Doly Begum MPP for Scarborough Southwest
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3110 Kingston Rd, Unit #5 416-261-9525 • dolybegum.ca DBegum-CO@ndp.on.ca
Volume 49 No. 21
BEACHMETRO.COM
Legal showdown possible over pot shop application By Alan Shackleton
PHOTO: ALAN SHACKLETON
Max, 9, was among those out enjoying the sunny weather on Saturday as he did some skating on the outdoor rink at Norwood Park. East Toronto has a long, and continuing, history of great places to skate in the community, and you can learn more about this by reading Gene Domagala’s Beach Memories column on Page 21 of today’s paper.
Malvern Collegiate student starts campaign to help homeless access food, transit DURING THE difficult times we are in right now, people are finding ways to help each other. That’s something Sydney Farrell, a Grade 12 student at Malvern Collegiate Institute, has been learning in her equity and social justice class. “The goal of the course is to create a more positive aspect in our world,” said Farrell. “This particular project was to create an action plan for our community.” But instead of just creating a plan as part of a school assignment, she went a step further and actually started project to help homeless
416-690-1032 • beyrima.ca RBerns-McGown-CO@ndp.on.ca
January 26, 2021
Out for a skate in Norwood Park
By Jayson Dimaano
Drop in or make an appointment.
people access food and transit during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Why would I do all that work and not put in the effort to complete the mission?” said Farrell. She has started an Instagram account and a GoFundMe page called Help The Homeless Access Soup Kitchens. Farrell said there are as many as 10,000 homeless people on the streets and parks across Toronto, and about 20 soup kitchens in the city. Even though the soup kitchens are spread out throughout the city, Farrell decided to make it easier for those in need to get to them. Her Continued on Page 4
THE CITY of Toronto and Tuggs Inc. may be headed towards a legal showdown regarding the lease for the property at 1681 Lake Shore Blvd. E. Late last month a notice by the company Miss Jones that it was seeking authorization for a licence to operate a cannabis retail store from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario was posted on the site. This drew the attention of local residents and the City who had until Jan. 11 of this year to send their comments to the AGCO regarding the application. In a statement sent to Beach Metro News on Jan. 19, the AGCO said it had “61 submissions received, primarily opposed to a store
in their local community, concerns about cannabis use, the number of stores in the community, and the proximity to parkland.” As reported earlier in Beach Metro News, the City of Toronto had notified the AGCO that it did not consider a retail cannabis store a permitted use of the site under the lease agreement with Tuggs Inc. The leaseholder was also notified that this was the City’s position regarding the application. The AGCO confirmed that it had received that submission from the City of Toronto’s legal department. The applicant has received copies of the submissions made and had until Jan. 22 to provide a written response, said the AGCO. According to Beaches-East York Councillor Brad Bradford, the City Continued on Page 4
Local councillor, BIAs protest province’s big box retail rules By Ali Raza, Local Initiative Reporter
Journalism
THE TORONTO Association of Business Improvement Areas and Beaches-East York Councillor Brad Bradford are asking Premier Doug Ford to limit big box stores from selling non-essential items. In a letter to the premier, writing on behalf of the city’s 84 BIAs representing more than 70,000 businesses, the two state that the latest emergency orders, while important for reducing the spread of COVID-19, are harmful to small businesses. “Under the latest orders essential retailers – particularly big
box stores – are able to sell nonessential items in-store, and afterhours,” the letter reads. “This puts small businesses at a disadvantage and is a public health concern as it may encourage non-essential travel.” Bradford has been on weekly calls with TABIA throughout the pandemic and says there have been a lot of grievances over emergency rules for big box stores compared to small businesses. In the letter, Bradford and John Kiru (Executive Director of TABIA) make their request. “We are asking you take urgent action by going one step further in the orders and mandating big box
stores and other retailers selling essential goods to close off sections of their stores where non-essential items are displayed,” they said. They cite a similar strategy used in Manitoba. In that province’s second retail lockdown in November 2020, it chose to not allow big box stores to choose their hours of operation. The goal is fairness for small businesses, Broadview-Danforth BIA chair Albert Stortchak said, expressing what so many BIAs across Toronto are feeling. “You see the big box stores, they’re selling the same products as we are and that hurts,” he said. Continued on Page 4