Premier’s plan creates chaos, sows division

By Jessica Bell

Since school closed in March, our family has been struggling with the impossible job of full-time work and full-time parenting our two school-aged children. I, along with the parents of Ontario’s other two million school-age children, have been waiting for the Ontario government to release its back-to-school plan. However, its release — just weeks before school is scheduled to begin and without any serious consultation with the community — brought feelings of relief, anxiety, hopelessness, and rage.  Read more

Come tread gently in the Culture Corridor

By Meribeth Deen

Are your eyes crossed yet? If you haven’t already, it’s time to shut the computer down. Yes, we are still in a global pandemic, but you can leave your house now and become re-acquainted with the city’s public spaces. Just be sure to check your venues’ COVID-19-policies so you can follow the rules of entry.  Read more

Martel was a planner and architect who turned parking into parks

By Nicole Stoffman  Read more

Latest submission taller than earlier versions

By Tanya Ielyseieva

BBB Architects have come back to the community with a new plan for 350 Davenport Rd., near Dupont.  Originally submitted in 2015 at 7 storeys (24.2 meters) this project has had multiple re-submissions. The most recent, made in April 2020, is for a mid-rise, mixed-use building with luxury boutique condos at 8 storeys (30 meters).   Read more

Jack Shewahy provides free haircuts &?a meal to homeless

This feature was created pre-COVID closures. We waited to publish it until the Barber House has re-opened. It’s helpful to remember that before the pandemic many front-line professionals, like Jack Shewahy, could also be credited with giving back to their commuities. Now they are open again for business, practicising safe protocols, and still trying to be a “good example for people”.   Read more

Yorkville’s Gallery Gevik has acquired, Sally’s Fright (1968), a rare colour-field landscape painting by William Ronald from the collection of Paul and Joan-Wilsher Martel. Ronald was a trailblazer, founding Painters Eleven in 1953, a collective of artists that introduced abstract art to Canada. The 9×12 foot work was a birthday gift for Mrs. Martel, a modern artist in her own right, from her husband in 1968. Mr. Martel, an architect who led many greening projects in the Annex, passed away on April 3, 2020. Joan predeceased him in 2017.   Read more

Paulist Father Richard Colgan, 68, died of complications from COVID-19 at Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C. on Monday, May 25. A former pastor at St. Peter’s Church on Bathurst St., Father Colgan served as a director of novices at the Paulist Fathers’ formation house of studies in Washington D.C.  Read more

Between May 20 and June 1, a grocery store on Bathurst St took part in a cutting edge experiment to make sure customers took virus-free goods home from their store. The Summerhill Market (1014 Bathurst) worked on a pilot project of a machine called the X-Germinator which uses non-toxic UV light to damage the molecular structure of viruses in less than 30 seconds.  Read more