Junction BIA - SANTA *IN THE JUNCTION Sat. Nov 26th

Well this is quite something,

Video of the event last year

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvZ9200U6Rs&feature=youtu.be

Shocking activity by city council members and staff

 

The blog wanted to highlight a particularity worrisome point brought out publicly by the  Toronto Public Space  (TPSI) group in their report on unprecedented policies that will allow the city to sell off the names of public spaces and bring in aggressive advertising into them, including parks and playgrounds. (see this post - its below this one)

Yet they are bringing local business Improvement associations (BIA's) into the decision-making and planning activities about these changes. That is right, the local retail store owners across the city are being consulted and allowed into the fold to decide how local parks are named and what advertising will go into them, Yes, big advertisers are involved too and their ads in parks and parkettes are probably not welcome also. But residents and community groups such as residents associations are not part of the consultation process.

"the inclusion of BIAs in a consultation process to the exclusion of all other stakeholders" [1. Toronto Public Space  (TPSI)]

Simply,  1st importance of the what the parks are to the community of people who use them is being removed from the people.

Hopefully the ethical BIA's in Toronto with see the folly of of being associated with this. BIA's are structured and created to improve retail streets and businesses within their areas.

 

Junction Business Improvement Assoc moves in with Junction Arts Festival

You may have noticed the strange state of the  Junction Business Improvement Assoc offices next to Delight Choc. these past few days.

All the ruckus is caused by their move in the Junction Forum for Art and Culture offices ( the Non profit that runs the yearly festival)  at 2968 Dundas St West Ste:306.

Junction BIA and Junction Arts Festival participate

The Canada Day Community Picnic takes place at:

High Park, 1:00-4:00pm on Thursday July 1, 2010.

Also find out about this years festival and ongoing BIA activities in the Junction

NOTE the poster says Wednesday when it's really Thursday

Junction BIA hosts at the Junction Square

Jumpin’ in the Junction



It’s all Julian’s fault. Julian who? Julian Wells. Who is Julian Wells? He’s a seven year old kid from Sunnylea Junior School.  Come on, how can you blame a seven year old  kid for anything? Well it was his idea. What idea? The idea to build a lemonade stand, sell lemonade and give the money to the Toronto Star Fresh Air Fund. They use the money to send deserving kids to summer camp. What’s that got to do with the Junction BIA? Well,  Julian issued a  public challenge  to other people in the City to build lemonade stands and help him raise more money so more kids could go to camp. The Junction BIA loves a challenge. We knew that all our businesses would get behind a great fun idea like Julian’s and we created Jumpin in the Junction.

What is Jumpin in the Junction? It is a great little festival that will go on four Saturdays in a row from Saturday June 26^th to Saturday July 17^th.  It’s being held at the Junction Train Platform (now formally the Junction Square) at Dundas St. West and Pacific Ave. There will be free balloons and clowns and face painting and stuff for kids to jump on. It Starts at 11:00 a.m. and runs till 3:00 p.m.  Wendell Ferguson, the seven time ”Best Guitar Player in Canada”  will perform on the 26^th .Different great acts  will be on stage each week. The great blues harmonica player Danny B performs on July 3^rd and Juno award nominee Peter Cliché plays on July 17^th.    A really fun feature each week is the “Sunflower Seed Spitting Contest”. Five spits for a nickel, a prize for each contestant and every one gets an official certificate to take home and frame.

And of course there’s the best lemonade in the City at twenty five cents a glass.

Even more, one of the Junction BIA members, Jocelyn Short of Jocelyn’s Burgers has stepped up and donated a wheel barrow  full of water melons so we’re selling that too at fifty cents a slice.  The only thing better than the lemonade, water melon and music will be all the smiles and laughter.  So come to the Junction and “let’s get Jumpin” .

We need volunteers for each of: Sat June 26; Sat July 3; Sat July 10th and Sat July 17th.
They can choose a 2 or 4 hour shift as may days as they like.
We need them to: Paint Faces; Good handwriting to fill out Sunflower Seed Spitting Certificates;
Lemonade sellers; Water melon slicers/sellers/ Sun flower seed spitting distance recorders
ETC.
They can Call Moe McGuinty At the BIA office (416) 767-9068 or e-mail :junctionbia2010@gmail.com

JBIA flowers

The Junction BIA has placed flowers around the trees along the strip which greatly improved the streetscape.

update : asked the JBIA how many times they will be watering the flowers and it will be three times per week.

Gerard Kennedy's community meeting to include info on his efforts for the saving of the post office

The Junction BIA executive director  Anna-Louise Richardson  has been working hard with Gerard Kennedy and his office to create a window of opportunity on the the closure of the local Junction Post office.

Mr Kennedy's  office is speaking with persons at Canada Post to work out a at least a delay in the closing until after Christmas and then a reassessment of their decision and ultimately a reversal. Talks continue.

Mr Kennedy will be reporting on the issue his environment and economy meeting tomorrow.

Saturday

Oct       17        2009

at RUNNYMEDE PUBLIC SCHOOL between 2pm and 4pm

375 Runnymede RD

full flyer view

Junction BIA input on the High Park Ave and Dundas St West traffic lights

We asked the Local  BIA about their opinion on the new lights , they have provided their view which details  an astute view of the intersection that was missed in the original post - that of safety.

their comments...unedited

Safety First!


I am so very glad to see that stop lights are going up at the very
dangerous intesection of Dundas Street West and High Park Ave. It is a
horrific sound and sad event when I hear from my office the sound of
metal crashing together and then rushing to see if my assistance is
needed. Anyone who has driven north on High Park and turned west onto
Dundas St.knows that it is often very difficult to see oncoming
traffic and this seems to be when most accidents occur. Too many
accidents have happened and the lights will certainly make this a much
safer intersection for cars, pedestrians and of course dogs being
taken on walks! A safe Junction is a great Junction.




Anna-Louise Richardson
Executive Director
The Junction BIA

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.

Junction BIA approves JFAC contract

The Junction Forum for Art and Culture has signed this years (2009) agreement with the Junction BIA, which details their collaborative efforts. Camern Victor emailed note told us the agreement is  "a mutually agreed upon contract authored by both the BIA & JFAC."  The Junction Forum for Art and Culture (JFAC) Chair Councillor Bill Saundercook and Vice Chair Carmen Victor and the other JFAC members put considerable work into getting this done, as did various members of  The BIA (who we would name, but we don't know which people acted on behalf of the BIA). (We hope someone will tell us)

JFAC's primary event each year is the Junction Arts Festival but seems to be planning even more this year starting with a winter carnival at the end of Janurary 31st see this post for details.

Festival website

What is a Business Improvement Area?

photo credit: srossi

Helping things to bloom in Bloor West Village

The BIA concept began in Toronto. The first BIA - and still one of the most successful - was Bloor West Village, established in 1970. Toronto now has Toronto has 64 BIAs.  Most BIA's are composed of strip high street retailers providing a great basket of services, retailers who have little in common with chain stores.  Looking at the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas web site, ...the association of Toronto BIA's. maybe their union? …you can see the vast array of events and efforts they put forth. All this effort is in aid of business success -  in sales, but most often their efforts contribute towards a community. Yet many residents in a lot of Toronto communities neither know little, nor care about their local BIA. While researching this post, it interestingly became apparent that the Bloor West Village BIA (the 1st one and one of the most successful) seemed to have a high connection to the residence community.

More info about BIA's in Toronto and what everyone wants to know, where does their money come from...

City text...

Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) are geographic zones that are established to
promote designated areas as business or shopping locales. BIAs may undertake projects
to improve, beautify and maintain City-owned land or structures within the boundaries of
the BIA, and thus provide benefits to the member property owners and businesses, as
well as adjacent residential neighbourhoods. BIAs are governed by a Board of
Management and established by by-law. The operations of a BIA are funded through an
annual levy, which is billed and collected in a similar manner to property taxes, on all
commercial and industrial property owners (i.e. business properties) within the BIA.

What is the average annual levy of a Toronto BIA member?

Every business member is charged a share of the annual budget, based on that member's share of the BIA's total commercial realty assessment.

For example: If a business's commercial realty assessment is 6,000, the total commercial realty assessment of all businesses in the BIA is 2,000,000, and the BIA's annual budget is $100,000, then that business's BIA levy is:

6,000 X $100,000	= $300 average amount a business pays as a BIA levy
2,000,000

Data TABIA (see link below)

Assessment Appeal Provision for Business
Improvement Areas staff action report [opens in new window]

TABIA Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas web site [opens in new window]

Highlights and fisticuffs at the JUNCTION BIA meeting Thur, night

[caption id="attachment_773" align="alignnone" width="400" caption="Information provided by Junction BIA and a community member who attended."][/caption]



Last night at the Junction BIA General Meeting there was some some rallying and some floor-standing on both sides of the podium. A good outing of the issues is great, and the BIA has to be commended for allowing the public in so freely.  BIA's are funded by a levy in addition to business property taxes calculated from the individual property tax and the whole  property tax base. They are great local take control of your issues organizations- in this case of the retail strip along Dundas  St. West in the Junction.

They also decided to partly fund the Junction Arts Festival this year with a little drop less, although as a non-profit, the group (JFAC) that runs the arts festival can double any BIA contribution to the Fest.  Undoubtedly the fest brings more people to the Junction than anything else, so funding the "visitor cow" would seem like an easy choice.

BUT not all of the Dundas Strip retail  and building owners turned up at the meeting, well common sense says if you are part of an organization - contribute.
There are now two good organizations in the Junction to help better the area, The BIA, which can be considered the community's friend and the Junction Residents association which can be considered the community's  tool.

Posted by Robert

Wondering how to get your local BIA's info, ask them or get a community member to attend if it's public. ...pointing out that it appear fully  on the cities web site, that's what we did.

Update January 19th 2009:  Original information provided by Junction Gardens BIA with amounts checked by examination of the Junction Gardens BIA budget filing with the City of Toronto.

BIA's who supplied their  complete budgets and supporting documentation to the city by  by October 10, 2008 are available in this city document.

2009 Business Improvement Area Operating Budgets:
Report No. 1  Full report [opens in new window] This report contains the Junction Gardens Report.

Look for the section that is pictured to the right.

You can quickly find the budgets for any BIA in Toronto using Google

here is a search that finds the Emery Village BIA [Google search link  opens in new window]

or enter a string such as this into the Google search box {do not enter the brackets} [Parkdale Village  BIA budget site:Toronto.ca] this one  delivers the Parkdale Village  BIA budget.

Looking find other information about your local BIA simply substitute the word budget with a word or two that reflect your subject of interest, more than two or three words produces weak results ...have fun