Harbord Bakery marks 70 years

Harbord Bakery’s special beet borscht beverage, developed in honour of its 70th anniversary.
AXILE GERONA/GLEANER?NEWS

By Annemarie Brissenden

For Rafi Kosower, Roslyn Katz, and Susan Wisniewski, VE day will always be a little extra special. Because it was on May 8, 1945, that their parents, Albert and Goldie Kosower, bought “the little bakery next to the fish market [at] the corner of Harbord and Major streets”.

Seventy years later, Harbord Bakery – so much a part of the neighbourhood that there’s a local lane named after the Kosowers – is still going strong.

“We’re the only Jewish bakery left in downtown Toronto,” says Rafi Kosower.

He’s the oldest of the siblings, all of whom co-own and work in the bakery, which, these days, serves clientele – some second and third generation – of all faiths and cultures.

“Everybody likes everything, and it is hard to tell who is Jewish and who isn’t.”

“The neighbourhood has come alive,” says Katz. “It’s really wonderful. It’s art. It’s music. So many different kinds of people now, and everyone is friendly.”

Wisniewski, the youngest of the three, says the family works hard to promote a “nice feeling”, and loves the fact that clients whose “parents used to bring them, now bring their kids here”.

The trio has fond memories of growing up above the store. Basically born into the bakery, they had little choice about working in the family business.

“We couldn’t ever sleep in,” recalls Katz with a laugh. “As we grew, we all worked here. We all had to be a part of it.”

The family’s middle child, Katz remembers how “all my friends would follow me home, because they knew what was at the end of the trip.”

Wisniewski, who “didn’t understand when I got married that one had to eat day-old bread,” says she “used [the bakery] as an excuse if I didn’t want to go out”.

The store’s cash register sparks fond memories for Kosower.

“We didn’t really have an allowance…if you needed money for something, you’d take [it] out of the cash register and leave a note saying how much you took.”

Ovens were rare in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s and he also remembers how local families would bring “cakes in pans to [what is now Kosower Lane], and whoever was on duty would bake them for a minimal price, just like in the old country”.

Kosower, who did his master’s thesis on the Jewish baker in Eastern Europe and the Americas, says Harbord Bakery is a model of how Jewish bakeries in the diaspora evolved over time, especially when the end of the Second World War brought waves of immigrants to Toronto, and with them a broader range of baked goods.

“Young Jewish bakers applied for positions and learned how to bake more sophisticated things, like brioche, which were not characteristic of a Jewish bakery,” he explains. “Harbord Bakery became the place for secular Jews who appreciated tradition but were not into observance.”

While the bakery remains steeped in tradition, the family has never shied away from innovation.

“Prepared food is a really big thing now,” says Wisnieski. “We were one of the first people to offer prepared food 25 to 30 years ago.”

And they’ve developed a unique item in honour of the bakery’s seventieth anniversary: a beet borscht beverage, sold, of course, in a beer bottle.

“It’s a big success,” relates Kosower. “The customers are loving it and say it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread.”

The siblings haven’t made a lot of formal plans in honour of the store’s 70 years in business – “We’re kind of a spontaneous group,” admits Wisnieski – but they have sponsored some musicians and commissioned some artwork.

Perhaps the most significant celebration of the bakery’s legacy is that so many customers have become dear friends, a fact highlighted by all three of Albert and Goldie Kosower’s children.

“The many friends who started as customers at the bakery are legion in number,” says Kosower.

Wisnieski agrees, saying “the people that come into the bakery are so appreciative it makes it all worth doing.”

“We’ve made so many friends,” reflects Katz. “We’re still here, and we’re going to be here for quite a few more years hopefully.”

Proposal marked by diversity

An artist’s rendering shows the redeveloped Mirvish Village, as envisioned by Westbank in its application to the City of Toronto, from Lennox Street. The proposed development includes purpose-built rental housing, provides accommodations for cycling, and seeks to be as sustainable as possible.
COURTESY HENRIQUEZ Partners architects

By Annemarie Brissenden

The fine-grained retail and eclectic mix of buildings that developed over time along Toronto’s avenues is the inspiration behind Westbank Corp.’s application to redevelop the southwest corner of Bloor and Bathurst streets, which the company submitted to the City of Toronto last month. It’s been two years – two years of public outreach, community consultation, and research – since the company purchased the parcel of land that includes Honest Ed’s and Mirvish Village and is bounded by Bloor, Bathurst, Lennox, and Markham streets.

The application is detailed in a 150-page report that provides the site context, the proposal itself, an urban design analysis, planning policy context, and planning rationale. It is accompanied by draft amendments to the Official Plan and a Zoning By-Law. Both documents detail elements of the future development, named Mirvish Village, and largely cleave to the set of design principles that Westbank previously introduced at its open house in early March.

These 10 principles have been reframed as “benefits to the city” and include arguments for: the creation of a complete community that encompasses “retail, residential, and an array of civic services”; heritage conservation that renews “and extends the site’s history as a vibrant urban space”; an urban market of approximately 30 permanent vendors that recalls “the hustle and bustle of the Honest Ed’s store”; a pedestrian-oriented public realm; and, vibrant local micro and pop-up retail, particularly fine-grained retail along Bloor and Bathurst streets.

The five other principles-cum-benefits are: 1,000 units of purpose-built rental housing, with 50 per cent or more at two bedrooms or more, as well as the introduction of a new daycare; sustainable development that targets LEED Platinum ND certification and Tier 2 of the Toronto Green Standard; development that is transit-oriented and cultivates urban mobility like walking and biking; and, finally, a built form that respects the “site’s unique context, history, [and] surrounding communities” with “slim, vertically oriented building components that together form larger and more dynamic buildings”.

Designed to minimize shadowing and visual impacts on adjacent neighbourhoods, and dubbed micro towers due to their small floor plates that range in size from 500 to 600 metres squared, the application envisages that five of these slim, vertical buildings will range from 15 to 29 storeys.

The application acknowledges that “Bloor Street is predominantly low-rise in this area, [but] it is expected to intensify over time, particularly in the four corners area.” The placement of the towers amongst the lower-rise buildings is meant to mimic the streetwall pattern along Bloor and Bathurst streets, “transitioning down in height as it extends outward from the intersection”. Each tower will have its own style, which is not only a nod to the local built-form, but gives the appearance that the neighbourhood has developed organically and underscores a dedication to diversity.

Although there are common elements that subtly connect the project’s individual components into a cohesive whole, diversity – of building type, residential type, retail type, and even transportation type – is the main driver of this mixed-use development.

It also celebrates eclecticism, honouring the best elements of Mirvish Village and Honest Ed’s, while discounting the worst, such as the way the large format store disrupted “the fine-grained character of retail along Bloor Street”. Westbank proposes to pay homage to Honest Ed’s “iconic, zany signage” by installing “vibrant, eclectic signage” for the retail along Bloor and Bathurst streets, and preserve much of Markham Street’s heritage.

The houses at 588 to 594 Markham St., and 596 to 598, will all be conserved in situ and rehabbed, while 581 to 598, and 593 to 597, will be conserved, rehabbed, and integrated into the new construction. The house at 610 will be relocated to 591 Markham St., and restaurants will be located in conserved historic houses located along the southern portion of the street. A new laneway will provide east/west access for vehicles and pedestrians from Bathurst to Markham streets, while Honest Ed’s lane has been relocated to the west, and designated as an intimate pedestrian space featuring micro retail.

It’s a proposal that values cycling, transit, and pedestrian comfort over cars. It separates vehicles and pedestrians to maximize the public realm, and “all parking and the majority of loading activities have been located below grade”. The application does not specify how many parking spots it will include, but argues that “Mirvish Village strikes a balance between providing adequate parking to address demand and minimize impacts on neighbouring areas while also limiting parking enough to discourage vehicular access as a primary mode of transportation”.

This is part of a series of Gleaner articles on the Westbank development. Upcoming articles will focus on the community’s response to the proposed application, examine specific components of the proposed development, and profile the people involved. For story ideas, or comments, please email gleanereditor@gmail.com.

Porch View Dances bridges art and audience

By Axile Gerona

Local porches will come alive with dance once again this summer, when Porch View Dances returns for the fourth year to Seaton Village.

“From Aug. 19 to 23, choreographies by real-life professional dance couples Karen Kaeja and Allen Kaeja, Michael Caldwell and Louis Laberge-Côté, and Ofilio Sinbadinho and Apolonia Velasque will be showcased through the stories of participating families told along the streets of Seaton Village,” says publicist Sue Edworthy.

In Porch View Dances, mounted by Kaeja d’Dance, a contemporary dance company, the audience meets at 84 London St. and then promenades from porch to porch to witness stories unfold through dance. The unusual performances also unite professional dancers with amateurs and “non-dancers” alike, many of whom are families and couples who live in the neighbourhood.

Working with inexperienced “non-dancers” brings its own set of challenges.

“As dancers and artists, we are used to working six hours straight in the studio, but that doesn’t happen with the families,” explains producer Jaclyn Rodrigues. “The breaks are very frequent, and choreographers go over the movements a lot. It’s about learning how to adapt and working differently. Families get to see how artists work, while artists see how real, everyday people work.”

It’s a collaboration in which the choreographers draw inspiration and direction straight from the houses and shared stories of the participating families. Also, notes Rodrigues, “the hours spent rehearsing create time for the families to come together and be together in this really special project”.

New this year is “The Wedding Brigade”, choreographed by Karen Kaeja. Featuring “everyday women”, some as young as 10, the female performers – single, divorced, married, never been married, some on their second marriage – all wear white.

“Some of the women are wearing their own wedding dresses. The idea is to show the western culture of wearing a white wedding dress and all the weird baggage that comes with that,” says Rodrigues. Not just an opportunity to comment “on relationships and the stories of women”, developing the piece itself created a space for these women to share and listen to each other’s stories.

Other pieces celebrate the stories of a neighbourhood and engage “real people, in real time, in real spaces”. And in sticking with tradition, the performances will conclude with “Flock Landing”, the finale in Vermont Square Park in which audience members – irrespective of dance skill or experience – are encouraged to participate.

Meant to bridge professional art with the general public, Porch View Dances is designed to be audience-inclusive and encourage spectators to be active participants in the creation of art through dance.

That theme of inclusivity permeates more than just the performances themselves. Porch View Dances depends on volunteers for its success, and it’s not uncommon for entire families to donate their time to the arts enterprise. The volunteers, who manage audiences as large as 400 people per performance, work together as they control transit by making sure the Porch View Dances route is accessible and car free. They also ensure that spectators move smoothly from site to site and successfully follow the flow of the performances in the neighbourhood.

“Events like Porch View Dances are unique and uplifting. Not only do they serve to edify the residents of our? ?neighbourhood, but they inspire and promote community engagement,” says Elden Freeman, president of Freeman Real Estate, which sponsors the event.

After four years, Porch View Dances has become a summer tradition for many Seaton Village families, and has attracted acclaim from the dance community.

The Canadian Dance Assembly has presented Porch View Dances with the I Love Dance Community Award, and nominated it for the I Love Dance Innovation Award.

Join the Porch View Dances as dancers, volunteers, and families celebrate love, partnership, family, and neighbourhood through dance from Seaton Village porches later this month.

Porch View Dances runs Aug. 19 to 23. Performances start at 7 p.m., 4 p.m. on Aug. 23, and are pay what you can.

For further information, or to volunteer, please email outreach@kaeja. org or visit www.kaeja.org.

The sidewalk sale event will showcase Mirvish Village merchants and restaurants once again this season on Sept. 19 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Vintage, artisanal, and new merchandise will be found at the sidewalk sale with great deals available. Local restaurants will be offering delicious bites, together with the Re/Max booth, which is giving away free hot dogs. Vivita Spa booth will be handing out cosmetic freebies as well, such as unscented facial cleansers and body and face lotions. Visitors and customers will be able to sample and experience the interesting businesses of Mirvish Village. The performance lineup is packed with an assorted variety of music including funk and blues from Red Hot Trio, throwback melodies from the 1940s, as well as trendy music from saxophonist Love Alley, and fusion from singer-songwriter Mirian Katrib.

—Axile Gerona

It’s as though the Conservative Party of Canada is making it up as it goes along. There is very little meat in their policy platform outside of the rhetoric of getting tough on crime, keeping a steady hand on the economy’s tiller, and protecting us from terrorists. The platform plank, the Home Renovation Tax Credit, is something substantial, but it is a bit too tough to chew. This does not represent sound fiscal policy, will result in negligible public good, and is a mere re-election ruse. We see a number of problems with this proposal.

Mr. Harper is offering a permanent tax break for homeowners. Do any work on renovations valued from $1,000 to $5,000 and you get to take 15 per cent of that value off your federal tax obligation. It’s estimated to cost the federal government $1.5 billion a year.

First of all, it’s regressive. Only homeowners are eligible, not renters. It gives money to people who would probably spend it anyhow. It’s consistent with giving money to the Conservatives’ base, homeowners in the suburbs. Arguably it gives their traditional voter base another handout and a reason not to wander at the ballot box. It’s just cementing their constituency, so it’s redeemable at best as a sound re-election strategy.

In the mealy-mouthed announcement, Mr. Harper offered that this tax credit would not take effect, until, as he put it vaguely, “mid-mandate”. And then only if the federal budget is balanced. We should remember that this government has delivered a string of deficit budgets that go back eight years. So, don’t hold your breath that the balanced budget condition will come to fruition. Given that the plan is for delayed gratification, “Re-elect me now and I will give you this (maybe) later”, it could arguably have the opposite effect. “Let’s wait, honey, to reno the kitchen until the tax incentive kicks in.”

Why is Harper not immediately implementing the tax credit? Perhaps that would signal that he acknowledges that we are now in a recession, which, of course, he denies. He also asserts that we are in a balanced budget condition right now. However, the prime minister is increasingly alone in this view. In a July 23 announcement, the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) reported, “Using the Bank of Canada’s July projection of real GDP growth, PBO estimates that an updated Budget 2015 outlook would show deficits of $1.5 billion in 2015-16 and $0.1 billion in 2016-17.” So where is this gift money supposed to come from?

Does this sector really need such a boost? Do we really need to be pumping more money into the over-inflated housing sector? According to a July 15 report of the Altus Group, a real estate consultancy, growth in the renovation sector already outpaces the overall economy. In 2015, Canadians spent $68 billion on residential renovations and just $48 billion on new home building. Renovations account for one in five dollars borrowed on home equity lines of credit. Only 25 per cent of the renovations we do are for necessary repair work.

The only plus side is that this measure will help bring the black market into daylight. Homeowners will be demanding receipts in order to apply for the tax credit, and the federal government will get access to information about who is supplying renovation services. According to an Aug. 4 release by the Canadian Home Builders Association’s CEO Kevin Lee, “Tax credits that require homeowners to get receipts also help to protect them from ‘cash’ contractors who leave a trail of bad work and broken promises.”

If this tax credit must go to those who are renovating their houses why not make this more positive? Like home energy reduction (time to replace that 25-year-old refrigerator perhaps?), alternative energy solutions, green building materials, anything at all progressive would contribute more to the greater good.

This plan just blows more smoke into the over-inflated housing bubble, encourages more unhealthy home equity borrowing, and is unabashedly another way for the Conservatives to buy your vote with your own money.

In calling for bike lanes on Bloor Street, the Gleaner’s editorial (“It’s really a village, not a freeway”, July 2015) makes an obvious, yet routinely overlooked, point about how transportation planners still rank the movement of (single-occupant) cars far above neighbourhood values.

Bloor Street may be officially a highway, or a “major arterial” under Toronto’s Road Classification System, but in the everyday life of the Annex community it’s a road along which residents stroll to get a coffee, go for dinner, or visit the gym; across which students walk on their way to school; and on which many residents cycle to get to work or to run errands.

Bloor Street is foremost a public space, so how that space is shared is the community’s business, not merely that of a traffic planner whose priority is moving motor vehicles from a distant Point A to a distant Point B.

Indeed, if the street was shared according to shoppers’ mode of transport to get to local businesses then 90 per cent of the streetscape would be dedicated to pedestrians, transit users, and cyclists.

Instead, the greatest part of the public streetscape is today turned over to cars and car parking.

We can do better. A pilot bike lane on Bloor Street beginning in the spring of 2016 is a good start.

Thanks to the Gleaner for standing up for the community.

—Albert Koehl, Vice Chair, Annex Residents’ Association

Thank you for your thoughtful editorial in the July 2015 edition. I think you articulated very well the many reasons for replacing one lane of car traffic with bike lanes on Bloor Street.

You are right to note that if next summer’s pilot project is to succeed, it will be crucial that sufficient parking for cyclists be in place.

When bike lanes on Harbord were re-installed a few years ago, our association and the Harbord Street BIA identified the 50-foot no-parking zones on the residential streets that are adjacent to Harbord as ideal locations for bike racks.

It is my understanding that the Ontario Highway Traffic Act forbids the parking of motorized vehicles within the first 50 feet of an intersection. The presumed intent is that everyone has an unobstructed view as they approach that intersection. If bike racks were placed on side streets adjacent to Bloor Street, this would only partially obstruct anyone’s view and would provide another reason for all vehicle drivers to slow down.  Just recently the Bloor-Borden Farmers’ Market coordinators persuaded the city to install a large bike rack on Borden Street, immediately south of Bloor Street, in a no-parking zone.  This is a precedent that should open the door to many similar installations on other streets.

If and when the city installs bike racks on side streets immediately north and south of Bloor Street, my own view is that this would also be a good time to remove bike parking rings from already crowded sidewalks. This will discourage cyclists (including myself) from riding on sidewalks to reach the nearest bike ring, and thus improve pedestrian safety. Living in dense downtown neighbourhoods as we do, anything that removes conflict between different users of public spaces is something that should be considered.

As your editorial notes, our association has been supportive of bike lanes on Bloor?Street for a few years. We look forward to next summer’s pilot project.

—Tim Grant,

Chair, Harbord Village Residents’ Association

Do voters want another four years of Stephen Harper?

By Jennifer Hollett

This year is a critical year for Canada. With an early federal election call, we are now in an 11-week campaign, one of the longest (and most expensive to taxpayers) in our country’s history.

There are 30 new federal ridings across the country, including University-Rosedale here in the Annex. It is a new riding, with new possibilities. The ballot box question on October 19 is centred around change; do voters want another four years of Stephen Harper or a change in our country’s leadership? While many voters are clear they’re voting against Harper, the question that begs our attention is what are we voting for.

Toronto is Canada’s largest and most important city. Repeating this outside of the GTA is usually met with eye rolls and comedic jabs, but our city is home to 90,000 businesses and produces over 15 per cent of Canada’s GDP. Each year, 80,000 new immigrants come to Toronto in search of opportunity.

Yet Toronto struggles to keep up with this growth. While not a particularly sexy topic, infrastructure is one of the most vital issues at play in our city this federal election. At the Federation of Canadian Municipalities meeting in Edmonton this year, there was a lot of discussion around the need for a forward-thinking federal partner with a long-term commitment to infrastructure. In last year’s municipal election the top issue was public transit. Our buses make sardine cans look spacious, street cars are in constant disrepair, and subway routes haven’t kept up with our city’s population. This has led to congestion, gridlock, and delays becoming a daily norm. The average commute time in Toronto is now over 80 minutes per day, which is longer than New York, Los Angeles, and London.

With the weak Canadian dollar and several economists now pointing to a recession, many Torontonians are struggling to find work. The youth unemployment rate in Toronto is a whopping 17 per cent (compared to the national average of 6.8 per cent). Despite having one or two degrees, when youth do find work, the jobs are often part-time, contract, and precarious. Since 2008, two-thirds of all jobs created in Ontario have been part-time, temporary, or in self-employment. Canada needs to diversify its economy so that it can absorb the shock of falling commodity prices and welcome investment to kick-start new opportunities and create full-time work. We should compete as an innovative, energy-efficient, high tech economy that is a magnet for investment, globally and domestically.

This December in Paris, more than 190 countries will convene at the COP 21: UN climate change conference to explore a new international agreement on climate change. These talks are focused on reducing global greenhouse gas emissions in order to tackle the growing threat of climate change. Canada has won the dubious distinction of the international Fossil award five years in a row. The Climate Action Network hands out this infamous, satirical award to a country doing the most damage to climate talks in a given year. Who our prime minister is will likely determine if we’re on our way to our sixth award.

Locally, in our own community, we remain at risk of another Lac-Mégantic rail disaster. The Canadian Pacific rail line, which runs along Dupont Street, transports dangerous goods through our neighbourhoods every day. Local activists have been advocating for safe, transparent, and regulated rail to prevent such rail accidents by calling on much needed government regulation, enforcement, and transparency for Canadian rail safety.

The two questions we must ask ourselves this election are what kind of Canada do we want to live in? And what kind of Toronto do we want to live in? That’s ultimately what the federal election is about. It’s time to commit to building a strong, healthy, livable city for everyone.

Jennifer Hollett is the federal New Democractic Party candidate for University-Rosedale.

Empower families, promote small business, and provide better transit

By Karim Jivraj

I am thrilled to be running to be your next member of Parliament. Over the past three months, our team of young volunteers and I have knocked on over 68,000 doors and I’ve personally met thousands of neighbours and local residents.

Growing up in Toronto

My name is Karim. I was born in Hamilton, and grew up in north Toronto. My parents came to Canada in 1972 from East Africa following their expulsion by the Ugandan strongman Idi Amin. Fleeing a regime that persecuted ethnic minorities, my parents saw in Canada a safe haven for tolerance where they could work hard and start a family. My family has since run a north Toronto menswear store, where my two younger brothers and I used to help out after school and during our summers.

From law to politics

After graduating from the Toronto French School, I moved to Paris to study international law at the Sorbonne. I paid my way through university by teaching English. Although I love my career in international law and arbitration, where I have fought for wronged investors against foreign governments, I want to serve my community and my country.

Promoting small business

I’ve spoken with the owners of convenience stores, restaurants, juice bars, barbershops, and tattoo parlours. Most agree that things have gotten better for their small businesses: less red tape and lower taxes have allowed them to grow their businesses and hire new employees. My upbringing shaped my belief that small business owners are the bedrock of our communities, and I want to make it easier for these courageous people to work hard and succeed.

I want Toronto to be the start-up capital of the world. I want to make it easier for young entrepreneurs and innovators to make their ideas reach the marketplace. The new Canada-EU free trade agreement will enable our local small businesses and entrepreneurs to sell their goods and services to consumers in France, Italy, and 26 other EU countries.

Financially sustainable transit

I started taking the Bayview 11 bus when I was 12, and I’ve been using public transit my entire life. I’ve also lived in or visited cities with truly world-class urban transit, and I know that Toronto can do better. I was immensely proud to attend the announcement that the federal government is providing $2.6 billion to Mayor John Tory’s innovative SmartTrack plan. I’m an urban conservative, and good urban transit means more time to work and to spend with our friends and loved ones.

Helping families raise kids

Meeting hundreds of people every single day has made me realize the true diversity of local residents and families. No two families are alike. The Universal Child Care Benefit has been a huge hit, and gives money to every single family with kids under 18. Some use it for a family camping trip, some for swimming lessons or pottery camp, and many for university tuition. I believe in solutions that empower families to make choices that correspond to their own lifestyles and priorities.

I need your help

For the first time in generations, we have federal spending under control. We’ve avoided the temptation to create new expensive federal programs and we’ve stuck with the basics: keep taxes and government spending low. Let’s focus on making it easier to start a business and a family in University-Rosedale. Let’s make it easier to buy a first home.

It’s no secret – I am the underdog in this race – but with your help we can send an MP to Ottawa who will fight for what matters to us.

Karim Jivraj is the federal Conservative Party of Canada candidate for University-Rosedale.