Strike update from our councillor

Just got Adam Vaughan's July newsletter. Here's an update from his office on the strike

Some of the things that my office has been working on during the strike include:
- working with resident associations’ and business improvement areas’ across the ward to organize & obtain permits for dumpsters to get rid of waste to prevent accumulation
- supporting residents who have been conducting community clean-ups in their neighbourhood
- worked with Scadding Court Community Centre to host a community compost site to divert some organic waste
- personally picked up and removed 22 bags of garbage that accumulated on the street and in planter boxes at College and Augusta in advance of last week’s Pedestrian Sundays event in Kensington Market
- daily bike patrols through the ward to find and report locations of illegal dumping
- regularly communicating with Toronto Public Health and connecting them with local businesses proactively working to maintain cleanliness standards
- reaching out to businesses that have been improperly storing their garbage to request clean-ups to prevent rodent problems
- meeting with representatives of Tim Horton’s and Starbucks (both head-office representatives and franchisees in Ward 20) to develop a program where these businesses help divert and collect garbage on the street. (Some of the outcomes from these meetings include a community clean-up conducted by Tim Horton's staff, and posters put up in stores that encourage people to either throw their disposable cups out in the store, hang onto them until they get home, or bring a re-usable cup. Posters developed by our office have now been put up in Tim Horton's stores across Toronto. Starbucks took a city-wide approach by mandating their staff to clean up around their storefronts and initiating a radio and print add campaign to promote incentives for customers using re-useable cups).
- We also compiled and circulated a listing of all of the organizations in Ward 20 that offer summer day programs for children in an effort to assist parents who have been affected by the strike (the list is online here: http://adamvaughan.ca/AV-newsletter/newsletters/Whatskidtodo.pdf)
As of today, the City has negotiated tentative agreements for four collective agreements with CUPE 79 and also with TCEU 416. The specific details of the settlements still need to be ratified by the memberships of the respective unions and City Council. A Special Meeting of City Council will be held this Friday July 31st (assuming that the unions ratify the offers on Thursday July 31st). More information is available on the City of Toronto’s website at http://www.toronto.ca/labour-relations/index.htm

We all look forward to a better fall, but a busy one. If you are vacationing: safe travels and see you soon.

We're back!

Miss us?

No, we weren't on strike like local 416 and 79, but we were taking a breather since trying to do a post every day for six months. Fear not, nothing major has really happened, right?

The strike kinda made the neighbourhood a little quieter, and lets just say that if the agreements are notified by mid week, then the lineups will start to happen. We will say that the waterfront fared okay during the strike. Harbourfront TO guys kept their area clean and not much garbage has really made its way into the neighbourhood. And since condo refuse gets trucked out of there, we're fine!

One thing you may have noticed is that the Rees Wavedeck opened in the past few weeks, which means we have three functional wavedecks from Spadina to Simcoe. More on that later.

Anyhow, we're back in business and starting to work on some posts. As usual, email us if you have any ideas.

Leon's at the Roundhouse

We were walking by the Rogers Centre a few afternoons ago, the day before they opened the Leon's at the Roundhouse. Some media coverage and and a podcast discussing it. We have yet to check it out, but below are some pictures we snapped .

See some of the construction workers playing on the mini train

Personally, we remember shopping at all the furniture stores in Toronto before moving down to the Queens Quay area. We wonder if Leon's has Toronto condo-friendly furniture: Hint: smaller spaces, a little hipper for the working and young set.

East Bayfront meeting tonight

This is a note from Waterfront Toronto about the East Bayfront project, which we've written about in the past. It's Queens Quay East, starting just after the Redpath plant. We can't make it tonight but hope one of you will and report back.

East Bayfront is a 22-hectare site that extends from Jarvis Street to Parliament Street and from Lake Shore Boulevard to the water’s edge.  East Bayfront is planned to be a new vibrant, waterfront community with mixed-use development, continuous access to the water's edge, public transit and a series of new parks and open spaces.


On July 8, Waterfront Toronto is holding a public meeting to present plans and discuss key features of East Bayfront including its water’s edge promenade, Parliament WaveDeck and evolving design for the innovative stormwater management system. 

A presentation will be made by world renowned landscape architect Adriaan Geuze of the West 8 + DTAH design team.  In addition, updates will be provided on construction activities and upcoming groundbreakings for Sherbourne Park and Sugar Beach. 

Workbooks will be distributed and public feedback will be solicited.  Members of the project team will be on hand to answer questions and share ideas.

PUBLIC MEETING: 
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Novotel Hotel, Champagne Ballroom
45 The Esplanade, Toronto
6:30 p.m. (Open House)
7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. (Presentation)

Summer weekends and holidays at Harbourfront Centre

Here are the descriptions for the rest of the summer weekends at Harbourfront Centre. More information on their website

The Hot Spot (July 3 to July 5)
This new festival explores culturally innovative trends from around the world with hot Nigerian music and much more.

Beats, Breaks & Culture (July 10 to July 12) - Presented by NOW Magazine
The sixth edition of one of North America's top electronic music and culture festivals plugs into powerful currents of urban dance and modern musical expression.

Mexico: Beyond Your Expectations (July 17 to July 19)
In the 100 years since the Revolution, and in the 200 years of the Independence, Mexico has emerged as a fertile crossroads of North and South American culture with its own ancient and renewed identity. Mexico's artistic vitality is celebrated at this new festival with a contemporary multidisciplinary showcase of the country's numerous regions and traditions.

Canadian Voices (July 24 to July 26)
Canada has a rich history producing some of the world's best singer-songwriters. This new festival highlights emerging Folk, Hip-Hop and Rock musicians.

Island Soul (July 31 to August 3)
A kaleidoscope of Pan-Caribbean culture represented through food demonstrations, dance and music from renowned Reggae, Creole and Calypso artists.

Zaika: A South Asian Food Festival (August 7 to August 9) - Coproduced with The Weekly Voice
Experience the diversity and regional specialties in South Asian cuisine today alongside the song, dance and films that make South Asian culture a sensory delight.

Planet IndigenUs (August 14 to August 23) - Coproduced with the Woodland Cultural Centre
The planet's largest contemporary Indigenous arts festival features exhibitions and events at organizations across Toronto and Brantford all summer long - culminating with two weekends of music, film and performing arts events by international and Canadian artists at Harbourfront Centre (August 14 to 16 and August 21 to 23).

TELUS TAIWANfest: A New Journey (August 28 to August 30)
Explore the evolving Taiwanese concept of marriage through multicultural and cross-generational perspectives. Artists directly from Taiwan and Canadian artists of Taiwanese heritage are showcased in music, visual arts, culinary arts and fashion events.

Hot and Spicy Food Festival (September 4 to September 7) - Presented by NOW Magazine
The 12th edition of this festival features local and international chefs dishing up hot, sweet and spicy cuisine in demonstrations and workshops. Live music and dance enrich the smorgasbord of events which include the International Iron Chef Competition, the Red Hot Market and Toronto International Firefighter calendar chefs!

Canada Day's going to be busy down here on Queens Quay

We couldn't help but notice that a whack of events are now cancelled for Canada Day in light of the city strike.

The cancelled events include:

* Ashbridges Bay Fireworks
* Canada Day Event, Earlscourt Park
* Somali-Canada Day, Earl Bales Park
* Peanut Town Festival, Oriole Park - North
* East York Toronto Canada Day, Stan Wadlow Park
* Shomoy Mela, Detonia Park
* Canada Day Celebrations, Thompson Memorial Park/ Miliken District Park
* Canada Day Celebration, St.James Park
* New Country Canada Day Jam, Woodbine Park
* 16th Annual Neighbours Together, Riverdale Park East
* Canada Day Festival, Kew Gardens
* Canada Day, Mel Lastman Square

All City-run scheduled events at Nathan Phillips Square, Metro Square, other civic squares and in parks have been cancelled due to the labour disruption. Some large special events that are not organized by the City are going ahead as scheduled.

So.. that leaves our neighbourhood as one o the places left to go to for huge public event.

Luckily, the folks at Harbourfront Centre have big plans for Wednesday. See their plans here. It includes a lot of activities and an impressive musical lineup that starts with the Regent Park Band and ends in the evening with Chad VanGaalen at 8 p.m. and the Constantines at 9:30 p.m.

Don't forget that the Festival of Fire is on at Ontario Place (on Saturday the 27th and on Canada Day). You can buy tickets here or you can find a spot on Queens Quay area to watch the fireworks.