Victoria Royce Presbyterian Church gets OMB approval

[caption id="attachment_2933" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="The parties - The community"][/caption]

1st A reader updated us on the ONB reprt, thanks so much Hamish

It's always good to bring your customers to your Ontario Municipal Board hearing, as they promote your project to the board. (OMb File link hosted junctioneer). Having sorted out a few problems with a few neighbors the person doing this project seems to on his way both with sales and approvals.

but the issue (from OMB report)... is public information and consult

Victoria-Royce Presbyterian Church

We'll get back to this post Sat as we have been researching it and it's taken away the time today and we need to check something before we post it.

Bloor West Village copied in Don Mills

National  Post has a story yesterday Cadillac Fairview (the owner of Sherway Gardens Mall) is opening a new retail mall named The Shops at Don Mills, a collection of standalone stores built along open-air streets.

Some of the shops... chef Mark McEwan’s first gourmet market, Ontario’s first McNally Robinson bookstore and Canada’s first Anthropologie store.

Its pedestrian-friendly streets will be lined with trees; shoppers can enjoy an outdoor, 7,134 sq. ft. skating rink, central square (something the Junction needs) with a fountain and a range of restaurants; there will be public art. Eventually, 1,300 high-rise residential units will be built on the site.

The results are more along the lines of Bloor West Village, where people walk from shop to shop outside,” said Anne Morash, vice-president of development for Cadillac Fairview. ‘‘We’ve built the Shops at Don Mills on a scale that’s very manageable — it’s a fraction of the size of what regional malls and big boxes typically are, so it’s efficient.’’

Read the complete post at nationalpost.com

The Shops at Don Mills, website

...interested in municipal history or development you have to see this....

....Here is terrific link to an animated history of the block of land click!

here is the same timeline above with a modified link to have the time open in  a larger format without the rest of the normal surounding page

Ontario Municipal Board cites Junction as something of an anomaly in Toronto

[caption id="attachment_2896" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Text excerpt from the Ontario Municipal Board 6 Lloyd Ave report"][/caption]

yea, the Ontario Municipal Board has a good understanding of the Junction is all about, this opinion [1. http://www.omb.gov.on.ca/e-decisions/pl060854-Oct-21-2008.pdf]  (regarding the old Benjamin Moore plant lands condo development) can be applied to Vine Ave, The Dundas St. West and Jane area, Ryding Ave, Gunns Rd. and  more and with the city of Toronto's want to keep employment uses on historical employment lands companies such as National Rubber Technologies, Corp. (NRT) and Canada Bread.

Yet there remains a problem, the provincial and municipal governments have failed to tackle the issue of co existence of industry and residential is close proximity. If people can buy houses in industrial communities , where the industry is maintaining adherence to all bylaws, rules and  environmental laws, and then attempt to close the industrial plants, we will lose the integrated nature of the city, which the city owes much of it's life too.

Take a look at the NRT fact sheet below and see how green this company is, in it's efforts to work with the problem of used tires, which they convert into long lasting new products.

NRT Fact sheet form the companies site

If you examine the ownership structure of NRT, you can see a well interconnected group of companies, with the financial strength to maintain their plant in the Junction well, causing it to adhere to all codes, and remain here for some time.

Kinder Hook Industries (NY State)  -> KN Rubber - >Koneta, Inc (Wapakoneta, Ohio) <-> National Rubber Technologies, Corp.(Toronto) (previously NRI Industries)

Activities Toronto’s 175th Anniversary

[caption id="attachment_2887" align="alignright" width="229" caption="Photo from Councillor Sandercook's office window"][/caption]

March 6 2009 the city of Toronto has planned a bunch of activities Toronto’s 175th Anniversary from the cities site: To mark Toronto’s 175th Anniversary on March 6, 2009, City Hall will open its doors and invite residents in to celebrate the heritage, unity and diversity of our city through music, literature and art. City Hall will be transformed into an exhibition hall featuring art installations, spoken word, dance and music. Special programming will also commemorate the City’s early history. City site links to areas of interest below Friday, March 6, 12 to 9 p.m.
	Visual Art
	Literary
	Book Launch - Toronto's Visual Legacy
	Theatre
	Film
	Music
	Kids and Families
	Activities on Nathan Phillips Square

Reuse equipment and materials removal -- Bunge post 6 - 30 Weston Rd, Trinity Development

[caption id="attachment_2883" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption=" Priestly Demolition sells off equipment and materials from 30 Weston Rd"][/caption]

Priestly Demolition sells off equipment and materials from the the 30 Weston Rd. plant for reuse, very green. Yet saddness when just a litle more of the stockyards moves away, in this case to Bolton, Ontario.

http://www.priestly.ca/demolition.aspx

How beautiful can a west end park be, Runnymede Park

Runnymede Park, a medium-sized park just north of the railway tracks off of Cobalt Avenue just to the west  of George Bell Arena early Feb 11 2009.

Development Application Status website ...just a little info offered for now.

[caption id="attachment_2854" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Screenshot of the selection screen, for Development Projects or individual Planning Applications by Ward, District, Address and Application Number back to January 1, 2006"][/caption]

The city also launched a new Development Application Status website, allowing Internet access  information on active development projects and planning applications.  This is a great step, people can find out about development projects occurring but for detailed information the city planner will have to contacted. (with information provided on the site) The public and development industry, will have access to the same information, such  as project data, approval process status, public consultation dates and the planning personal contact info.

The  second phase of the site ...which brings the project into real usefulness for community groups and residents   ...will allow users to search applications and developments using dynamic maps. This is needed right now to allow community involvement in the planning process hopefully the city is allowing overtime to accomplish this.

“This will be a useful tool for residents and the development industry,” says Wright. [1. quote from Daily Commercial News article

Access page to search [opens in new window]

Junction Business Improvement Area (JBIA) Job Docket #1

[caption id="attachment_2861" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Replacement pole for a car damaged black historical period pole at Dundas St. West and Keele St.  Should it go? ...and be replaced with another black pole?"][/caption]

The Junction BIA (Junction Business Improvement Area) really worked to get the black lamp poles on Dundas St. West thought out the Junction. It was a great idea and a job well done.

They also like to protect the poles from various actions such as tagging (good) and postering (not so good) [1. If people who placed the posters came back and removed them  - as they are supposed to do , maybe the JBIA would be more understanding.] you all allowed to post community posters on the posts, if you adhere to the city postering bylaw [2. http://www.toronto.ca/licensing/pdf/chpt313.pdf]. But out of respect for JBIA, try not too, unless of course it's an issue of  great importance to the community.

Now one of those black poles which was damaged in a fight with a car, and has been replaced with a standard galvanized pole.  Is the BIA on top of getting it fixed, we hope so.

If anyone from the BIA reads this post the blog would really like to know what is happening with this issue.

Toronto moves to expedite approvals for office and industrial projects

photo credit: Karsten W. Rohrbach

Daily Commercial news reports..

Toronto Mayor David Miller has announced that the city will launch the Gold Star Service program, designed to facilitate municipal approvals for strategic industrial and office developments.

While the previous service assigned case workers to help shepherd large projects through the approvals process, the new program will offer the same enhanced service to any industrial, commercial office and institutional (ICI) project that offers to create long-term jobs.

The program is currently working on 10 projects worth $2.3 billion in investment, and designed to retain or generate 20,000 jobs. Three additional projects are anticipated in 2009.

While Wright predicts that applications will decline through 2009, once current projects have cleared he says he sees an opportunity to focus on delivering projects of greater quality.

Daily Commercial News Full report [opens in new window]

City to Appeal Demolition Permits supported by Ontario Municipal Board for Ward 13 Development site

[caption id="attachment_2826" align="alignright" width="300" caption="1854 Bloor Street West Side door was door to a former doctors offices Photo: www.tobuilt.ca"][/caption]

The Site owners of  1844-1854 Bloor Street West, 6-14 Oakmount Road, and 35 & 47 Pacific Avenue have brought applications  seeking permission to demolish 13 residential buildings.

Cot's position from their reports...


In March 2006, demolition permit applications were made to demolish 13 houses located at the Site. No building permit application or redevelopment proposal to replace the buildings has been submitted.
On March 27, 2007, the Etobicoke York Community Council considered a staff report dated March 13, 2007, which recommended that the demolition control applications brought by the property owners in respect of the Site be refused and that, in the event of an appeal, the City Solicitor and appropriate staff be authorized to attend at the Ontario Municipal Board in support of the recommendation.

Consideration of the report was deferred to give the owners the opportunity to respond to concerns the City had about the proposed demolition. The owners failed to address the City’s concerns, and appealed the failure of City Council to approve the demolition permit applications that had been submitted.

Appeal of OMB Decision Re: 1844-1854 Bloor Street
West, 6-14 Oakmount Road, and 35 & 47 Pacific Avenue
Appeals of Demolition Permit Refusals

The March 13, 2007, Staff Report

The June 18, 2008, Staff Report:

The June 20, 2008, Staff Report:

CP Rail low-emission test locomotives move through the Junction

[caption id="attachment_2811" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="The train!"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2812" align="aligncenter" width="499" caption="CPR green train moving though the Junction"][/caption]

CP Rail  test low-emission locomotives move thourght the junction Feb 12th 2009



Source for the text below: Canadian Pacific
Published: May 6th 2008



Canadian Pacific will test two environmentally friendly locomotives in southern Ontario thanks to Transport Canada's ecoFREIGHT Program announced Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer Kathryn McQuade today."We commend Minister Cannon and his colleagues for helping us improve the environment in the communities we serve," said McQuade. "The Government of Canada's ecoFREIGHT program helps us test and prove innovative products sooner."Canadian Pacific has ordered two high efficiency National Railway Equipment Company "GenSet" locomotives. The locomotives are unique in that instead of one 2,100 horsepower diesel locomotive engine they utilize three independent diesel engine GenSets to achieve the same amount of total horsepower. Overall, the technology aims to achieve significant fuel savings, ultra-low emissions and longer engine life. "Moving goods long haul by rail is already much more fuel efficient and safer than other modes of transportation," added McQuade. "We are always looking for innovations that reduce our environmental footprint and make rail an even cleaner mode of transportation."Canadian Pacific's emissions per Revenue Tonne Mile (RTM) have decreased almost one quarter (24.1%) since 1990 while RTMs have increased 37.4% over the same period. RTMs are a standard measure of rail traffic volumes. Additionally, CP has equipped three quarters of its existing locomotive fleet with automatic engine start/stop technology, which reduces emissions from idling locomotives.

Benjamin Moore plant continued removal of old plant concrete

[caption id="attachment_2807" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="continued removal of old plant concrete"][/caption]

The lot north side of Mulock Avenue, the old  Benjamin Moore plant lands. which will become a condo site,  [1. thanks AR or pointing this out] has the demo contractor (who is interrelated to the owner corporation) continuing to clear the site (Feb 2009)

OMB hearing Decision [opens in new window] from OMB site

OMB hearing Decision [opens in new window] from junctioneer site in case the OMB link moves

Bank Bros & Son ready and steady

[caption id="attachment_2801" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Bank Bros & Son Limited tumbler replacement store"][/caption]

Bank Bros & Son  a leather tanning and finishing and dealing  firm has long been a great business for the Junction, in terms of provided jobs and industrial character, and industrial culture. The Company serves an import part in the meat food service industries long chain of elements.

...and with these spares for it's equipment hopefully the owners of this firm  intends to be here in the Junction for a long time to come.

Train line into 30 Weston Rd for sale

[caption id="attachment_2795" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Park, walking path, "][/caption]

This track line running parellal to St Clair Ave is for sale from Gunns Rd to Symes Rd. The line was used to bring railroad cars into the packing plant at 30 Weston Rd. It is a long a narrow plot that provides  an interesting walk right now.

Green 13 starts blog

Welcome to Green 13

Green 13 is a new, grassroots community environmental group operating in Ward 13 in Toronto. The group was formed following a very successful Earth Hour candlelight walk through part of our neighbourhood in Bloor West Village last March. More than 500 people attended the walk and numerous businesses participated by turning off or down their lights for the hour.

Green 13 intends to educate and advocate for positive changes to ensure the protection of our environment. Some of the ideas we have been and will be focusing on include:

Organizing regular community meetings to discuss key issues impacting our environment both locally and globally
Participating in city-wide environmental events
Organizing support for Community Right to Know legislation
Creating a series of community events around Earth Hour 2009 to involve even more residents and businesses
Engaging schools to encourage youth involvement.

Green 13 blogspot

www.green13toronto.blogspot.com

Green 13 Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Toronto-ON/Green-13/21088804981

Green Awakening Network receives Live Green Toronto funding

Green Awakening Network  has received funding from Live Green Toronto to engage faith groups in Toronto to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in their own place of worship, faith group, and the community at large.

This event, open to members of all faith communities, will help leaders and interested individuals learn how to reduce the carbon footprint of their buildings and operations, and encourage faith communities to mobilize people and their communities to action in the fight against climate change.

• the general announcement of the statement of purpose

• the poster for the launch/leadership event of March 7th

• the schedule and description of workshops for March 7th

• the registration form for March 7th

West Bend Community Association Meeting

TWBCA February Meeting:
Wednesday February 18th, 7:00 pm.
Location: School Staff Room, 285 Indian Rd Cres.

The West Bend is an area of Toronto bounded by Keele Street on the west, Bloor Street on the south and the railway line on the east and north.

[caption id="attachment_2769" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Map from The West Bend Community Association site "][/caption]

West bend site

Parking in bike lanes

Many cyclists were overjoyed last fall when the Annette Street bike lanes received the final approval.  However it looks like the car owners are not giving up their parking just yet.  To be fair the parking signs still say parking is ok but maybe now that the snowed has cleared car owners can clear the way for cyclists.

Submitted by Martin L.

The main horizontal beams are now in place on the west bound lanes of the Dundas Humber River bridge.



The decking comes next and they already have a good start.

Submitted by Martin L.

Canada embraces 'love exiles' in the Junction

Today in the Toronto Star ther is a local story that relates to the Junction.

from the story...

[caption id="attachment_2757" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Photo credit Toronto Star"][/caption]

"Canada has a very inclusive immigration system and you get a lot of good people here," said Batchelder, who has a doctoral degree in linguistics. "But you just can't drop them into the country and there's nobody to follow them up and track them."

Eleanor Batchelder, an American, and Fumiko Ohno of Tokyo lived that reality for 22 years until a year ago January, when the lesbian couple landed as permanent residents in Toronto {in the Junction} – one of many "love exiles" settling here.

link to Toronto Star Article link  [full story opens in new window]


Eleanor has been very helpful in the Junction residents Association working to get the associations Wiki up and filled. Any recently encouraging the opening up self registering on the wiki so anyone can contribute.

Junction Residents Association wiki

Irving Tissue Corp. - demolishes Weston Rd plant building

[caption id="attachment_2751" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="1415 Weston Rd, the rest of the plant is right next door to the north"][/caption]

1435 Weston Rd an industrial plant that was part of the huge Irving Tissue plant on Weston Rd just bove Jane St. is gone and demolished.  The rest of this plant appears from the outside to be here to stay.

See related post below for demo details.

JANE JACOBS WALKING TOUR MAY 2 & 3 2009

Having started to write a post about

LEAD A JANE JACOBS WALKING TOUR
3RD ANNUAL JANE’S WALK IN TORONTO
MAY 2 & 3 2009

I saw the artjunction blog [link] has two posts about it today.  There are also pictures of last years walk there.

Jane’s Walk is the street-level celebration of Jane Jacobs legacy. The Centre for City Ecology sponsors this event across North America which combines the simple act of walking with personal observations, urban history and local lore as a means of knitting people together

www.janeswalk.net

MARCH 5TH AT THE TROUBADOR

That had a good long... long-standing dry status, which was lengthened by the communities fear of what would come in with the liquor. It probably would not have been so long if people new places such as  The Troubadour could have been foreseen. This establishment puts a lot of interesting items on it's entertainment bill and many people like the food and community air in the place.

...and they also provide work for the local festival director between festivals

Richard Khal and

Michael Menegon (festival guy)

are playing at this great little bar on Dundas West called The Troubadour ( just west of High Park, a few doors east of Quebec Ave. on the south side of Dundas West)  It's very cosy and warm and seats about 25 people.

The Troubadour Thursday March 5, 2009 9pm It is free.

no picture? they did not send one,  that is the performers didn't

Keele St Subway replacement wall completed

[caption id="attachment_2732" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="The completed wall now blocked by the BIG grey thingy"][/caption]

see related posts below detaioled info.

Bunge post 5 - 30 Weston Rd, Trinity Development

30 Weston Rd is a site of a large conversion development from industrial uses which were historically  stockyards related and more recently edible oil processing. This site is the last large land tract of this size  in the community to be developed from the former stock yards.  This blog hopes to follow this process as tightly as possible hence the reason for the multiple posts.

Today post concerns the removal of the gas feed from the utility lines into the property which is being removed today {Feb 12 2009}

[caption id="attachment_2728" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The work site north West Corner of St Clair Ave. and Weston Rd. viewof  grey metal manhole shoring wherein lies the main and feed pipe connection."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2729" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="When the gas feed line is cut today the site will be severed from the gas network"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2730" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Helpful hint image, if you ever have to close a large gas main this method of clamping down on the pipe with a powered clamp will stop about 98 percent of the gas from flowing through the pipe. The black wrap is a static electrical charge dissipater "][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2719" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="emergency protection"][/caption]

As today may be called wet basement day in the Junction with so many people having water in their basement, door  porticos, which shield both the doorway and the foundations of many of the old row houses in the Junction, come to mind.

Finding one to model a new one after or assist in planning a repair of an existing one is hard in the Junction. But this one on Hook Ave is a great find. Most of the materials seem to be of the correct era with timbers seemingly real 2 x 4 in dimension.  The turnings look right. about th eonly parts that would concern are the lattice work and and the roof decking (which has clearly been replaced.)

The people who own this house have did the community quite a favor by not removing it.

Images from The Village by High Park construction process

[caption id="attachment_2708" align="alignright" width="500" caption="Looking north west towards Keele St from site office"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_2709" align="alignright" width="500" caption="Mid Site"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_2710" align="alignright" width="500" caption="1st Building foundations"][/caption]

Junction BIA discusses procedures and more procedures and then some important community stuff

Yesterday  evening [1. Feb 10 2009] the Junction BIA had a regular meeting in their office on Dundas St West at Mc Murray Ave. attended by about 23  Junction BIA members and the two local councillors of wards 13 and 14. 

Much of the meeting was taken up by their discussion of procedures - one example ...when and if  they can elect a vice chair - how they can elect a vice chair - what type of bird the vice chair can own, that type of stuff.  To properly attend to real business the BIA needs to sort all this out by talking to each other before their next meeting. This is something the current acting chair gave intention to do.  At the next meeting the BIA will elect two new members to it's board from the local BIA members.

With that said, they did report on some things most people in the community would be glad to hear. 

1) the banners along Dundas St West that are such a terrible state, have been taken down and they have a spring banner design call-out {we will attend there office today with a request for the call-out rules and post them here.}

Junction Banners in Need of Replacement Louis M. post on the banner subject

2) the BIA is spending the incredible  amount of  35 thousand dollars for flowers and related items - water - for the flowers they place along the Junction strip.  wonderful. - and that amount probably does not include the volunteer efforts of a few BIA people who do the work for this program. 

3) the BIA's sustainability committee - lead by Neill of Pandemonium Books (drop in and speak to Neill about his committee efforts) is working with green 13 and the Junction residents association to produce Earth Hour in conjunction with Green 13's Bloor West Village program on March 28. Green 13 organizing volunteers have told the junctioneer blog they will keep the blog informed of happenings and we'll post them right away.

4) the Junction BIA has formed a new Junction communication committee with the proposed mandate of a bi-monthly newsletter for BIA members, manage BIA outreach into the greater community - part of this may be to  give the greater community access to their new newsletter folks?  ...and generally support improved communications between BIA members. 

For more information on the BIA and the businesses of the Junction, emailinfo@thejunctionbia.com or call 416 767 9068. email 1st - not that they said so, it just gives them a heads up to help you.

Noise from Annette ST and Dupont St heard 6 blocks away

 

[caption id="attachment_2677" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Saturday there was a crew setting up additional heavy machinery"][/caption]

But so what!

see update below (March 20th 2009)

This is biggest rail project in the Junction since the one that made the Junction. It's about here is here!

Standing at Dundas St West and Mc Murray Ave the pounding could be heard caused by the downing into the ground of the West Toronto Diamond project.

They are currently placing the interlocking steel pipe wall system that will serve as a major structural component of the "underground" part of the  GoTransit railway .

Here are some pictures of work from this past weekend.



Here is a link with hoards of technical information and some great images - a PDF will open in a new window

METROLINX IS NEW PROPONENT OF GEORGETOWN LINE [their press release opens in new window] Speaks about the general benefits of the corridor.

Update, At 1st writing of this post the blog had only started it's research into this project. Having found the document linked above that details the originally studied processes to be used, we thought the then heard pounding was part of the pre production general work. Well it appears not, and the choice has been made not to use what appears to be the 1st process machinery planned. We are attempting to find the reason for the change at the present time. March 28th 2009, At the rally yesterday it was reported that GO could find no bidders willing to bid with the quiet equipment.

You may also find this post of interest as it details how this event is related to other noise and railroad issues that have occurred in the past .

Last rock placement today probably today in Subway wall

[caption id="attachment_2657" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Keele Street historical subway wall and The Village by High Park bond"][/caption]

For those of you, like the writer of this   post who attend daily the Keele St. Subway wall replacement - with original stone! The last rock placement will probably happen  today.

[caption id="attachment_2659" align="alignright" width="500" caption=" Subway wall replacement return with new section outlined in green"][/caption]