrea Hor-wath, and undermine her reputation. They said she didn’t keep her word. This was far from the truth - our caucus committed to pass the budget and avoid an unnecessary election, but we reserved the right to make the budget fairer. And that is what we did.

Our work at committee means that the govern-ment will have to reintroduce these changes in the legislature next fall, with full public scrutiny. The fight isn’t over, but we will be ready to have this debate with the full oversight of Ontarians. In the meantime, it’s great to spend the summer in our community! We have a number of events coming up, and I look forward to seeing you there. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with my office to find out more.

COUNCILLOR ANA BAILÃO 416-392-7012

Following in the footsteps of other major cities including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Mexico City, To-ronto has prohibited retail stores from providing their customers with single-use plastic shopping bags as of January 1st, 2013.

This decision was made in Council with heavy debate and incorporated advice from the City Solicitor and the

City’s Waste Management Staff. I also want to be clear that other types of plastic bags (garbage, Ziploc, etc.) will still be available for purchase in the City of Toronto for those who wish to use them, only plastic shopping bags, issued by retailers at check out, will no longer be available.

This is not a decision I made lightly or for political reasons. I truly believe that reducing our consumption of waste plastic bags is a positive step for-ward to improve the environmental, public and landfill health of Toronto. Plastic bags cannot easily degrade, and recycling them costs energy and money – as well as releasing harmful carbon emissions. Every year, 250 Mil-lion single-use plastic bags, commonly distributed by most retailers, make their way into landfills from Toronto alone. These bags also present a signifi-cant problem to City of Toronto infra-structure; they clog drains and cause

sewer backups, get caught in trees and fences, pollute our waterways and get eaten by animals. These represent only a few of the ways that plastic waste costs our City. In addition to reducing these “hidden” costs, the City will also recognize an economic benefit from having less landfill waste.

This motion created the oppor-tunity to send a clear message that Toronto takes waste seriously, that we recognize the financial and environ-mental cost of our garbage and that shipping our garbage outside the City does not absolve us of our respon-sibility to be good stewards. While I absolutely would have preferred more consultation – and supported motions for more study and more time for this decision to be discussed with residents and retailers – the January 2013 dead-line was the form the motion took and a majority of Councillors supported this move.

I also recognize that plastic bags are only one of many different types of waste, and I see this as only one as-pect of a larger strategy to improve our waste diversion targets. Council has a set goal of 70% of waste being diverted from landfill. Currently, we remain at 50%, due largely to a lack of Greenbin presence in high-rise apartment build-ings, and I will continue to advocate that further steps are taken to meet this important target.

I recognize that reduced availability of plastic bags may cause short term inconvenience. While this is a small price to pay for the positive environ-mental impact and waste reduction benefits, I am committed to exploring solutions with you and accommodat-ing outstanding concerns. I am abso-lutely confident that, with time and effort, we will be able to adapt to this new initiative.

The City will now begin to consult

with businesses and the public on how this program can best be implemented. I continue to be an outspoken advocate for our local businesses and Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) and will actively reinforce the dialogue neces-sary for success. Working together, we can continue to see the increased, growth, strength and prosperity of Ward 18 businesses while creating a cleaner and more sustainable destina-tion for residents and visitors alike.

In the time leading up to January 1, 2013, and afterwards, as your local Councillor I am always interested in hearing ways to make these positive waste reduction targets easier on you. These targets can only be met as a City, and a City is made up of individ-ual commitments from its residents. Therefore, I appreciate your assistance as we work together towards a cleaner, more efficient and more sustainable City of Toronto.

MP ANDREW CASH 416-654-8048

Amidst the Canada Day Celebrations on the week end there could be heard a feint downbeat sound. That’s because on July 1 the Harper Conservatives ended a program that extends health care cover-age to some of the most vulnerable in our country--refugee claimants. Like most Canadians, I’ve always believed that Canada stood for campassion, for an openness of spirit, for generousity and a concern for the welfare of all--especially the most vulnerable. What Canada stands for, what values we fight to preserve and and how we set those terms are all under the micorscope as we celeberate our 145th birthday and look back on Stephen Harp-er’s first year of majority government.

The end of this program means that many refugee claimants in Canada will be denied basic health care services. Here’s how it works: most refugees arrive

in Canada with barely the shirt on their back. As they wait for their status to be adjudicated the Interim Federal Health Program covers their health care costs, afterwhich, if their claim is successful, they can make the necessary application for OHIP. This is the program that is being cut--including for children.

It doesn’t make much sense. The Harper Conservatives have said that these cuts are necessary to save money and make the health care system more equitable. They make the outrageous claim that refugees receive better healthcare than Cana-dian citizens. This is absolutely false, and in fact, these changes will end up costing taxpayers more money by leaving serious health problems that could be simply and cheaply

solved if treated early untreated. What’s cheaper: simple asthma medication for a child, or a multiple trips to the emergency ward after asthma attacks?

Recently on Parliament Hill we heard from two former refugees who, had they not had access to this program when they first arrived here in Canada, quite likely would not be here today. One of them is now a doctor, the other is a recent uni-versity graduate and about to begin a masters in International law. They, doc-tors, nurses and other frontline health care practitioners as well as the NDP are part of a growing voice of Canadians who cannot believe that the Harper gov-ernment would play such wedge politics with people’s lives. We are all calling on the government to reverse this egregious policy. If you want to add your voice I en-courage you to participate in the 59 Cent Campaign--search it on YouTube. What is the reference to 59 cents? That’s how this program costs each Canadian.

05

Letters from your political representatives

The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

BY JONAH SCHEINDAVENPORT’S MPP416-535-3158

It won’t be easy, but I’m determined to change politics in Davenport.

After working on three election campaigns in Davenport in less than two years, and listening to thousands of residents, I’ve heard repeatedly that people have lost faith in politicians and the political process. I understand why.

The political process often seems unclear and doesn’t seem to make sense, and many times it is unclear and doesn’t make sense. Too many people hear promises that never come true. They hear politicians talking but not listening. They feel like they are paying more to get by and get-ting less service and support in return.

It’s easy to become discouraged, but we cannot

afford to give up on government. Without an ef-fort to renew and repair our democratic process, we stand no chance to meet the challenges that face us. We need government to work for us, to help us steward our environment, to educate our young people, to create good jobs and to care for the sick and vulnerable people in our com-munity.

We are constantly told that government is “inefficient” and ineffective, yet recent and pro-posed cuts to programs and services make our government less effective and less efficient.

We need to reverse this from the ground up. For us that has to start right here in Davenport.

Earlier this year, I opened my community of-fice to better serve our riding. My fantastic and dedicated staff is working to serve you in our new office on St. Clair Ave. W. I’ve worked hard to create a team that is passionate and skilled and build an office that is accessible and welcoming.

In addition to providing information, advo-cacy, and assistance to constituents who need help accessing programs, our office will also be a meeting place for our community to discuss provincial issues that matter to Davenport, for educationals, coffeehouses, and to provide ser-vices like tax clinics for low income community members.

We often feel like government is working against us and not for us. If we’re going to turn this around, we need you be part of a new poli-tics in Davenport. My office wants to hear from you. We want to be in conversation with you. We want to work with you to make this province work better for all of us.

We’re on your side and we’re here to help. Please drop by our office at 1674 St. Clair Ave. W. and see a great exhibit of local artists. You can contact our community office by email at [email protected], by phone at 416-535-3158. To stay connected online, email and ask to join our mailing list.

BY ANDREW CASHDAVENPORT’S MP416-654-8048

Well it has been a wild ride in Ottawa these days. The Conservative government of Stephen Harper has been intent not only on ramming laws through Parliament without sufficient debate or oversight, but of using outrageous rhetoric to divide Ca-nadians and silence debate. For folks in To-ronto this is particularly disturbing since so much of what Harper is doing is toxic here. For example the vote to axe the long gun registry and destroy all the records will weaken gun control in big cities like Toron-to. Their proposed Lawful Access legisla-tion will permit law enforcement agencies to access your private online information without a warrant from a judge. That’s bad!

I held a townhall discussion of this bill in Davenport and knocked on doors in several neighbourhoods to discuss it. Overwhelmingly you had serious concerns. Well so does both the Ontario and the Federal Privacy Commissioners. But what does Vic Toews, our Public Safety Minister say a couple weeks ago? If you don’t stand with the government on this bill then you stand with child por-nographers! Ya, he really said that.

Which leads us to the topic of government’s crime bill C-10. Bil-lions for super jails and nothing to address the roots of most crime—mental illness, drug addiction and poverty. But it will divert precious financial resources away from what we DO need—comprehensive and affordable childcare, more recreation centres and programs for our youth, better public transit and much, much

more affordable housing.The Conservatives have run out of plans,

and the ones they have don’t work for Toronto. It is one of many reasons why I was proud, as one of the NDP Official Opposition’s housing critics, to introduce a National Housing Strategy recently. Affordable housing is one of the biggest issues facing people in Toronto and Ca-nadians right across the country. Over the next several months we’ll be pressuring the government to adopt this plan. And boy do they need one. Recently I asked the Human Resources Minister Diane Findlay about the lack of affordable rental accom-modations in Toronto. She said it wasn’t a problem since interest rates were so low people were simply buying houses. What?! Ya, she really said that too.

BY ANA BAILÃOWARD 18 COUNCILLOR416-392-7012

Dear Neighbours, After transit, I strongly believe the

biggest issue facing Torontonians is affordable housing. The need for safe, well-kept affordable housing is a criti-cal aspect of a caring and cohesive society, and provides dignity to the many low-income Torontonians that contribute readily to our social and economic health.

Toronto’s biggest landlord for af-fordable housing is also Canada’s, with the Toronto Community Hous-ing Corporation providing accom-modation for 154,000 tenants. Since amalgamation, the TCHC has strug-gled significantly under the responsi-bility of caring for the aging housing stock that was downloaded from the Province. Since then, the organiza-tion has been unable to keep up with the growing repair backlog, which is

currently estimated at over $750 million. This backlog, in combination with the corporation’s debt of over $2 billion, is a significant threat to the continued service delivery of affordable housing in Toronto

For this reason, a proposal was brought for-ward that would sell nearly 700 stand-alone units of housing scattered across the City. This would result in over $250 million to be injected directly into repairs to existing TCHC units.

While I recognize that the TCHC faces a growing backlog, the sale of these buildings will not help our City address the over 80,000 households currently on the waiting list for affordable housing; nor does it address the shortage of family housing units - the large proportion of the stand-alone units. Addition-ally, for truly prosperous neighbourhoods, we must value and maintain a mix of incomes and housing types in our communities.

Recently, I was pleased to receive support of the Executive Committee to delay the proposed sell-off until after a Special Working Group is created and able to report back on innovative ways of improving the shape of our TCHC housing. This Working Group will reach out to the non-profit, private and public sectors to

better manage our housing assets in a compas-sionate and more financially sustainable way.

Only with an understanding of the broader housing landscape can we maintain and reaf-firm Toronto’s stake in providing affordable housing by keeping this invaluable social asset viable and effective. As both a Councillor and Chair of the Affordable Housing Committee, I will continue to meet with tenant groups and ownership assistance organizations to have a stronger vision for Toronto’s affordable hous-ing future.

It is also critical that the Province and Federal government share in this commitment and rec-ognize their responsibility to the many thou-sands of Canadians who need housing support by investing in this issue through long-term, sustainable funding of affordable housing.

Toronto’s current housing situation is too critical to wait for solutions; we must begin the work to create them, and we must begin today. We must move forward with a vision that treats people respectfully and provides for the future needs of our City. This will continue to be my priority as these important discussions, and the work of the Special Working Committee, take place.

05The Bloordale Press MARCH 2012

Letters from your Representatives

BY JONAH SCHEIN Greetings Davenport! This is my

first article submission for the Bloor-dale Press. I’m really grateful to the editors for offering me this space to connect with you readers each month.

In many ways the Bloordale Press does more than tell the news in our neighbourhood – it’s part of the good news in our neighbourhood.

Bloordale Press is an example of a growing spirit of community engage-ment our riding.

I feel so lucky to represent this rid-ing where many people are making huge contributions to our neigh-bourhoods. Whether that’s the good folks at Bloordale Press, young people at City View Alternative School, organizers at Dufferin Grove Park, activists with The Clean Trains Coalition, or my old colleagues at The Stop Community Food Centre; people in Davenport are passionate about making our community a bet-ter place to live.

I know that the NDP reflects the values of Davenport. We all know what it means to work hard to pay the bills each month, and we are deeply

committed to the environment and social justice. As residents we all contribute a lot to our community but we also know that government has to do its part too. We need government to help people when they are vulnerable, to steward our environment, and to make life more affordable. We need government to invest in public transit and childcare, and to support senior citizens. And we know we can’t continue on the same old path. In tough economic times, we need our governments to stop giving billions of dollars away to corporations and start investing in our communities. This is the mes-sage that the NDP and I have been bringing to the legislature this fall.

I’m deeply honoured to have earned your support and I’ll work everyday to serve our riding and bring your voices to Queens Park.

I look forward to hearing from you and working together to make this a better riding and province to live in.

I am currently in the process of setting up my office at 1674 St. Clair West, and am available at 416-535-3158 or [email protected] At Queen’s Park I can be reached at 416-325-0014 or [email protected]

BY ANA BAILÃO Dear Neighbours,

With cooling weather, rosy cheeks, and arriving home from work in the dark, the signs of the season are upon us. Yet, despite these weather grievances, Ward 18 is alive with activity and colour.

Whether it is the beautifully wrapped packages in the arms of residents walking out of Queen Street shops, the beautiful lighting along Dundas Street, or the shouts and sounds of skates on ice at our many outdoor rinks - the holidays are here.

The holidays are also a busy time to move around our neighbour-hood. While good public transit is vital for a well planned City, the increased ridership during the winter months - when many driv-ers and cyclists find refuge from the salt and snow - is an important time to reflect on our current tran-sit priorities.

As a candidate, I campaigned on the principles of fast, efficient and affordable public transportation. With those principles in mind, any transit decisions that I support will

have the interests of Davenport residents at its heart while never neglecting the need for a global transportation vision for the City of Toronto.

In order to pay for improved transit infrastructure, and meet spending reduction targets, the TTC has proposed route changes across the City.In Ward 18, the 506 Carleton, 29 Dufferin, 505 Dundas, 26 Dupont are among the routes experiencing reduction in service. In each case these reduc-tions mean riders will have to wait longer (in most cases less than 50 seconds) between vehicles. I am pleased, however, that we will ac-tually see service increases to the 501 Queen, 168 Symington and 40 Junction routes.

These service cuts raise serious concerns about how transit will effectively serve Ward 18 residents. It is critical that affordable and ac-cessible transit be the focus of any transit changes in our Ward and we must look at a variety of methods of accomplishing this goal without compromising transit routes.

I support the notion that we must demand our fair share of transit funding from other levels

of government, and also strongly believe that we must seek to do more with the resources at hand by addressing efficiency concerns like overcrowding and vehicle bunch-ing.

For example, I have requested that City staff investigate solutions to the bunching of buses along the 29 Dufferin route and the TTC is now closely examining this matter. The Queen Street car is a further high-ridership route that suffers from bunching. Especially with the increased population that is predicted with upcoming develop-ment opportunities along Queen Street, it is necessary that we take a proactive approach now in order to guarantee the infrastructure to support the future.

Regardless of the season, I will continue to advocate for afford-able, accessible and sustainable transit for our neighbourhood and would like to wish all the residents of Ward 18 a safe and happy holi-day.

Best wishes to you and your loved ones and I look forward to seeing many of you over the holi-days.

05The Bloordale Press DECEMBER 2011

The Councillor’s Corner

The MPP’s Corner

BY JONAH SCHEINDAVENPORT’S MPP416-535-3158

It won’t be easy, but I’m determined to change politics in Davenport.

After working on three election campaigns in Davenport in less than two years, and listening to thousands of residents, I’ve heard repeatedly that people have lost faith in politicians and the political process. I understand why.

The political process often seems unclear and doesn’t seem to make sense, and many times it is unclear and doesn’t make sense. Too many people hear promises that never come true. They hear politicians talking but not listening. They feel like they are paying more to get by and get-ting less service and support in return.

It’s easy to become discouraged, but we cannot

afford to give up on government. Without an ef-fort to renew and repair our democratic process, we stand no chance to meet the challenges that face us. We need government to work for us, to help us steward our environment, to educate our young people, to create good jobs and to care for the sick and vulnerable people in our com-munity.

We are constantly told that government is “inefficient” and ineffective, yet recent and pro-posed cuts to programs and services make our government less effective and less efficient.

We need to reverse this from the ground up. For us that has to start right here in Davenport.

Earlier this year, I opened my community of-fice to better serve our riding. My fantastic and dedicated staff is working to serve you in our new office on St. Clair Ave. W. I’ve worked hard to create a team that is passionate and skilled and build an office that is accessible and welcoming.

In addition to providing information, advo-cacy, and assistance to constituents who need help accessing programs, our office will also be a meeting place for our community to discuss provincial issues that matter to Davenport, for educationals, coffeehouses, and to provide ser-vices like tax clinics for low income community members.

We often feel like government is working against us and not for us. If we’re going to turn this around, we need you be part of a new poli-tics in Davenport. My office wants to hear from you. We want to be in conversation with you. We want to work with you to make this province work better for all of us.

We’re on your side and we’re here to help. Please drop by our office at 1674 St. Clair Ave. W. and see a great exhibit of local artists. You can contact our community office by email at [email protected], by phone at 416-535-3158. To stay connected online, email and ask to join our mailing list.

BY ANDREW CASHDAVENPORT’S MP416-654-8048

Well it has been a wild ride in Ottawa these days. The Conservative government of Stephen Harper has been intent not only on ramming laws through Parliament without sufficient debate or oversight, but of using outrageous rhetoric to divide Ca-nadians and silence debate. For folks in To-ronto this is particularly disturbing since so much of what Harper is doing is toxic here. For example the vote to axe the long gun registry and destroy all the records will weaken gun control in big cities like Toron-to. Their proposed Lawful Access legisla-tion will permit law enforcement agencies to access your private online information without a warrant from a judge. That’s bad!

I held a townhall discussion of this bill in Davenport and knocked on doors in several neighbourhoods to discuss it. Overwhelmingly you had serious concerns. Well so does both the Ontario and the Federal Privacy Commissioners. But what does Vic Toews, our Public Safety Minister say a couple weeks ago? If you don’t stand with the government on this bill then you stand with child por-nographers! Ya, he really said that.

Which leads us to the topic of government’s crime bill C-10. Bil-lions for super jails and nothing to address the roots of most crime—mental illness, drug addiction and poverty. But it will divert precious financial resources away from what we DO need—comprehensive and affordable childcare, more recreation centres and programs for our youth, better public transit and much, much

more affordable housing.The Conservatives have run out of plans,

and the ones they have don’t work for Toronto. It is one of many reasons why I was proud, as one of the NDP Official Opposition’s housing critics, to introduce a National Housing Strategy recently. Affordable housing is one of the biggest issues facing people in Toronto and Ca-nadians right across the country. Over the next several months we’ll be pressuring the government to adopt this plan. And boy do they need one. Recently I asked the Human Resources Minister Diane Findlay about the lack of affordable rental accom-modations in Toronto. She said it wasn’t a problem since interest rates were so low people were simply buying houses. What?! Ya, she really said that too.

BY ANA BAILÃOWARD 18 COUNCILLOR416-392-7012

Dear Neighbours, After transit, I strongly believe the

biggest issue facing Torontonians is affordable housing. The need for safe, well-kept affordable housing is a criti-cal aspect of a caring and cohesive society, and provides dignity to the many low-income Torontonians that contribute readily to our social and economic health.

Toronto’s biggest landlord for af-fordable housing is also Canada’s, with the Toronto Community Hous-ing Corporation providing accom-modation for 154,000 tenants. Since amalgamation, the TCHC has strug-gled significantly under the responsi-bility of caring for the aging housing stock that was downloaded from the Province. Since then, the organiza-tion has been unable to keep up with the growing repair backlog, which is

currently estimated at over $750 million. This backlog, in combination with the corporation’s debt of over $2 billion, is a significant threat to the continued service delivery of affordable housing in Toronto

For this reason, a proposal was brought for-ward that would sell nearly 700 stand-alone units of housing scattered across the City. This would result in over $250 million to be injected directly into repairs to existing TCHC units.

While I recognize that the TCHC faces a growing backlog, the sale of these buildings will not help our City address the over 80,000 households currently on the waiting list for affordable housing; nor does it address the shortage of family housing units - the large proportion of the stand-alone units. Addition-ally, for truly prosperous neighbourhoods, we must value and maintain a mix of incomes and housing types in our communities.

Recently, I was pleased to receive support of the Executive Committee to delay the proposed sell-off until after a Special Working Group is created and able to report back on innovative ways of improving the shape of our TCHC housing. This Working Group will reach out to the non-profit, private and public sectors to

better manage our housing assets in a compas-sionate and more financially sustainable way.

Only with an understanding of the broader housing landscape can we maintain and reaf-firm Toronto’s stake in providing affordable housing by keeping this invaluable social asset viable and effective. As both a Councillor and Chair of the Affordable Housing Committee, I will continue to meet with tenant groups and ownership assistance organizations to have a stronger vision for Toronto’s affordable hous-ing future.

It is also critical that the Province and Federal government share in this commitment and rec-ognize their responsibility to the many thou-sands of Canadians who need housing support by investing in this issue through long-term, sustainable funding of affordable housing.

Toronto’s current housing situation is too critical to wait for solutions; we must begin the work to create them, and we must begin today. We must move forward with a vision that treats people respectfully and provides for the future needs of our City. This will continue to be my priority as these important discussions, and the work of the Special Working Committee, take place.

05The Bloordale Press MARCH 2012

Letters from your Representatives

BY JONAH SCHEIN Greetings Davenport! This is my

first article submission for the Bloor-dale Press. I’m really grateful to the editors for offering me this space to connect with you readers each month.

In many ways the Bloordale Press does more than tell the news in our neighbourhood – it’s part of the good news in our neighbourhood.

Bloordale Press is an example of a growing spirit of community engage-ment our riding.

I feel so lucky to represent this rid-ing where many people are making huge contributions to our neigh-bourhoods. Whether that’s the good folks at Bloordale Press, young people at City View Alternative School, organizers at Dufferin Grove Park, activists with The Clean Trains Coalition, or my old colleagues at The Stop Community Food Centre; people in Davenport are passionate about making our community a bet-ter place to live.

I know that the NDP reflects the values of Davenport. We all know what it means to work hard to pay the bills each month, and we are deeply

committed to the environment and social justice. As residents we all contribute a lot to our community but we also know that government has to do its part too. We need government to help people when they are vulnerable, to steward our environment, and to make life more affordable. We need government to invest in public transit and childcare, and to support senior citizens. And we know we can’t continue on the same old path. In tough economic times, we need our governments to stop giving billions of dollars away to corporations and start investing in our communities. This is the mes-sage that the NDP and I have been bringing to the legislature this fall.

I’m deeply honoured to have earned your support and I’ll work everyday to serve our riding and bring your voices to Queens Park.

I look forward to hearing from you and working together to make this a better riding and province to live in.

I am currently in the process of setting up my office at 1674 St. Clair West, and am available at 416-535-3158 or [email protected] At Queen’s Park I can be reached at 416-325-0014 or [email protected]

BY ANA BAILÃO Dear Neighbours,

With cooling weather, rosy cheeks, and arriving home from work in the dark, the signs of the season are upon us. Yet, despite these weather grievances, Ward 18 is alive with activity and colour.

Whether it is the beautifully wrapped packages in the arms of residents walking out of Queen Street shops, the beautiful lighting along Dundas Street, or the shouts and sounds of skates on ice at our many outdoor rinks - the holidays are here.

The holidays are also a busy time to move around our neighbour-hood. While good public transit is vital for a well planned City, the increased ridership during the winter months - when many driv-ers and cyclists find refuge from the salt and snow - is an important time to reflect on our current tran-sit priorities.

As a candidate, I campaigned on the principles of fast, efficient and affordable public transportation. With those principles in mind, any transit decisions that I support will

have the interests of Davenport residents at its heart while never neglecting the need for a global transportation vision for the City of Toronto.

In order to pay for improved transit infrastructure, and meet spending reduction targets, the TTC has proposed route changes across the City.In Ward 18, the 506 Carleton, 29 Dufferin, 505 Dundas, 26 Dupont are among the routes experiencing reduction in service. In each case these reduc-tions mean riders will have to wait longer (in most cases less than 50 seconds) between vehicles. I am pleased, however, that we will ac-tually see service increases to the 501 Queen, 168 Symington and 40 Junction routes.

These service cuts raise serious concerns about how transit will effectively serve Ward 18 residents. It is critical that affordable and ac-cessible transit be the focus of any transit changes in our Ward and we must look at a variety of methods of accomplishing this goal without compromising transit routes.

I support the notion that we must demand our fair share of transit funding from other levels

of government, and also strongly believe that we must seek to do more with the resources at hand by addressing efficiency concerns like overcrowding and vehicle bunch-ing.

For example, I have requested that City staff investigate solutions to the bunching of buses along the 29 Dufferin route and the TTC is now closely examining this matter. The Queen Street car is a further high-ridership route that suffers from bunching. Especially with the increased population that is predicted with upcoming develop-ment opportunities along Queen Street, it is necessary that we take a proactive approach now in order to guarantee the infrastructure to support the future.

Regardless of the season, I will continue to advocate for afford-able, accessible and sustainable transit for our neighbourhood and would like to wish all the residents of Ward 18 a safe and happy holi-day.

Best wishes to you and your loved ones and I look forward to seeing many of you over the holi-days.

05The Bloordale Press DECEMBER 2011

The Councillor’s Corner

The MPP’s Corner

Page 6: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

06

News

The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

BY JUSTIN [email protected]

A new book, drawn from the hands of a local grade two and three split class, hit the online book stand about two months ago – its title is “The Good Old Days?”

While most students were catching up on their homework and yearend assignments, Mar-tha Davis had her split class construct a book that compares and contrasts educational cul-ture of the 1890s and today.

“I asked [my students] if they would be interested in doing a book about old school versus new school and they were very enthusiastic,” said Davis who is no stranger to the publish-ing process – she’s published a number of educational books throughout her teaching career.

The book, using over 100 photos and descriptive text,

takes the reader through time showing the nineteenth cen-tury classroom and comparing it with the present day envi-ronment. The title “The Good Old Days?” was to question the age old saying – at least in the classroom. The book reveals the strict mentality that existed among schools across Ontario.

“I learned how very tough it was in those days,” said Davis. We have much more freedom now and that freedom is good [for the students].”

Though the project was led by their teacher, the class was almost entirely responsible for the 80-paged finished product.

“The students were very in-volved,” said Davis. They en-joyed very much the process of comparing and evaluating, something we are not used to doing in grade two and three.”

In the three month process of creating the book (from

March to May), students did everything from taking photos to dressing up in nineteenth century costumes. In order to know the experience of the nineteenth century student, they had to live it. The class spent a day at the Century School House, a reproduction of a typical school in the late 1800s.

The purpose of the project was to teach the students about the pioneer age in Ontario and Davis couldn’t be happier with the results.

“What I really liked about the book is that it really integrated well into the curriculum, it kind of served as a yearbook for our class,” she said.

“To see the final book on the internet was spectacular.”

If you would like to take a peek at the book or buy a hard copy, visit http://www.blurb.com/books/3370626

LOCAL CLASS PUBLISHES BOOK A grade two and three split class took a trip through time to study a different era of education

While children in the 1890s sat in liner fashion, today a much more comfortable environment is provided - a clear example of the change in eras. Photos courtesy Martha Davis

Page 7: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

If you’ve taken a stroll in the Bloor and Lansdowne area this

past month, you may have no-ticed a bright new storefront along the strip. Once inside, customers are greeted by a vi-brant mix of fashion forward

and traditional styles. From ca-sual men’s button ups to trendy dresses, stylish handbags to adorable children’s wear, Antos Fashion is a one-stop shop for

the entire family.While new to the Bloordale

neighbourhood, Antos Fash-ion has been in business for over five years, having moved

down from its long time Eglinton West location. Owner and operator An-toinette is pleased with the move and the opportunity to grow her customer-base. In addition to the variety of finds within the store, Antoinette also of-fers beautiful and intricate Western and African attire for all occasions. Antoinette’s designs are one-of-a-kind, all designed and sewn herself.

Antos Fashion is conveniently lo-cated just east of Lansdowne Avenue at 1246 Bloor St. W..

Everyone is welcome to stop by Monday to Wednesday and Sat-urday 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 11:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m., and by appointment only on Sun-days.

07

New in business

The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

Antos Fashion sells clothing for all ages as it looks to make its mark on the Bloordale strip. Photos by Melissa Millerson

NEW FAMILY FASHION STORE OPENS UP ON BLOOR ST

BY MELISSA [email protected]

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Page 8: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

This page is a joint effort between the Bloordale Press and the Bloordale BIA to showcase local businesses.

Your business name here...

If your business is on Bloor St. between Dufferin St. and Lansdowne Ave. and you would like to

advertise on this page, please call

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Page 9: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

09

News

The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

The rooftop at Brock Public School gets fresh for students as the FoodShare program helps to reju-venate the space for fresh food and eco-education.

“We were approached by a couple of teachers from this school saying ‘We have this old space, the flooring is condemned, the students can’t go out to it but there’s such great po-tential’,” said Meredith Hayes, Stu-dent Nutrition and School Program Senior Manager for FoodShare To-ronto. “It’s been a huge shift. It was once and active, growing space, but we were able to reanimate it put in new decking, new membrane and bring it up to code.”

Brock Public School has had a rooftop garden for years but the garden and decking had fell into such a desperate state of disrepair that part of it had to be closed to students.

“So this project happened but in the interim had really fallen apart. This part of the roof was out of bounds to students and the planters weren’t being used anymore,” said

James Davis, School Food Innova-tions Educator. He helped to design the rooftop area with colleague Jus-tin Nadeau, School Food Garden and Environmental Education Co-ordinator.

Luckily FoodShare had a little ex-tra funding on hand to put towards the project.

“We had received funding from Live Green Toronto to put a rooftop garden space at our location at 98 Croatia street. And then for a vari-ety of different reasons, partly to do with the future development of that space we weren’t able to put the roof there,” said Hayes. It was that fund-ing that was brought to the project that is newly nested on the schools roof.

The rooftop was reopened to stu-dents in May and now strawberries grow ripe and shine in the sun, rad-ishes are ready to be plucked from standing planters and the promise of tomorrows tomatoes hang on the vine. All of this surrounds a small seating area where students can sit comfortably, a perfect place for the young green thumb to learn. It even has honeycomb shapes reminiscent of the buzzing pollinators it aims to

attract.It has all new fencing placed

around it, new planters with crops growing inside of them, a small class area with seats for up to 40 students where FoodShare comes in with programs on Thursdays but is open to students and teachers the other days of the week.

“So we teach them about all kinds of things up here. It’s not just about the planting and the watering and the harvesting we also run work-shops up here that are all curricu-lum linked,” said Brooke Ziebell, Field to Table Schools Coordinator.

She says other programs include classes on how media and peers can affect food choice and the benefits of local produce.

Renovating the schools roof-top garden is a part of FoodShare’s “Field to Table School Program” which bring interactive workshops to teachers and students teaching them how to grow, harvest and even compost crops. It’s a part of the organizations initiative to show people where their food comes from and how to eat healthy and green.

Though it’s mainly a tranquil

teaching area, it’s also become a place where students can get away and refocus themselves as well.

“There are days when I had dif-ficult days, I walk up to the garden and just really for me it’s calming. It’s a place that allows me to catch my breath sometimes,” said Princi-pal Victor Tran who regularly refers to Brock Public School as an ‘eco-school’. “We have students that have anxiety and depression and the gar-den has become an outlet for some of them. It calms them but it also brings out the best in my students too.”

ROOFTOP GARDEN ATOP BROCK PUBLIC SCHOOL GOES THROUGH UPGRADE

800 Bloor St. W

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$40/hr introductory offer

Book with Tomo or Suzy online at http://www.lifeacupuncturebodywork.comor call (647) 786-7133

BY KHRISTOPHER [email protected]

Once unsuitable for students because of its desolate qualities, Brock Public School’s green roof has now been reopened thanks to a much needed facelift

With a full garden now planted, students at Brock Public School can visit the rooftop for fresh food, eco-education, or even to take a break from the books. Photo by Khristopher Reardon

Page 10: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

Art Gallery Guide

10 The Bloordale Press JULY 2012

The Daniel Faria Gallery is proud to present Patterns of Emancipation, Shan-non Bool’s first solo exhibition in Canada.

Bool’s new work explores the need to obtain freedom from prescribed spaces. A continuation of Bool’s

previous work, the exhibition examines the visual identities of a culture or era (colours, ornaments, prints and patterns) and decontextualizes these visual codes un-til a new pattern or object emerges.

Taking its name from a piece of weather lore, the exhibition puts into conversation artworks that con-tend with atmospheric effects and environments—whether the austere solo living systems in Absalon’s Propositions d’habitation, or the abstraction of the sky into the printed page in Bruce Nauman’s LAAIR, or the reverie of a bubble in an infinite float in Cao Guimarães and Rivane Neuenschwander’s Inventory of small deaths (blow).

A complete set of Jack Goldstein’s 45rpm sound ef-fect recordings form an important context in the exhi-bition, including The Tornado, pressed to purple vinyl in order to signal the ominous sky of an impending storm. Jonathan Monk trains a 16mm camera on the very same Goldstein record, capturing it in the cyclone of its turntable play, yet suppressing the sound to ren-

der The Silent Tornado (for Jack Goldstein). For the photograph Nimbus D’Aspremont, Bernd-naut Smilde uses smoke, mois-ture and spot lighting to manu-facture an indoor cloud that lives momentarily suspended in a surrealist wish fulfillment. John Massey’s photo series Twilight’s Last Gleaming is exemplary of his longstanding interest in en-closed spaces. Based on a scale model of an interior setting, the resulting image frames a situa-tion of contained existence anal-ogous to consciousness.

Sarah Cale, Hadley + Maxwell, Sara MacK-illop & Derek Sullivan

A foyer literally and figuratively marks the passage from exterior to interior; from pub-lic to private space. Here, the visitor en-counters various ob-jects - a coat rack, a stack of unopened mail, ornately pat-terned wallpaper per-

haps – that quietly signal one’s entrance into domestic space. Threshold brings to-gether work in vari-ous media by gallery artists Sarah Cale, Hadley + Maxwell, Sara MacKillop and Derek Sullivan that speaks to the over-lapping and shifting nature of histories of art, design, decor and craft.

Loop Gallery is pleased to announce exhibitions by loop members Elizabeth Babyn entitled Sacred Con-nections and Sandra Smirle entitled Turvy.

Intrigued by Fibonacci’s number sequences, sacred geometry and our inter- connectedness with every-thing, Sacred Connections launches Elizabeth Babyn’s mixed media ‘Unity quilt’ with ‘truths’ contributed from the general public. The quilt is shown with depic-tions from sacred geometry and the natural environ-ment, as well as a mixed me-

dia installation designed to receive truth offerings from gallery visitors to facilitate the ongoing growth of the ‘Unity Quilt.’

Turvy continues Smirle’s exploration of geographies of otherness, translated from aerial maps into hand and laser cut drawings. These works explore a narrative at the intersection of light, shadow, time, and place with special attention to how navigation and data-capture technologies twist and ‘tirve’ our world view, and how we as viewers are equally sub-ject to observation by others.

Daniel Faria Gallery

M ay 3 1 - J u ly 2 1 , 2 0 1 2

J U N E 2 3 – J U LY 1 5 , 2 0 1 2

LOOP GALLERY

J U N E 3 0 - A U G U S T 0 4 , 2 0 1 2

1450 Dundas Street West

188 St Helens Avenue1

2

33 41 2

x

x

J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 2 - J U LY 2 9 2 0 1 2

Jessica Bradley Art + Projects

MERCER UNION

41273 Dundas Street West

1273 Dundas Street West

x x

Page 11: The Bloordale Press, Vol 2, Issue 6

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BIG

onBloor

Festival

2012

BIG

onBloor

Festival

2012

BIG

onBloor

Festival

2012

July 2012Saturday 21Sunday 22 &www.bigonbloor.com/festival

Culture

Works

Leading cultural

institutions share

events...see, to

uch,

learn, participate!

BAAFBloor

Alternative

Art Fair.

Celebrate

HereMusic,

performance

and dance.

BIG AwardsCommunity appreciation.

Bloordale

Market

More than 200 arts,

crafts, vendors and

information tables.

Play FairGames for children and adults in the tennis courts.

Two days of car-free fun in Bloordale!

Bloor Stre

et, Duffe

rin to

Lansdowne

Saturday 1pm to 9pm

Sunday noon to 6pm

Wallace Emerson Community Centre

Neudorfer Corporation

Brisa Do Liz Bakery