A 23-year-old woman was walking in the Spadina Avenue and College Street area on Dec. 30, 2015, around 3 p.m. when a man pulled her into an alcove and sexually assaulted her. The Toronto Police Service (TPS) is seeking assistance in identifying the late 20s to early 30s suspect, who is described as approximately five feet seven inches tall weighing 140 pounds with an olive complexion, black hair, brown eyes, and dark features. On the afternoon of the assault, the suspect was wearing a blue track jacket with wide white stripes down the sleeves and a blue symbol on the left chest area. He wore two rings on his right hand and a ring on his left pinky finger.  Read more

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The Comfort Zone has filed a $23-million lawsuit against the Toronto Police Service (TPS) and former police chief Bill Blair, alleging the parties abused their powers to put the Spadina Avenue after-hours club out of business. After discovering that a 26-year-old man had been seen at the club just hours before his death as a result of a drug overdose, the TPS launched Project White Rabbit, an undercover raid that resulted in the seizure of $35,000 and various drugs valued at $33,000, as well as charges against 33 patrons and five staff. The lawsuit claims that police destroyed video surveillance equipment, and kept patrons and staff handcuffed for up to five hours. Since then, the lawsuit claims, the TPS has raided the club over 50 times, harassing staff and patrons. None of these allegations have been proven in court. It’s the second time the Comfort Zone has pursued a legal claim of this nature; in 2009, it launched a similar lawsuit against then councillor Adam Vaughan, claiming it had been the victim of a systematic harassment campaign aimed at shutting the club down.  Read more

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Design options released for tentative Bloor Street project

By Marielle Torrefranca

The City of Toronto has released a series of bike lane designs for its proposed pilot project on Bloor Street between Shaw Street and Avenue Road.  Read more

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Application to be reviewed in context of study

By Annemarie Brissenden

Residents attending an open house dedicated to the Bathurst Bloor 4 Corners Study Area were keen to focus on Westbank Corp.’s proposed Mirvish Village development instead of commenting on Toronto City Planning’s draft policies for the City of Toronto’s Official Plan.  Read more

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Celebrate the life and times of Anne Mirvish at the Anne Mirvish Gala at University College at the University of Toronto on Jan. 24. The gala is a fundraiser for the Anne Mirvish Performing Arts Scholarships, which support students who are studying the performing arts at the University of Toronto.  Read more

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Preparations underway to settle Syrian refugees

Chrystia Freeland (MP, University-Rosedale) addresses a packed town hall on refugees at the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre on Dec. 23. Many local groups are privately sponsoring Syrian refugees, who are expected to start settling in the Annex in the coming months. Courtesy Benjamin Bergen  Read more

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The newly minted Minister of Finance, Bill Morneau, wasted no time in announcing rules further restricting the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s (CMHC) ability to “backstop” loans to homebuyers. Effective Feb. 15, 2016, purchasers of homes whose purchase price exceeds $500,000 will be required to put at least 10 per cent down, which is up 5 per cent from what it was under the previous Conservative government. This is the federal government’s latest attempt to dampen a housing market that is widely seen as vulnerable to a radical readjustment, especially in the event of an increase in interest rates.  Read more

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Harris Huron alum

Red House, Winter by Lawren Harris. Courtesy Hart House

Re: Red House, Winter by Lawren Harris (December 2015 Cover)

Thanks Gleaner for that lovely Lawren Harris cover. In addition to the local ties and contributions mentioned in the article, Harris was also an alumnus of local Huron Street Public School.  Read more

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Meeting the prohibitive cost of child care first-hand

Mike Layton and wife Brett Tryon with their new baby Phoebe Layton, whose arrival has made the councillor more committed than ever to making the city affordable for families. Courtesy Hugh Campbell

By Mike Layton  Read more

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An environmental case for less meat on the table

In Australia, labelling for egg cartons must state if the eggs come from caged hens. Photo by Terri Chu

By Terri Chu  Read more

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Was the street named for a tireless English abolitionist?

Painting by George Clint from the British Museum courtesy of Wendy Smith.

By Annemarie Brissenden

Harbord Street may have been named for an early nineteenth-century advocate of parliamentary reform and tireless crusader to end slavery, says a past board member of the Harbord Village Residents’ Association.  Read more

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Imagine an alternate reality where everyone speaks in quotes from Star Wars films. That’s the world Annex residents Mark McIntyre and Andrew Chapman — who describe it as “every fanboy’s fantasy” — have created in their upcoming film, Bar Wars, a live-action short that follows Chapman as he tries to pick up women. Most of the action takes place in the “Lab”, the Labyrinth Lounge on Brunswick Avenue.  Read more

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Private school to renew lease for 50 years

Parents and students are relieved that UTS will remain in the Bloor Street building it has called home since 1910 well into the foreseeable future. The lease also includes provisions for physical improvements to the building, heritage restoration, and the addition of a multi-use auditorium. Marielle Torrefranca, Gleaner News  Read more

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