In South Africa, Cape Town is about to run out of fresh water. Authorities predict that Day Zero — the last time water will flow from a domestic tap — will hit on July 9, 2018. Three years of drought resulting from climate change has brought a city of 4 million to the brink of crisis.  Read more

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PHOTO BY MICHAEL CHACHURA/GLEANER NEWS: Fifty people gathered at the Centre for Social Innovation on Feb. 20 for a vigil in the wake of a shooting at a Quebec City mosque. Organized by Uniting Muslims and Allies for Humanity, the evening featured speakers, prayers for peace, and a message board on which participants left words of welcome and support (above). Arif Vriani (MP, Parkdale-High Park) was among the attendees. He spoke about Motion 103, which asks Parliament to denounce Islamophobia, and all other forms of religious discrimination.

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Process to designate Kensington Market underway

By Geremy Bordonaro

After a year of study and consultation, the city is going ahead with the process to designate Kensington Market a Heritage Conservation District (HCD). The decision was announced at a community consultation meeting last month.  Read more

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Business owners decry lack of consultation

PHOTO BY MATT JAMES/GLEANER NEWS FILE PHOTO: Business owners said they weren’t consulted on the City of Toronto’s proposal to hike to patio fees. Many businesses on Bloor Street West — such as Future Bakery (above) — open a patio in the warmer months, but they are already expensive to operate and maintain.  Read more

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PHOTO BY BRIAN BURCHELL/GLEANER NEWS  Read more

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Nearly one hundred bar and restaurant staff from Kensington Market participated in a free workshop on how to deal with drug overdoses on Feb. 27. Organized by the Kensington Market BIA and Joe Cressy (Ward 20, Trinity-Spadina), the workshop taught participants how to recognize and respond to an overdose. Queen West Central Toronto Community Health Centre led the technical aspects of the training and explained how Naloxone counter-acts the effects of opioids. Bar and restaurant owners also received overdose response kits.  Read more

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Harbord Collegiate Institute is celebrating its 125th anniversary with a weekend of events for neighbours, students, and alumni April 28 to 30. On April 28, the school will host an open house featuring a museum and decade rooms. The creative-arts team will stage a variety of music and talent shows, while the Athletic Association will run a few games. The formal reunion gala will be held at the Parkview Manor on April 29, while individual class reunions will run on April 30. For further information, please visit www.harbordclub.com.  Read more

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The Annex Residents’ Association is launching a new award to recognize the efforts of a resident who contributed to making the community a better place. The Community Builder of the Year award will be given to a person living in the Annex who has made a significant contribution in improving heritage, education, development, or social justice in the area. Nominations are being accepted up until April 23. The prize recipient, along with all of the nominees, will be announced on April 27 during the association’s annual general meeting at Friends’ House. Nominate a candidate by emailing secretary@theara.org with the name and address of the person you are nominating, and your reason for nominating them. Please also include your own name and address.  Read more

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Community, city closer to approving Mirvish Village development

PHOTO COURTESY WESTBANK PROJECTS CORP.

By Geremy Bordonaro  Read more

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Pursued to the edge of a cliff by relentless law enforcement, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were faced with an unenviable choice: jump, be captured, or — the most likely alternative — be killed while being captured. As they contemplate their fate, Butch and Sundance begin to argue over who should jump first, with Sundance finally admitting that he can’t swim.  Read more

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Tracking the rivers under our feet

PHOTO BY NEILAND BRISSENDEN/GLEANER NEWS FILE: The area’s lost rivers have long been a source of fascination for artists and writers. In this 2015 Nuit Blanche installation, To Love You Deeply I Look to My Mind’s Eye, visual artist Christine Dewancker and landscape designer Katie Strang tracked Garrison Creek through Bickford Park to explore the impact of an invisible geography — such as a lost river — on a community.  Read more

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Toronto to host First Nations youth from across the continent

By R.S. Konjek

A recent exhibition at the Royal Ontario Museum called Toronto Underfoot, presented a collection of Indigenous artifacts that have been unearthed from numerous locations around the city.  Read more

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Bloor Street’s cultural organizations starting to celebrate Canada 150

PHOTO COURTESY THE GARDINER MUSEUM: Drawing from memory and using a unique visual language of hybrid animal creatures, Janet Macpherson presents her very personal view of the nation in Janet Macpherson: A Canadian Bestiary at the Gardiner Museum. Its features four immersive installations are connected by overlapping themes and questions tracing identity and history, nature and the consequences of human actions, and the idea of the North. Showing until May 22.  Read more

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