PICTURE BY GEREMY BORDONARO/GLEANER NEWS
Mike Layton (Ward 19, Trinity-Spadina) was among the speakers at a late September Bells on Bloor event celebrating the installation of bike lanes between Shaw Street and Avenue Road. Organizers characterized the communal ride during which cyclists — including activist Albert Koehl, Joe Cressy (Ward 20, Trinity-Spadina), Gideon Forman from the David Suzuki Foundation, and Jared Kolb from Cycle Toronto — rode a ring around Bloor Street, Sherbourne Street, and Queen’s Park Crescent, as a victory lap. For further information on Bells on Bloor, please visit www.bellsonbloor.org. —Annemarie Brissenden  Read more

[Read more →]

The Harbord Village Residents’ Association (HVRA) mourned the passing of long-time board member Steve Klein, who passed away last month after a struggle with lymphoma. He loved travelling with his family and had a strong relationship with his daughter.  Read more

[Read more →]

The Kensington Hospice recently celebrated its fifth anniversary of providing palliative care in the Annex. One of the seven health services provided by the Kensington Health Centre, the hospice has 10 beds and provides end-of-life care that not only meets the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of its patients, but also supports a patient’s friends and family.  Read more

[Read more →]

Just after 3:30 p.m. on Sept. 20, 66-year-old criminal defence lawyer J. Randall Barrs was leaving his office at 23 Bedford Rd. when he was shot multiple times by a man dressed as a construction worker. The alleged shooter, whom the Toronto Police Service has identified as 51-year-old Grayson Delong, was under surveillance by Halton Regional Police following his release on bail due to his suspected connection to a break-in in Peel Region. One plainclothes officer rushed towards Delong, who was attempting to drive away in a car with stolen plates. The officer shot at Delong, who was treated at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre for serious injuries before appearing in court, where he agreed to remain in jail pending the outcome of his 15 charges relating to the shooting.  Read more

[Read more →]

Visioning a future for Little Italy

PICTURE COURTESY DTAH: Astra Burka, who organized the discussion on the future of College Street from Bathurst to Shaw streets, lauded the Bloor Annex BIA (whose chair publishes this newspaper) for its plan to transform “a series of left-over parcels of land into a sequence of vibrant, dynamic, public green spaces”.  Read more

[Read more →]

Spadina Avenue high-rise not a bar for height

By Annemarie Brissenden

A 25-storey, 334-unit apartment building is providing the model for a new mixed-student residence at the northwest corner of Spadina and Sussex avenues, but not in the way local residents’ associations would like.  Read more

[Read more →]

TDSB repair backlog reflects critical state of infrastructure

By Annemarie Brissenden

With both the federal and provincial governments making significant investments in public infrastructure, the Ministry of Education’s release of information detailing the maintenance backlog in Ontario raises a serious question: are we doing all that we can to maintain our buildings once they are built? The evidence suggests that we are not, and that our penchant for funding new infrastructure while ignoring our existing capital assets is ringing in a very high cost.  Read more

[Read more →]

Potential disaster averted

By Brian Burchell

Two Canadian Pacific freight trains collided on August 21 sending two locomotives and several rail cars off the tracks just north of Dupont Street near Howland Avenue. The trains were going in opposite directions and one clipped the tail end of the other as it failed to execute a safe pass.  Read more

[Read more →]

Program matches residents with native trees

PHOTO COURTESY MICHAEL LOW: This old burr oak tree on Spadina Road reflects Toronto’s aging tree canopy. The Toronto Park and Trees Foundation is working to distribute trees throughout the city so that the urban forest will continue to thrive well into the future.  Read more

[Read more →]

By Summer Reid

St. Peter’s Church invites Annex residents to its annual Fall Fair event to support its Winter Welcome Table outreach program. Winter Welcome Table assists the homeless by offering hospitality and a warm evening meal.  Read more

[Read more →]

PHOTO BY SUMMER REID/GLEANER NEWS: The city’s first road mural was installed late last month on Baldwin Street in Kensington Market. Part of the StreetARToronto Road Mural program, the mural is the result of a collaboration between artists and the Kensington Market BIA. The mural was painted using latex paint, which is made to withstand weather elements and foot traffic for six to nine months. The City of Toronto launched the pilot project after a proposal to legalize road murals did not pass Toronto City Council. Four additional murals will be installed throughout the city under the project by the end of October.
—Summer Reid/Gleaner News  Read more

[Read more →]

By Summer Reid

The Toronto Police Service (TPS) has requested the public’s assistance in investigating a sexual assault that occurred on Sept. 5.  Read more

[Read more →]

By Annemarie Brissenden

Applications to rezone an area at Spadina and Sussex avenues as well as 666 Spadina Ave. have been received by City Planning and are available online.  Read more

[Read more →]