#200 (May 13/09): 2500 BLOOR, EVENTS, WORLD19

In this issue:
1. Our 200th newsletter
2. Tridel/2500 Bloor development at Community Council, May 14
3. Upcoming Events:
a) Junction Residents Assoc. meeting: May 14
b) Swansea Town Hall: Doors Open, May 23-4
c) RMRA AGM, May 26
d) Old Mill site development meeting: May 27
e) Bloor West Art Tour, May 29-31
f) Bells on Bloor bike ride: May 31
g) COBA: new BWV school & recital
4. Article on world19 & Annette bike lanes

UPDATE, May 14: See note at end of newsletter regarding date for public meeting about 2500 Bloor development

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1. Newsletter #200 - a brief look back.

Back in March, 1998, we sent out an email notice to our brand-new distribution list made up of people who’d signed up for it at a public meeting that we’d just held which focused on problems with the Current Value Assessment property tax system. (Also then brand-new).

That was our very first newsletter… we would never have guessed that we’d still be doing it 200 issues later. However, It’s not as much of a surprise that we’d also still be writing about flaws in the property assessment system.

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2. Tridel / 2500 Bloor development: at Community Council, May 14

As noted in our March 21st Newsletter, Tridel has filed its official application with the city to develop the site of 2490/2500 Bloor St. W., currently occupied by the Old Mill car dealership and an office building. The proposal involves two mid-rise buildings of 13 and 16 stories, with some ground level retail in the eastern building. The application also includes a proposal to align the South Kingsway and Riverside Gardens into a single connecting intersection.

The City staff’s Preliminary Report on the application will be presented at this week’s Etobicoke York Community Council.  The report discusses the proposal, its scope, details and relationship to existing zoning regulations  and the City’s Official Plan, as well as the 2005 Bloor West Village Urban Design Study and provincial development policy.

Prior to finalizing their plans and filing the application, Tridel had held a series of “Working Group” meetings through the fall and winter with residents groups, world19, the BIA and Councillor Saundercook. However, as required by the City, there will be a community consultation meeting organized by the Planning Department. In addition, Planning staff has recommended that a design charette be held to consider both this development and other potential development sites nearby (most notably, the Odeon Humber block).

We are awaiting notice of dates for those meetings, and hope to have an update very soon.

The Council meeting will be held Thursday, May 14, beginning at 9:30am in the Etobicoke Civic Centre, 399 West Mall. The agenda item is: “EY27.28, “2490 and 2500 Bloor Street West (including 2464 and 2474) - Zoning Amendment - Preliminary Report”

To submit comments, write to Etobicoke York Community council: etcc@toronto.ca. You may want to copy councilor_saundercook@toronto.ca (and feel free to also copy mail@world19.com if you’d like). It may be helpful to use subject line “Re: EY27.28 2490 AND 2500 Bloor Street West”.

You can also attend the meeting in Council Chambers. The time that any item will be discussed isn’t definite, but it’s helpful to follow the progress of the agenda via the Council Monitor. Look for item EY27.28.

References:

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3.  Upcoming Events:

a) Junction Residents Association Meeting: May 14

The JRA may have re-formed relatively recently, but they’re doing an amazing job in that neighbourhood. Check out their very impressive website, and their live (and archived) online broadcasts of their meetings.  They’ve sent along the notice below regarding this week’s meeting. The focus is on the proposed increase in train activity, especially the new Union-Pearson (”Blue 22″) link which will add numerous diesel train runs through the west end. (See the RMRA website, in an item below for some background).

Our next meeting will be taking place this Thursday at West Toronto Baptist Church, 3049 Dundas St. W., at 7pm, where we will be featuring a discussion on the Georgetown South Service Expansion (GSSE) and the Union-Pearson Rail Link (UPRL) and what they mean for our community.  Of course, you can also tune in live on JRATV, that you can find through our new website: www.junctionra.ca.

But, if you come out in person, there will be food and beverages as always!
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b) Swansea Town Hall: Doors Open, May 23-24

The following notice was sent by the Swansea Town Hall. If you’re interested, check ou t some of the other Doors Open sites around town.

The Swansea Town Hall together with the Swansea Memorial Library is proud to be a part of Doors Open Toronto on Saturday, May 23 and Sunday, May 24 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Everyone is welcome to come and observe the programs run by our clients during this time. There will be fun activities for the children as well as displays of what was happening in the Village of Swansea in 1959 the year the building was opened. We are also celebrating our 50th Anniversary. The Swansea Historical Society’s archives will be open for people to view along with an audiovisual presentation of the history of the Swansea Town Hall. Come see our amazing Swansea Mural which was unveiled this past November 11 after our Remembrance Day Service, there will be an Art Show on the second floor featuring Literacy. The Swansea Memorial Library will have exhibits of Lucy Maude Montgomery and Bernice Thurman Hunter as both of these authors lived in our neighbourhood.

c) Roncesvalles Macdonell Residents Associaton AGM: May 26

The RMRA is holding its Annual General Meeting, which will include elections for officers and “at large” positions. It’s also (always) looking for others interested in volunteering to help out more informally. The night also features their annual strawberry dessert.

Tue May 26, 7pm
Fern Avenue Public School, 128 Fern Ave. (east of Roncesvalles)
http://www.rmra-to.org/

d) Meeting re:development at Old Mill Inn site, May 27

Over the past year or more, there has been strong opposition from many residents, historic and preservation groups as well as from people living near or having an interest in the Humber Valley area to a proposal for a condominium to be built on the site of the Old Mill’s parking lot in the valley near the Humber River. We have heard that there will be a public meeting to discuss details of the proposal prior to the developer submitting its site plan. In addition to Ward 5 Councillor Peter Milczyn,  staff from Toronto Planning, Forestry and Heritage Departments as well as the Toronto Regional Conservation Authority will attend to answer questions.

May 27, 7pm.  Lambton Kingsway Junior Middle Schoo, 525 Prince Edward Drive. For more information, contact Councillor Milczyn’s office:  416-392-4244, www.petermilczyn.com

The area residents group, Kingsway Park Ratepayers, provides some background on the development and some reasons for their opposition on their website. (See “Old Mill Condo” on the left-side menu).

e) Bloor West Art Tour: May 29-31

The annual event features 29 artists in 26 locations. See www.ArtTour.info for more information.

f) Bells on Bloor: May 31

The annual bike ride to support the creation of bike lanes across Bloor Street will be held on Sunday May 31. The ride begins at the main entrance to High Park, and it will travel to Queen’s Park.  All ages are welcome. Riders are encouraged to bring a bell.  The ride begins at 12:00, but If you want to join, please arrive early to hear ride logistics. Alternatively, join the ride anywhere enroute. For more info, see http://www.bellsonbloor.ca

g) COBA: new area school & annual recital

Begun in 1993, the Collective of Black Artists (COBA) recently moved into Bloor West Village, and provides dance and music training to children “from 3 to any age”, as well as professional training. Classes cover areas such as ballet, West African, modern contemporary, Caribbean, Hip Hop, drumming and vocal-chanting.

They describe themselves as “Dedicated to creating and presenting the finest tradtions in dance and music that celebrate and reflect an African aesthetic.”

Their new studios are at 2444 Bloor, 2nd floor (above 2-for-1 Video), where they held an Open House last month. Next month, they’ll be presenting their annual school showcase recital. “SHEreHE!”:

June 20, 6:30pm, Isabel Bader Theatre, 93 Charles St. W. (south of Bloor,  east of Queen’s Park. See their website, visit their studio,  or call 416 658-3111 for info.

3. Dandyhorse

The new issue of  Dandyhorse, Toronto’s newest magazine on cycling has just been published, and contains an article on world19 and our efforts to save the threatened Annette St. bike lanes. Some excerpts:

So just who are these superheroes that kept the Annette Street bike lanes from being scuttled last fall and pushed the envelope on what kind of advocacy we can expect when cyclists and communities combine?

… During the Annette fight they encouraged over 200 bike lane supporters to send emails to City Council. If this isn’t the type of neighbour you want next door, who is?

While we appreciate the nice words about our efforts, we were more impressed by how well the article focuses on the importance of wide-reaching, grassroots community connection and communication on an issue like this. In the article, Steve Brearton of the Toronto Cyclists Union , with whom we worked said,

world19 really created a fabulous model for working on these kinds of projects. They worked very hard to get local residents on side… and, What was important and effective is that it was a campaign that was initiated at a very local level, but drew on city-wide resources of cycling activists and groups.

We recommend the magazine for those interested in cycling … and joining the Cyclists Union.

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UPDATE (May 14): Public meeting on 2490-2500 Bloor/Tridel Development: May 28.

Ward 13 Councillor Saundercook has confirmed a date for a public meeting on the proposed development of the Old Mill car dealership site. The meeting will include Tridel representatives. He has also indicated plans for another two meetings in June regarding the site. We assume at least one will encompass the design charette referenced in our original newsletter.

Thursday, May 28, 7pm at St. Pius X Catholic School, 71 Jane St. at Bloor

See his community notice (PDF format) here

Feel free to add comments via the link at the end of the newsletter.
See our index to past newsletters, or visit our main webpage at www.world.com

May 13 2009 08:37 pm | newsletters |

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