Sue Dexter (left), with Jessica Bell, has championed the preservation and greening of Harbord Village and worked tirelessly to better the community. COURTESY JESSICA BELL
This article is the second in a series about local residents making a difference in our community. These unsung heroes were brought to The Gleaner’s attention by MPP Jessica Bell, who honoured them at her Annual Community Celebration, in December of 2019.
By Nicole Stoffman
Susan Dexter loves a challenge, especially if it involves designing a system that could help slow climate change. These days she’s asking herself how to get Harbord Village to net-zero.
“Is it possible to get property owners to spend money to get rid of fossil fuels in their houses,” she wonders, “even though there will likely be subsidies and loans from the city and the feds?”
The likely answer is yes, if Dexter is on the case. A founding board member of the Harbord Village Residents’Association (HVRA) she co-authored the group’s Green Master Plan, which was passed into legislation and led to in-street planters at four intersections, with more village greening initiatives on the way.
Now she’s working with TranformTO to dramatically reduce Harbord Village’s carbon output through home retrofits.
“Sue is a leader in the work we all must take on to make our cities sustainable,” says MPP Jessica Bell, who honoured Dexter’s work at her recent Community Celebration.
Dexter also helped change the direction of Koerner Hall from north-south to east-west, which saved some of the forest in Philosopher’s Walk.
When the provincial government cut City Council, Dexter banded together with residents’ associations from across the city to protect councillors’ staffing levels.
“She puts in a lot of hours to try to understand the issues and find solutions,” says Councillor Mike Layton. “Although you might not always see them, Sue’s fingerprints are on many of the positive changes in our community.”
Susan Dexter’s activism began when she saw that construction of the Spadina LRT was hurting trees. She started working with Olivia Chow on tree policy. Soon after, she joined the U of T’s City Liaison Committee to represent local residents’ concerns about green space preservation on campus.
That’s where she was plucked for the HVRA board one day.
In the intervening years, the HVRA has completed two tree inventories, installed 30 solar home energy systems, cleaned up graffiti, completed an award winning oral history project, and won Heritage Conservation designation for 349 houses. “When a residents’ association is really working, it’s capturing the imagination of the residents,” explains Dexter. “It’s a very progressive and early-adopter community.”
Gail Misra, chair of the HVRA Board, calls her “the biggest thinker and doer in the community.”
Yet the ecologist and former journalist is not comfortable in the spotlight. “The main thing is it’s not about me, it’s about the people in my neighbourhood,” Dexter insists.
When pressed, she will admit that she understands policy. Her journalist’s ability to research complex problems and her love of the natural world born of childhood summers in the Gatineau Hills, inform her activism.
Journalism was the family business. Her father was legendary wartime political reporter Alexander Grant Dexter of the Winnipeg Free Press.
Over a 30-year career, Dexter wrote for the Globe and Mail, the Star, TVO, Maclean’s, and covered public affairs for the CBC.
In 1975 she moved to Washington with her husband John Young, an economist, who worked for the International Monetary Fund. Upon his death, she returned to Toronto and settled in Harbord Village. In keeping with her lifelong interest in the health of trees, she signed up to study botany at the University of Toronto.
Susan Dexter is optimistic about the future of local activism. She sees a “rising tide” among residents and residents’ associations.
“The journalists will have you think we’re just a bunch of NIMBYs who complain about development, but we do a whole bunch of other stuff that’s really trying to realize a city that’s prospering, functional, and environmentally responsible, with a creative class. These are huge issues.”
March 24th, 2020 · Comments Off on FOCUS: Legal weed dispensary opens on Bloor (Mar. 2020)
Tokyo Smoke location aims to educate consumers
Resembling the Apple Store rather than a weed shop, Tokyo Smoke invested heavily in an interior design that it’s welcoming and facilitates it’s educational approach to the legal sale of marijuana. TANYA IELYSEIEVA/GLEANER NEWS
By Tanya Ielyseieva
The first legal marijuana dispensary has opened in the heart of the Annex just steps from Bathurst and Bloor.
The new Tokyo Smoke store is located at 570 Bloor St. W., just opposite the emerging Mirvish Village development; currently it is the largest location of Tokyo Smoke with 4,200 sq ft of retail space. The store features products from a number of growers including the first of its kind Houseplant brand as well as Tweed, Edison, Aurora among many others.
The Houseplant line is a Canadian cannabis company founded by Vancouver-born actor and director Seth Rogen, screenwriter Evan Goldberg, and partners, including United Talent Agency (UTA). It is owned in partnership with Canopy Growth Corporation. Under the terms of the partnership Canopy Growth will support and help scale the Houseplant’s success in their licensed sites, including Tokyo Smoke. Houseplant offers dried flower cannabis, pre-rolled joints, and softgel capsules.
Houseplant, a brand of cannabis, designed the nostalgic living room pop up located right in the retails space. TANYA LELYSEIEVA/GLEANER NEWS
To further promote its brand in the store, Houseplant offers a pop-up lounge, complete with elements of a nostalgic living room, curated displays, and moments of discovery for guests.
In November 2019 Tokyo Smoke, owned by Canopy Growth Corporation, announced its intention to open ten retail cannabis stores across Ontario.
“As a company, we are pleased to see this progress in the Ontario retail market,” said Mark Zekulin, CEO, Canopy Growth, in the release by Canopy Growth Corporation. “Increasing our presence in Toronto and for the first time north of the GTA is an important step to building the Tokyo Smoke brand with an emphasis on consumer education and cannabis destigmatization.”
With Tokyo Smoke 333 Yonge at Dundas Square in Toronto and Tokyo Smoke Oshawa, this will bring the number of Tokyo Smoke retail cannabis stores in Ontario to a total of 12.
The store itself looks similar to an Apple store; it is stark and minimalist, with a few accents and pops of colour. There is a cannabis terpene (basically aromatic oil) podium in the centre of the store which, according to staff, “soothes the mind and the body”.
The store categorizes its products into five sections: Go (high energy), Rise (creativity), Equalize (balance), Ease (comfort), and Pause (relaxation). The sections are split into spray and oils, pre-rolled joints and capsules, edibles, and bud. Edibles have only recently been legalized for retail sale and are very popular among customers who are new to marjuana use.
“The idea was to create a community for creators where it was also a safe space for them to talk about cannabis and just educate, not consume, but just educate themselves,” said Melissa Gallagher, Director, Franchising at Canopy Growth Corporation, while explaining the goal of Tokyo Smoke.
In the store, the customer is greeted by an educator who can walk the person through the system and help them understand the difference between Sativa and Indica and how that can impact their experience.
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February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on ON THE COVER: Enjoy your trip (Feb. 2020)
The first legal marijuana dispensary in the Annex, Tokyo Smoke, opened on February 12 at 570 Bloor St. W. (just west of Bathurst). Featuring a full-range of cannibus products including edibles. See the full Gleaner story soon on-line at www.gleanernews.ca or in the March edition. TANYA IELYSEIEVA/GLEANER NEWS
Comments Off on ON THE COVER: Enjoy your trip (Feb. 2020)Tags:Annex · News
February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on NEWS: Affordable housing brought to Bathurst (Feb. 2020)
Feds invest $200 million
Due for occupancy in 2022, the redevelopment at Bathurst and Bloor by Westbank Corp. dubbed Mirvish Village, will house an increased affordable housing component thanks to a $200 million financial contribution by the federal government. COURTESY WESTBANK CORP.
By Tanya Ielyseieva
Last month we included a snapshot of thirteen major developments underway or pending with the Gleaner’s distribution area. In this edition we focus on eleven of those that include a large residential component and ask the question: “Are they affordable?”
Keenly aware of Toronto’s lack of affordable housing, the federal government came to Bathurst and Bloor in January to announce a major investment in the Mirvish Village development making many more units affordable.
On January 16, Mayor John Tory joined Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Ahmed Hussen, social development minister, to pledge $200 million to provide affordable rental units in the multi-tower Mirvish Village development. Hussen said the Mirvish project will ensure the location stays true to its roots as a new-immigrant and low-income hub.
“Today’s announcement reinforces our government’s commitment to creating homes that are affordable, energy-efficient, and accessible,” said Freedland. “By helping build communities such as Mirvish Village, where people can live close to jobs, schools, and public transit, we can make a meaningful difference in the lives of Canadians.”
Toronto Mayor John Tory said the project is a milestone in the battle for cheaper housing.
“Affordable housing has long been a challenge in our city, and it continues to be as big a challenge as ever today. Today shows how we can work together to actually start to make real progress in addressing that challenge.”
According to a study released by the group ACORN Canada, affordable housing in Toronto is defined as housing where the total monthly shelter cost (including heat and hydro) is at or below Toronto’s average market rent (AMR) by unit type.
The province of Ontario defines affordable housing as the least expensive of two variables: the first option demands that rent not exceed 30 per cent of gross annual household income for low- and moderate-income households, meaning households with incomes in the lowest 60 per cent of the income distribution for renter households for the regional market area. The second option demands that rent be at or below the average market rent of a unit in the regional market area, meaning the area generally broader than a lower-tier municipality that has a high degree of social and economic interaction.
According to Statistics Canada, the Annex population increased by 4.6 per cent from 2011 to 2016, and renter and owner households changed as well. Sixty-two per cent of households are rented, thirty-eight per cent are owned. The population of the Annex area will spike as these buildings are made available for occupancy.
Notwithstanding the significant stock of affordable units to be made available in Mirvish Village, the vast majority of the new towers are being built for the well-to-do. Below is a summary of each development, number of units, and base prices:
Bianca Condo – 420 Dupont St.
This new residential condominium is being erected at 420 Dupont Street. Bianca Condo will have 9 storeys and 216 units. This condo is self-described as a “perfect condo for university students”. However, the starting point for a condo is $1.3 million. No affordable units are included in this building.
Mirvish Village and Honest Ed’s – 581 Bloor St. W.
The Mirvish Village project is set to include 916 rental units, 225,000+ square feet of retail, offices, and community uses, along with public green spaces.
Six buildings will include 916 rental units, 366 of which will be affordable, costing no more than one-third the median Toronto income. The unit mix will include 279 studio apartments, 230 one-bedroom units, 284 two-bedroom units, 87 three-bedroom units, and 36 live and work units.
Of those, 100 will be secured at 80 per cent of the average market rate in Toronto – far less than the going price in the downtown neighbourhood.
Officials say that a one-bedroom “deeply affordable” unit will cost about $1,000 a month while the affordable units will be a little more expensive but still below market rate.
“We want mixed housing whereby the affordable units, the deeply affordable units, the market units, all of them are mixed together and will have the same design and the same quality,” Hussen said.
Hussen, who is also responsible for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, said the funding comes from a rental construction financing initiative.
Northwest corner Madison and Bloor – 316 Bloor St. W.
The new condominium is set to rise at 316 Bloor St. and will have 29 storeys. The development proposes 341 residential units consisting of bachelor units, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units. A minimum of 30 per cent of the building will be residential units varying between two and three bedrooms. The starting point for a condo is $1.5 million. No affordable units are included.
Northwest corner of Spadina and Bloor – 350 Bloor St. W
A new 36-storey development is a mixed-use building with spaces for retail, offices, condos, and rental units. The project is in the discussion process and hasn’t been approved yet.
666 Spadina Ave.
A new 11-storey mixed-use building with a total of 133 rental apartments and will have a new park at the north end of the site. It will be located south of the existing 25-storey building. A minimum of 30 per cent of the building’s units will be residential, varying between two and three bedrooms. The existing 25-storey apartment building contains 334 rental units. Based on the city’s Official Plan housing definitions, one unit is considered affordable, 258 units have mid-range rents, and 73 units have high-end rates.
The Waverly – 484 Spadina Ave.
A new 15-storey rental building will bring 167 “Class A” apartments, meaning luxury apartments and high rents. This project is positioned as a premium rental building offering the same level of amenities and suite finishes as high-end condominiums. The development proposes residential units consisting of bachelor units, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units. No affordable units will be included.
Theory Condos — 203 College St.
This new 30-storey building is a mixed-use development, featuring residential and commercial retail units. The development will house 356 residential units in total, including 60 bachelor units, 34 one-bedroom units, 146 one-bedroom-plus den units, 87 two-bedroom units, and 29 three-bedroom units. The starting point for a condo is $400.000+. Four units are going to be affordable rental homes. These units are 503, 601, 603 and 701 – all one-bedroom barrier-free units, measuring between 520 and 560 square feet. The units will be at or below 80 per cent of average market rents.
328 Dupont St.
This new 13-storey condo is a mixed-use condo which will have 104 modern units, between one and four bedrooms. ANX Condos will rise 13 storeys and will house just 105 private suites, which will include five one-bedroom units, 54 two-bedroom units, 36 three-bedroom or more units, and 10 four-bedroom units. The starting point for a condo is $600.000. No affordable units will be included.
300 Bloor St. W.
This new 28-storey condo development will have 259 units. The tower would include mostly residential use with a mix of 30 per cent one-bedroom units, 60 per cent two-bedroom and 10 per cent three-bedroom units. The starting point for a condo is $725.000. No affordable units will be made.
College Street at Huron – 231 College St.
This new 17-storey residential condominium building will consist of 142 residential units along with 4 retail units and a two-level underground parking garage. The starting point for a condo is $250,000. Two one-bedrooms will have no rent stipulation, at least two one-bedroom and two two-bedroom units will have affordable rents and the remainder will have no higher than mid-range rents.
Cost of housing is one of the main themes of any election campaign in recent years and in Toronto, where real estate prices and rents are extremely high, affordable housing is one of the biggest issues facing voters in the city. Mayor John Tory made big promises for the city’s housing plan when he announced a new affordable housing plan in December 2019.
The plan, which includes approving 40,000 new affordable rental homes, 18,000 new supportive housing units for vulnerable residents and, 10,000 new affordable rental and supportive homes for women and girls, is meant to help more than 340,000 households when it’s fully completed.
Despite the mayor’s aspirational goals, and the federal government’s meaningful investment in affordable housing at Bathurst and Bloor, there seems to be a landscape of housing being built in the Annex that most people could not afford to live in.
February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on NEWS: U of T loses eight in plane crash (Feb. 2020)
Community mourns the deaths of students, staff
U of T flies its flag at half mast to honour victims of the shooting down of Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752. BRIAN BURCHELL/GLEANER NEWS
By Tanya Ielyseieva
The University of Toronto has confirmed that eight members of the university community died in the crash of Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752, on January 8.
The Kyiv-bound flight, which carried a total of 176 passengers including nine crew members and 15 children, was shot down shortly after taking off from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport at 6:12 a.m., local time. The plane crashed 15 km from the airport and the wreckage was strewn over a wide area, leaving no survivors.
Hassan Rouhani, the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, later called the firing of the missile that brought down the plane a “disastrous mistake”.
According to the Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Vadym Prystaiko, 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, 11 Ukrainians as well as 10 Swedish, four Afghan, 3 German, and 3 British citizens were on board the flight.
The Canadian government later lowered the number of Canadians killed in the plane crash to 57. The total number of victims remained the same, at 176.
The route from Tehran to Toronto via Kyiv is a popular route for Iranian-Canadians. The stop-over in Kyiv is only four hours long while others last more than eight hours, and the price is two times cheaper for Ukrainian Airlines than for any other airline.
“Many of the passengers on this flight were university students, faculty, researchers, alumni, and other members of Canada’s academic community. This heartbreaking loss is truly a national tragedy,” said president of the University of Toronto Meric Gertler.
The released statement from the University of Toronto confirms the identities of these students:
Mojtaba Abbasnezhad was a first-year international student doing his PhD in engineering, as well as a teaching assistant for a second year course on digital systems. His friends called him Sorush.
Mohammad Asadi Lari, PhD student in the Faculty of Medicine, and his sister Zeynab Asadi Lari, who was in her fourth year pursuing a Bachelor of Science at UTM, both died on their way back to Toronto after visiting family.
Mohammad was involved in numerous youth- focused activities through his efforts with the Canadian Commission of the United Nations Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the Canadian Red Cross. Zeynab was an advocate for mental, public, and global health; her friends recalled that she always followed up her ideas with action.
Mohammad Amin Beiruti, was a PhD student in the Department of Computer Science. Born in 1990, he was determined and focused on his academic goals but took the time to mentor undergraduate students and help them with their research projects.
Mohammad Amin Jebelli MHSc was a candidate in the Faculty of Medicine’s Translational Research Program. He had practised medicine and served as a medic in Iran after graduating from the Tehran University of Medical Sciences with a doctorate in medicine. He was due to graduate from the U of T program later this year.
Mohammad Salehe, a PhD student and researcher in computer technology, and his wife, Zahra Hasani, also a U of T student, both died in the crash.
Mohammad Mahdi Elyasi was studying MSc mechanical engineering and was a researcher at the U of T’s Institute of Aerospace Science.
“Many members of our university – and many across the GTA and Canada – have been directly affected by this tragedy,” Gertler said. “We are all heartbroken.”
The University of Toronto hosted vigils on campus and around the city to remember those who lost their lives in the Ukraine International Airlines crash. The Centre for International Experience held a support drop-in, where people could come together to remember and find support.
“Many people were touched by this kind of tragic loss. So, for us, this is a way of supporting our community in their grief and to offer the opportunity to come by, talk to somebody else who’s been affected. It’s just a way of showing that we care for and with each other,” said Katherine Beaumont, U of T’s Senior Director of Global Learning Opportunities and International Student Success.
The University of Toronto has launched the Iranian Student Memorial Scholarship Fund.
This fund will provide needs-based scholarships for both graduate and undergraduate students from Iran, or students from any background pursuing Iranian studies at U of T.
According to the University of Toronto statement, donations to the fund will be matched by the university. The first $250,000 will be matched at an effective rate of 3:1, with all funds beyond that threshold to be matched dollar-for-dollar.
“With the creation of this scholarship we hope to honour the memory of those we have lost by helping students from Iran pursue their studies at U of T and by supporting students of all backgrounds who are interested in exploring Iranian studies,” Gertler said.
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February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on LOCAL HEROES: MPP Bell honours pharmacare advocate (Feb. 2020)
Little Italy’s Nav Persaud makes the case for free meds
By Nicole Stoffman
This article is the first in a series about local residents making a difference in our community. These unsung heroes were brought to the Gleaner’s attention by MPP Jessica Bell, who honoured them at her Annual Community Celebration, in December of 2019.
Dr. Nav Persaud had a problem: his diabetes patients weren’t getting better because they couldn’t afford medication.
Little Italy resident Nav Persaud recognized for his advocacy for free medicine. COURTESY NAV PERSAUD
“Even though the rights for insulin were sold for a dollar by Banting and Best with the idea that everyone should have access to them, in Canada the type of job you have determines if you have access to medicines,” says Persaud, the Palmerston-Little Italy resident and outspoken advocate for National Pharmacare.
Dr. Persaud, who is a staff physician in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at St. Michael’s Hospital, started keeping a supply of medications on hand to give for free to patients with chronic illnesses. Still, the issue of inequitable drug coverage weighed on him and his team.
“Ultimately, we realized that there are millions of people in Canada facing this problem, and so we wanted to do something that could inform a public policy change that would help everyone.”
That something was the CLEAN Meds study. The 2016-17 study provided almost 800 people with free access to more than 125 medicines. Free access improved participants’ health in more ways than one. Not only were their illnesses better managed, but those receiving free medicine were 53% more likely to afford rent and food than those in the control group who did not.
The study was supported by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the Province of Ontario, the Canada Research Chairs program, and the St Michael’s Hospital Foundation.
Some study participants, as well as members of the community guidance panel who helped to design the study, were Annex residents. According to a 2016 Statistics Canada survey, 7.5 million Canadians lack or have inadequate drug coverage.
Canada is the only high-income country in the world with free Medicare but not free medicine. Instead, we have a mixed system of private and public insurance, while many pay for medicines out of pocket. The exception is Quebec, which provides prescription drug coverage to everyone in the province.
Advocates of maintaining the current system argue that most Canadians are covered in some form or another. Indeed, the majority of the CLEAN Meds participants had insurance but could not afford the co-payments or deductibles.
According to a 2016 UBC-led study, almost 1 million Canadians find themselves in a similar situation, and elect to spend less on food and heating costs in order to afford their medications.
Interestingly, not all CLEAN Meds participants were the working poor. Some had incomes of up to $70,000 yet lacked adequate drug coverage because they had larger households, or very expensive medication.
“It’s important for people to understand and recognize that every day, they are passing people in the street who can’t afford medicines, including lifesaving ones,” notes Dr. Persaud.
Much of the debate around National Pharmacare in Canada centres on cost. The Parliamentary Budget Officer calculated it would save 4.2 billion a year in spending on drugs, but the government’s Advisory Council reported it could cost taxpayers $15.3 billion. The Green Party estimated it would cost 26.7 billion.
Even these estimates represent a savings considering Canadians paid $28.5 billion on medications in 2015, making our drug spending per capita the third highest among industrialized countries, according to an OECD study.
Dr. Persaud, who is also a Canada Research Chair in Health Justice, prefers to focus on the kind of society we want to live in. Do we want our factory workers, taxi drivers, entrepreneurs, and artists to have access to life-saving treatment, if necessary?
“The reality is that saying to people that this is going to save billions of dollars isn’t very persuasive, and it’s not actually the most important issue,” he explains.
“We all live in this city and country together, and it’s very clear that Canadians support our publicly-funded health care system, and it’s very obvious that the publicly-funded healthcare system should include medicines.”
“Many times I’ve seen people come back with the same problems that don’t get any better,” adds Dr. Persaud. “Ultimately, you get a phone call that they are in the hospital. You start thinking that you wish there was something we could have done sooner.”
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February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on CHATTER: Zero-waste grocery opens on Bathurst (Feb. 2020)
According to Statistics Canada, from 2002 to 2016 the total amount of waste collected in Canada increased by 11 per cent, the equivalent of 3.5 million tonnes. Low and no waste grocery stores are a market-driven response to the trash problem, and they seem to be catching on.
The newly opened Annex Market (718 Bathurst St.) is a grocery store with a mission: to re-invent grocery stores and the food system, too.
This zero-waste store started as an idea in summer 2019 to help a local bean farmer who grows kidney beans and other legumes. His business was limited to selling to a few independent stores in Ontario. That’s how the owner of the Annex Market built his business model.
“I quickly realized that with kidney beans, we could deliver the product to market, organic kidney beans, cheaper than anyone else in the space by reusing the jar rather than recycling. And as the idea evolved, we realized we can put a lot of other things in a jar too,” says founder and owner of the Annex Market, Corey Berman.
The Annex Market seeks to create a new standard of packaging, and provide the infrastructure which includes packing, dishwashing, and transportation across Ontario to facilitate it.
Berman applied the beer store model where it is more efficient to reuse and rewash the packaging rather than to buy it.
So, he adapted the business to the closed-loop supply chain scheme, meaning that everything that enters the supply chain comes back. This makes it easier for anybody to be a producer by standardizing and simplifying the packaging, so producers can make more money by paying less for packaging. At the same time, this allows for a conversation to exist between the people who consume the food and the people who grow it.
“Our concept store here is meant to emulate and show how a local market can do it themselves,” said Berman.
The Annex Market works with local farmers and producers who share the store’s belief that growing food should respect the environment and farmers. You don’t have to remember to bring your own jars, to wash your jars, and to fill up your jars.
The Annex Market completely removes packaging and offers returnable and reusable Mason jars to contain the products. When you choose a product a 1.50 Canadian dollar deposit will be added to your purchase, but it will be re-credited upon its return.
“So, we believe that if we make it as easy as possible in today’s busy world, we can capture more of the consumers and not only is it easier, but it’s also more convenient,” said Berman.
The store has a wide variety of products, things common in the average pantry such as coffee, tea, chocolate, and granola. Household cleaners and shampoos are also available.
—Tanya Ielyseieva, Gleaner News
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February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on CHATTER: Ten Thousand Villages folding (Feb. 2020)
TANYA IELYSEIEVA/GLEANER NEWS
After seventy-four years in business, the Canadian company Ten Thousand Villages announced the close of its head office, distribution centre, web store, wholesale operations, and several remaining company stores.
The store at 474 Bloor St. W. has been a fixture of the community for fifteen years. The stores aimed to connect artisans and marginalized communities to the market and provide a fair and stable income to the producers of their goods.
Ten Thousand Villages is the oldest and largest fair-trade organization in North America, selling artisan-crafted home decor, gift items, and personal accessories from around the world.
Products come from 27 countries, and more than 73 artisan groups, which provide work for more than 20,000 individual people.
About 70 per cent of the artisans are women. Some groups also seek to employ persons with physical disabilities.
“We had hoped for a different outcome,” says Interim CEO Brent Zorgdrager. “But we are grateful for the opportunity to have been part of more than seven decades of providing a sustainable and fair income for tens of thousands of artisans. In bringing their products to Canadian consumers, we’ve been able to share traditions of beauty and creativity across the globe.”
Some of Ten Thousand Villages Canada stores are independently owned and have chosen to remain open and will be able to operate under licensing agreement with the Mennonite Central Committee Canada (MCCC).
Stores in Alberta, one in Quebec, and two in Ontario will remain open.
Carolyn Quinn has been a manager at Ten Thousand Villages on Bloor for a year and a half. She started as a volunteer six years ago before being promoted to assistant manager at the Danforth and then manager at the Bloor St. location.
“Everyone is here because they are super passionate about what we do,” said Quinn. “I’ve really enjoyed my time working here. It has been a sad week but it has been so amazing, the response we have gotten from everyone coming in. I think sometimes you don’t realize the impact it’s made until you find out it’s leaving. It’s really helped us process it here, just seeing how much of an impact it’s made to the community.”
Ten Thousand Villages on Bloor St. will close its doors on March 31.
—Tanya Ielyseieva, Gleaner News
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February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on EDITORIAL: Fictions, falsehoods and a crisis in leadership (Feb. 2020)
On February 21, members of all four Ontario Teacher’s Unions walked off the job leaving 2 million students out of school and leaving parents scrambling for childcare. Meanwhile, the Ontario government has been trying to sell citizens a story about striking teachers: that they are fat cats led by union boss “thugs” looking to gouge us of tax dollars. The premier likes to paint himself as a hero out to save us all, rescuing the province in a time of crisis, but the only crisis the electorate can buy into at this point is a crisis in leadership – his leadership.
It’s been more than two decades since all four teachers’ unions have walked off the job in Ontario. You can bet that the inconvenience this caused had the Premier certain he was headed for a win with frustrated parents. The polls tell a different story: even in conservative ridings, people support the teachers by a measure of two-to-one.
Ontario teachers have been without a contract since August 31 and months of negotiations have brought few dividends. The battle with the teachers sees no end in sight and the government has long since passed that point on the highway where there are face-saving exits. Ford either has to cave to the union’s position or seek to legislate them back only to be overruled later by the courts. The teachers, of course, could accept the government’s proposal to increase class sizes, force students into multiple on-line courses, reduce the amount of support workers in schools, and get a wage increase of a meagre one per cent. But why would they? Unions can smell blood, and the public can smell it, too.
The government recently enacted legislation capping public sector wage increases to one per cent. Ford proves yet again he is the most myopic premier in recent memory. The courts have ruled you can’t meaningfully have collective bargaining, a charter right, if you pre-set the outcomes.
Let’s put aside the long-term economic benefits of a robust and inclusive public education system and suppose for a moment these cuts to education are absolutely necessary to keep Ontario afloat. If austerity is the only path forward, why is Ford spending a half a billion dollars to cancel green energy projects, spending one billion to cancel the Beer Store contract so we can have beer in corner stores, fighting a losing battle with Ottawa over a carbon tax, giving OPP officers a 2.1 per cent wage increase, and trying to take over Toronto’s TTC subway? (Oh wait he walked back that last one as long as Toronto built new lines to his design – starting from scratch.)
Though the government is facing opposition in almost every corner, including in ridings held by their own MPPs, it is enjoying strong support from one sector – fake parents. A series of pro-government newspaper ads ran recently in various national dailies which echo the government’s language and accuse the unions of using the students as “pawns.” The group that placed the ads as “Vaughan Working Familes” appears to be backed by Conservative insiders and large donors. The opposition NDP have called for a probe due to the ad campaign being a potential violation of the Election Finances Act prohibiting the government from acting “in collusion” with third-party supporters for advertising.
The government has lost credibility, and is bleeding support. According to a recent CTV news poll 59 per cent of parents in PC-held ridings think the government is doing a poor job and it can’t even buy that support without getting caught. It’s time for Ford to go; the flying monkeys in his cabinet would be thrilled.
February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on FORUM: Budget challenges at City Hall (Feb. 2020)
Not all priorities can be met by property tax base
By Mike Layton
It is with great pride that I have the privilege of serving on the City of Toronto’s Budget Committee, which allows me the opportunity to help shape the direction of services over the coming year. Simply put, the annual budget is a chance for Toronto to set priorities as a city and take action on what needs to change.
At its core, the annual budget debate is about people, and I view the process as a way to determine how we support and protect each other. The choices made in these sessions also govern how we interact with our parks and greenspaces, and how we get around – whether on foot, bike, transit, or car.
This year my focus was on advocating for a budget that will create healthy, sustainable communities. This included supporting asks that will help us meet our climate targets, supporting the creation of truly affordable housing, providing affordable childcare, improving our parks and ravines, and expanding road safety initiatives.
You may have participated, or sent me your thoughts on the priorities for our budget over the last month and for this I thank you. In addition to my commitments on the Budget Committee, I also had the opportunity to have senior city staff at a downtown budget town hall I hosted with neighbouring Ward Councillors Kristyn Wong-Tam and Joe Cressy.
When the city does its budget deliberations, we look at the operating budget for 2020 in tandem with our capital plan over the next 10 years. For the first time in a number of years, I believe that we have not produced an austerity budget. This is an important step in the right direction if we are going to build a city that is for everyone, not just the rich.
We have been dealing with the effects of underfunding in our growing city for close to a decade. The decision to implement a dedicated tax increase to help pay for much needed infrastructure improvements and housing needs is definitely a step in the right direction.
We also funded a Ravine Strategy that will finally be implemented to deal with the biodiversity, erosion, and litter issues in our ravines, with the Vale of Avoca/Yellow Creek being identified as a priority area for investment. In combination with my Ravine Working Group, we are positioning ourselves well to secure funding for both immediate and long-term restoration in sensitive ecological areas.
There are, however, still troublesome trends.
TTC fares are continuing to increase without substantial service improvements; repairing the Gardiner still absorbs 44 per cent of yearly capital spending on transportation infrastructure which affords us less money for implementation of Vision Zero; and the city is not moving quickly enough on its TransformTO and climate change mitigation strategies.
Lastly, as the city cannot legally carry a deficit, we are forced to figure out ways to maintain existing service levels in the face of provincial cuts. For example, Children’s Services is sitting $15 million short of its growth strategies. That will have an immediate impact on expecting and current parents in the coming years. The status quo will not do.
In order to shift the burden off the property tax base, we have to commit to a combination of new revenue tools. I am particularly excited about the prospect of a vacant homes tax which has been implemented successfully in Vancouver and saw the dual benefit of increased housing availability and revenue to put toward affordable housing initiatives. It is creative policies like these which are integral for a growing city to thrive and I look forward to supporting this in Council.
Mike Layton is the City Councillor for Ward 11 University-Rosedale. Please visit www.mikelayton.to for the latest on this, and other city-related issues.
February 27th, 2020 · Comments Off on FORUM: Catastrophic climate change is here. How do we respond? (Feb. 2020)
Australia is the canary, we must act now
By Jessica Bell
Australia is my original home, and it is experiencing a climate catastrophe. Armageddon fires are still burning up the country. Half a billion animals are dead. Towns have been destroyed. Billions are needed for rebuilding.
The fires in Australia are the latest dark sign that natural disasters at this destructive scale are becoming the new normal. The enormity of the disaster is a reckoning for us to review how we meaningfully respond to the global climate crisis.
The cost of taking action is great. But the cost of inaction is immeasurable because we are fighting for our future. There is no fate but what we make. It’s up to us to make it together.
Feelings matter: Of all the dangers we face, from climate chaos to nuclear war, none is so great as the deadening of our response. Those words come from Australian activist scholar Joanna Macey, who argues it is important to recognize our personal response to environmental harm because it is healthy to acknowledge feelings like grief and despair and because strong feelings can motivate people to take useful action.
Like many of us, I regularly suppress my thoughts about the impact of climate change. I don’t want to think about the fear my mother felt when she was temporarily evacuated from her home until the fires passed. I don’t want to grieve about my children and the hard future they are likely to face. I don’t want to think about coming food shortages, civil unrest, or forced migration.
It is easier for me to channel the deep anger I feel when I see our leaders failing to take action. Australia’s prime minister is charging ahead with new coal mines. Our prime minister bought the TransMountain pipeline. Doug Ford has literally no climate change plan or hard targets at all. We can’t rely on them.
As Australia takes war-level action to quell the fires and save lives, it’s up to us to take useful war-level preventative action to stop future catastrophes from happening.
Making personal choices like using public transit or buying eco-friendly shampoo can help to create new markets for products and inspire our friends and family to change habits. Evidence shows, however, that the overall impact of behavioural change is limited because it’s only the motivated minority who are willing to always pay and do more.
Strategically tackling climate means working together to change laws and policies at an institutional level to make it easier for everyone to make good choices. This means changing what our banks and pension funds invest in, changing what our schools and universities teach and do, and passing real environmental policies at all levels of government, from investing in public transit to putting a decent price on carbon.
There are many groups in our city that are doing useful work to achieve these big system-wide changes. They need our support.
In this upcoming budget cycle, the Toronto Environmental Alliance, ClimateFast, Mike Layton, and more are campaigning for the City of Toronto to fund and implement its TransformTO climate plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt our city to our changing climate.
GreenPAC is a non-partisan political organization that endorses and supports environmental champions from all political parties who are running for provincial and federal office. This is very strategic because climate change should be meaningfully addressed by all political parties, and this is only going to happen if there are politicians at each party pushing this agenda.
Fridays for Future and Extinction Rebellion are youth-led movements organizing creative protests in Toronto to force urgent and real action.
Then there’s the Green New Deal, an ambitious plan calling for net-zero emissions, good green jobs, and an end to inequality.
National advocacy organization Our-Time.Ca helps people organize in their communities to build support for the Green New Deal. At the Ontario NDP we have just finalized our first blueprint of our Green New Democratic Deal. The draft plan is online, and we taking feedback right now.
Ontario should be a place with energy-efficient buildings, where we can walk or take public transportation to our destination, where our electricity grid is green and affordable, where we produce minimal waste, and where the products we make are truly needed and built to last.
The cost of taking action is great. But the cost of inaction is immeasurable because we are fighting for our future.
There is no fate but what we make. It’s up to us to make it together.
