No. 9 • September 2012
Leaside Life
Leaside’s funny literary family __ P-16 & 17
GEOFF DAVIES
leasidelifenews.com
THE BACKYARD of 33 Heather Rd., with Tucker on guard.
The house that could break $3 million ceiling By GEOFF DAVIES Leaside flirted with a real estate milestone this summer, seeing its first listing above the $3 million mark. The four-bedroom, six-bathroom home at 33 Heather Rd., which has since been removed from MLS listings, weighs in at 5,400 square feet and sits on an 80- by 150-foot lot, said to be more than double the neighbourhood norm. Previously the highest listing in Leaside was $2.9 million for a house on Divadale with a 4,100 sq. ft. interior on a 47- by 155-foot lot. When first listed on MLS the asking price for the Heather house was nearly $3.5 million. It is now an exclusive listing for Charlene Kalia and THE HOUSE, Page 8
Another Wicksteed development By ANDREA VILLIERS
FIRST BUILT in 1902, what is now 33 Heather, was once Leaside's grandest farmhouse.
The billboards went up this summer for the latest big development in Leaside east of Laird. The Rockport Group plans to turn a 9.50-acre site in the heart of the Leaside Business Park into a mix of condominium and rental offices, warehouses and showrooms to be called the Wicksteed Business Park. It runs south of Wicksteed and east towards the Don Valley Parkway. Jack Winberg, president of the Rockport Group, says, “Wicksteed Business Park will rejuvenate and strengthen the area.” WICKSTEED, Page 14
A
Official Leaside 100 party on April 23
Leaside Life, September 2012
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You’ll soon be seeing the Leaside One Hundred logo all around town as events start being planned for next year’s centenary celebrations. Free logo artwork will be provided all next year for local sports teams, clubs, music schools, art shows, etc., to be used on letterheads, for cresting, signage or whatever is needed. The official anniversary date is Tuesday, April 23 with a gala event being planned for the following Saturday. There will also be a family-oriented outdoor summer fete. Community organizations are being encouraged to come up with ideas and individuals can do so too. Search Leaside One Hundred on Facebook for suggestions. Schools, private and public, are being asked to join in the fun. There is a Leaside One Hundred Spelling Bee planned. The Leaside Library will have special events, and keep your eye out for heritage plaques. The One Hundred committee is hoping businesses and merchants will organize a street festival. n
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HOT DOGS, Page 4
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What has 1,000 hot dogs, 1,000 cobs of corn, face painting, jumping castles and kiddie-motor scooters? The annual Leaside Rotary Club Community Corn Roast, held each fall in Trace Manes Park Started 19 years ago as a local “Leaside event,” the popular September affair still draws mostly from the immediate community. Organizers have maintained its family character, keeping it at Trace Manes Park despite the lack of electricity, and resisting suggestions for additions, such as a beer tent. “It’s a family-orientated day,” says George Hurst, president of Leaside Rotary Club, who also has coordinated the corn roast for 15 of its 19 years. “There have been some changes over the years,” Hurst says, “but many things, like the food, have stayed the same. Admission is free, and we haven’t put our prices up.” Hurst estimates that based on hot dog and corn sales, about 2,000 people attend each year.
Before there were insurance and liability concerns about “open fires” in public parks, cobs of corn were boiled in a kettle over burning logs, instead of today’s BBQs. But food continues to play a key role in making the Sunday afternoon fun for all ages. Face painting is a favourite, and in recent years a motor scooter ride for children has been a hit. It takes about 90 volunteers to run the day, many coming from sponsors for the event, and each year a group of students is recruited from Leaside High School. The event is promoted at schools in Leaside as well as in Thorncliffe Park. “We are very grateful for our sponsors,” Hurst adds, noting that some, like Valu-Mart, Bell Jewellers, Coca-Cola, Patrick Rocca, Canada Trust and Humphrey-Miles, have been with them from the beginning. Although sponsorships make the event a successful fundraiser, the day itself “breaks even,” paid for through food sold and tickets for the various
Leaside Life, September 2012
By BETH PARKER
Hot dogs From Page 3
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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activities, which include six “inflatables”—jumping castles, slides, obstacles course and one “still to be decided”. Since its beginning, the corn roast has raised about $200,000, money which the club directs back into many local causes. Leaside Rotary Club, for example, recently donated $50,000 for the new Leaside Arena. They’ve also supported the new playing fields at Bessborough and Northlea, made a major contribution to playground equipment at Bessborough and Trace Manes, and bought new furniture for the public library. A special donation is already in the works for Leaside’s 100th anniversary. Leaside Rotary was founded in the 1940s and over the years has contributed in countless ways to the Leaside community and beyond. It is one of 30,000 Rotary clubs that make an impact on communities in 200 countries worldwide. This year’s Community Corn Roast will be held Sunday, Sept. 16, 12–5 p.m. at Trace Manes Park, corner of McRae Dr. and Millwood Rd. n
Leaside RotaRy CLub 19th Annual Community Corn Roast
Sunday, September 16th, 2012 12:00 noon to 5:00pm Trace Manes Park (Corner of Millwood Road & McRae Drive) f the Members o mmunity Leaside co rd to this look forwa nt each annual eve ~ an September y for the opportunit ood to neighbourh er and get togeth at the end reconnect mer! of the sum
DON’T MISS this fun, family-oriented community corn roast, featuring fresh corn on the cob, BBQ hotdogs, ice cream, deserts, music, kids games, motor scooters, an obstacle course, bouncy castles and slides, face painting, craft tables, a raffle & plenty of fun for the whole family!!!
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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147 Laird Drive at Wicksteed
Queen’s neighbour is now a Benningtonian Leaside Life, September 2012
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Born in a village near Windsor in England, our Hugh Grant used to have the Queen as his neighbour. Today, Grant and his wife live in Bennington Heights, an area they’ve embraced since moving into the city in 1996. “It’s a community with a certain personality.” says Grant. With most of the streets without sidewalks, the neighbourhood has a “village feel,” plus he enjoys the many interesting people who live there. Now retired, the former marketing executive devotes much of his time to the community. For the past six years, he’s held the position of president of the Bennington Heights Residents’ Association. Two former presidents who preceded him, Fred Pierce and Gordon Champion, still live nearby in Bennington and Leaside respectively. “It’s not the kind of community you leave lightly,” Grant says. He is proud of accomplishments of the association over his years as president, which include the attractive traffic calming along Moore Ave. that makes the road so much “less of a highway”.
MEET YOUR NEIGHBOUR
“Almost every day I hear positive comments about the outstanding streetscape and how it makes the area look and feel like a community.” Grant is also proud of the way in which the neighbourhood collaborates as a “good neighbour” with Mount Pleasant Cemetery. “We have an excellent relationship,” he says. “…in fact due to their
generosity, for the past three years our Residents’ Association has held its AGM at their Visitation Centre.” How long have you lived in Bennington Heights? 16 years. What do you like about the neighbourhood? The ravines, access to TTC and the fact I can be right downtown in 10 minutes. I also like that in spite of the extremely high price of houses, Bennington continues to be rejuvenated by a lot of young families. This truly delights me. The presence of children in the neighbourhood brings life to the community. Is there anything you’d change? I’d like to find a way to protect the aesthetic value of the neighbourhood – there’s a trend now to smash down perfectly good houses. Places of note in the area? Bennington Heights Public School, the real heart of our community, and Mount Pleasant Cemetery, a delightful and well cared for natural environment on our doorstep. n
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Trae Zammit, owner of the Smokin’ Cigar, has complained to Councillor John Parker about car ticketing on Bayview, warning that “I want to take this to the highest level and have this incident used as an example of why we need better, more understanding ticketing officers for this area.” He says that a customer came into his store recently wanting change for the parking meter. By the time the customer made it back to his car the ticket was written. Zammit wrote, “I pointed out that they (the ticketing officers) were ‘killing’ business without giving the opportunity (for the customer) to get the ticket. Fundamentally that is wrong in so many ways. “The officer made a comment to me, with a smirk on his face: ‘That is what we are paid to do.’” This past July city council amended the grace period for all pay and display street parking in
Toronto, excluding arterial roads during rush hour, from five to 10 minutes. Anthony Fabrizi, manager of parking operations for the city, says justices of the peace every year cancel thousands of tickets given for being one or two minutes past the five-minute grace period. Many Bayview shoppers were unaware of the grace period, like Peter Lipman, of Sutherland Dr. “Ten minutes is very reasonable,” he says. Joanne Sweeney, who lives at Mt. Pleasant and St. Clair and shops on Bayview, also didn’t know about the grace period. “I am conscious of parking…when they are here and when they’re not,” she says. Ray Gork, owner of Leaside Paint Centre on Bayview, thinks the ticketers are “militant” and the new 10 minutes is “good news”. “I love the 10-minute grace period and I think it will help business tremendously,” says Zammit. n
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Leaside Life, September 2012
‘Smirking’ ticket officer fires up Bayview owner
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The house Leaside Life, September 2012
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From Page 1
Erin Ashby, with Chestnut Park, with no price shown. The house owner, hockey playerturned-broadcaster Nick Kypreos, whose family has lived there since they bought and renovated it in 2004, says, “I believe that Leaside is still undervalued when it comes to where property sits in this location.” Leaside, he says, may well be one of the best-located neighbourhoods in the city. “Ten, 15 years from now, people are going to understand why now there’s $2 and $3 million dollar homes in Leaside.” “Up until a year and a bit ago I think there had only been two homes that sold in the $2.5 milllion range, and all of a sudden, now it’s not an uncommon number,” says Patrick Rocca of Bosley Real Estate. This year alone, says Carol Wrigley, of Royal LePage, eight houses have sold over the $2 million mark. Richard Byford says the Heather house sold for $740,000 when his firm, Bonnie Byford Real Estate, handled the deal in August 1989. Back then, a few months could have made a big difference and a bigger price tag. The market had peaked in April. But even back then, the house was a rare case, selling for several times more than the typical value of a detached home, he says. “Don’t use this for a barometer. “It’s a unique-sized piece of land, a unique house, and a unique street.” But local realtors and residents alike have been speculating about what could happen if the Leaside homes start selling for above $3 million. As the benchmark gets pushed higher and higher, the impact will be seen among both buyers and sellers, says Wrigley. Leasiders looking to sell their homes will have higher expectations of what they should ask, expectations not always on the mark, as many factors go into home valuation. Meanwhile, the many deeppocketed builders buying older, smaller Leaside homes to convert and flip could be encouraged to bid higher if they know there’s a precedent for sales at the top end of the spectrum. “If a builder will get $2.4 million for a new house he just created, he might be willing to spend $1.21.4 million for a house he’s just going to knock down. So that raises the bar
Ten, 15 years from now, people are going to understand why now there’s $2 and $3 million dollar homes in Leaside: Nick Kypreos
for the smaller older houses,” says Byford. “If they were happy to blow away a bungalow, they might now be happy to blow away two-storey, three-bedroom homes if the price is right and the location is right.” The Heather house, built in 1902 for John Edmund Lea, grandson of the neighbourhood’s namesake, became Leaside’s grandest farmhouse. John Edmund’s grandfather, John Lea, came from Lancashire, England, in 1819 to settle in the area. That first house can be felt in the
current home’s feel, partly from stained-glass windows from the original farmhouse and a wrap-around porch. The porch was part of the renovation Kypreos finished in 2004 before getting settled. The main addition was a big family room facing the backyard from inside a six-sided turret. “It seems to be the hottest seat during the winter games in the backyard,” Kypreos said. THE HOUSE, Page 9
The house From Page 8
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Those games are played in a wintertime hockey rink, 33 by 54 feet, roughly a quarter the NHL regulation size. It comes complete with four-foot boards and mesh nets to prevent run-away pucks, not to mention four floodlights to keep the game going into the night. The backyard also has a playground, complete with two swings and two slides, and still has lots of space. The house doesn’t squarely face the street, like all its neighbours. Instead, its door is to the driveway – the original country path, once known as Heather Lane. The front still boasts the original brick. With three kids who share his love for the national pastime, Kypreos said hockey parties have become something of a tradition over the past six years. “The highlight was four years ago when I was able to bring the Stanley Cup and skate a lap with it in the backyard,” says Kypreos, who won hockey’s greatest prize in 1994 with the New York Rangers. n
By MARIE FULLERTON According to the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB), detached home prices in the C11 district (which includes Leaside) have risen 47 percent in the last 30 months. The average detached sale price soared from $900,000 in January 2010 to $1.36 million in June 2012. While detached prices are up, homes similar to the one pictured at right have only risen in value 17 percent. Why? We first need to understand that there are two major factors at work in Leaside detached home prices: appreciation in the market and added value. Appreciation is the general rise and fall of the market due to supply and demand and inflation. It is like the tide: it lifts all boats when it comes in. Added value is the add-on of more features and quality such as an addition, more bedrooms, new kitchen, and new bathrooms. In Leaside, many original homes are undergoing huge value added changes. The sheer volume of infill building and the trend towards grander houses is significantly influencing raw sales statistics for C11, which includes Thorncliffe Park, Flemingdon Park, Bennington Heights and Governor’s Bridge. The Leaside neighbourhood, designed pre-World War I and completed post-World War II, remained relatively unaltered from 1950 to the late 1980s. However, starting in the mid 1990s and still going strong today, Leaside’s streetscape is changing. The post-war bungalow in particular has provided a great opportunity for homeowners and developers. A developer purchases a home for $900,000, rebuilds to more than double the original house size and resells for more than double the original
Leaside Life, September 2012
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Not all house prices have skyrocketed
ORIGINAL neighbourhood style two-storey home. purchase price. This conversion process has little to do with market appreciation and everything to do with added value. When every street in Leaside has a luxury rebuild project, it strongly influences detached prices upward due to added value, not market appreciation. Current homeowners cannot assume that a rise in the TREB average detached monthly sold price means that their home has appreciated that same amount. To gain a better understanding of the appreciation in the Leaside detached house market, my team researched the homes sold in this area over the past 30 months. W We chose a specific house style with wide distribution throughout the neighbourhood: A The house depicted above is an original, detached, two-storey, three bedrooms without a family room, no A visible exterior renovations. It represents the original neighbourhood as best we can today, 2940 foot frontages and not on a major street, therefore we eliminate the value added effect as best we can. A graph of the average monthly sales price for this style of home
shows a strong but nevertheless more modest 17 percent appreciation over the past 30 months with the majority of that appreciation in value occurring this past spring. See the graph below. As a point of interest, the highest price for this kind of home sold in April for $1,220,000. On the value added side of the spectrum the selling price of $2 million has been surpassed multiple times in Leaside for new homes. In 2010, one home sold for over $2 million, in 2011 this figure rose to three homes, and in 2012, to date, four homes were sold at or above this price. As of June 30, 2012 the record price for a home sold in Leaside was $2.4 million. The difference in pricing between these two groups, new value added detached and original detached, is nearly $1,000,000. Market appreciation in this segment has increased but not as quickly as one might be led to believe from TREB’s Market Watch monthly statistics. New homes, replacing older ones, are bigger and better than ever before. The sheer number of value added home conversions by infill builders skews up the average monthly TREB statistics, measuring value added and appreciation. If you are a looking to purchase, considering selling or just considering your options as a homeowner, consult a knowledgeable realtor who specializes in this neighbourhood for a proper evaluation. Be very careful how you interpret the monthly Market Watch statistics as they represent a very large basket of diverse homes and many value factors. n Marie Fullerton is a realtor with Right At Home Realty Inc. and a ! Leaside resident.
Excerpts from SmartCentre traffic study |
TE UDY UPDA IMPACT ST TRAFFIC
LOPMENT CIAL DEVE ENUE COMMER AV PROPOSED IVE AT WICKSTEED DR O RONT LAIRD CITY OF TO
FOR: PREPARED PMENTS D DEVELO WICKSTEE
LIMITED
March 2012 11087
n Planni Transportatio
ng | Traffic
Engineering
| Specialized
Traffic Assess
A Member
of The Sernas
ments | Site
and Locatio
n Investigation
in response to longer delays at 11 some currently constrained locations. While there could be a minor propensity (less than 4%) for traffic infiltration into the local residential roads west of Laird Drive in this short-term, the long-term impact after the LRT opens is expected to be negligible… Phase1 (of the LRT) includes a station at Laird Drive in the underground section between Keele Street and Laird Drive. The walking distance between the future Laird Station and the galleria of Building ‘A’ is only approximately 450 metres… The LRT is… expected to accommodate about three times the person carrying capacity of the road… The Eglinton Crosstown LRT provides the additional capacity to significantly reduce both the future traffic volumes along Eglinton Avenue and more modestly the site generated vehicle trips, and in consequence reduces some turning movement volumes at key intersections along Eglinton and along Laird in the study area… The only potential significant traffic growth in the area would be development triggered… The development can be expected to generate new local TTC ridership on the existing bus routes… It can also be expected that new TTC ridership would be generated along Eglinton Avenue when the future LRT becomes operational, some of which would become local pedestrian trips destined for the site. Additionally, as the very short driving distances to the site from the adjacent residential areas would not be routinely practical, the future proportion of pedestrian trips is considered to be underestimated… The… trip generation data clearly demonstrates that shopping centre trip rates do not increase in direct proportion to the increase in gross leasable areas (GLA). This is the synergy effect based on a single two-way trip having more than one trip purpose within a larger retail commercial development with many on-site uses. Such synergies can be amplified when a new shopping centre is developed adjacent to an existing shopping centre, such as the case with the subject development. n
| Strategic
Advisory
Group Inc.
City study turns into ‘comments’ Toronto Transportation Service’s Lorenzo D’Souza, support assistant, received loud boos when he told the SmartCentre meeting at Leaside Arena on June 11 that the same consultant used by SmartCentre would be hired by the city to prepare its own traffic study. Leaside Life recently asked the city for more information. This is the message that came back: “The City is not preparing a traffic study for the Laird/Wicksteed application rather, staff in Transportation Services have reviewed and provided comments on the Transportation Impact Study filed by the applicant's transportation consultant. Comments on the study were issued to the applicant and staff are waiting for the applicant to address the comments. “Regards “Steve Forrester, Senior Planner City of Toronto” LRT… (which) will result in a significant shift from automobiles to public transit in the Eglinton Avenue corridor, and eliminate most of the surface buses… The impact of the site traffic between the expected opening in 2013 and the opening of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT is expected to be moderated by driver behaviour
Leaside Life, September 2012
These are excerpts from the publication at right. This study finds that with several minor improvements to the road system, in conjunction with the enhanced public transit service to the area, traffic to and from the proposed site can be accommodated on the area road system at acceptable levels of service with little impact on area residents… The most important imminent change to the area’s transportation system is the Eglinton Avenue Crosstown LRT. Upon its introduction, traffic conditions in the area will experience relief from the current congestion in the Eglinton corridor and it will provide substantial additional corridor capacity to accommodate future travel growth for many years… City of Toronto staff concurred with our terms of reference… The primary study area is in the area of Leaside south and east of Eglinton Avenue and Laird Drive. Traffic data were obtained at the study intersections in the weekday a.m. and p.m., and Saturday mid-day peak periods to identify the peak traffic hours of the study intersections. Saturday afternoon is typically the peak traffic period for retail shopping activity… A study planning horizon was established for 2018, which is five years after the opening of the site, in accordance with City requirements. It included the anticipated background traffic growth from other developments expected to be built-out within this time period… The site traffic impact is expected to be locally apparent only in the weekday p.m. and Saturday mid-day peak hours at the Eglinton Avenue intersections with Laird Drive and Brentcliffe Road, and at the Laird Drive intersection with Wicksteed Avenue / McRae Drive. Otherwise, the site traffic dissipates into the surrounding road network with negligible or minimal overall long-term impact. Furthermore, all predicted site left turn lane queuing characteristics in the peak study hours are expected to be accommodated by the recommended transportation system improvements. A current major improvement to the area transportation system is the Eglinton Avenue Crosstown
We found flaws, missing elements in traffic study Leaside Life, September 2012
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“Summertime, and the livin’ is easy,” goes the song. If only! All summer long, both the Leaside Property Owners’ Association and Leaside Unite have been hard at work gathering facts, analyzing reports, and organizing opposition to the proposed SmartCentre North megamall at Laird and Wicksteed. I’ve written about this would-be development in earlier columns. It presents significant threats to the neighbourhood as we know it, in terms of traffic, safety concerns, scale, usage, and impact on our Bayview shopping district. LPOA and Leaside Unite have joined forces to follow through on the opinions hundreds of you expressed at March and June public meetings. In July we met with city staff and Councillor Parker to go through the developer’s consultants’ reports and city staff’s preliminary responses, and presented six pages of our own questions and concerns. We were able to identify specific flaws and missing elements in those reports, particularly the traffic analyses and predicted impacts. For instance, there was no mention whatsoever of any shopping-related
Carol Fripp Vice-president, LPOA
traffic impact on North Leaside! We continue to be concerned about the cumulative effects on and near Laird of the proposed big box mall plus the two existing Laird malls. We continue to oppose permitting underground parking, and the double-density of the proposed site, which amounts to major overdevelopment. We continue to be very concerned about the safety issues which retail-related traffic infiltration will create on our residential streets: increased speed and traffic numbers will decrease safety for all of Leaside. So what happens next? We still await detailed responses from the developer’s consultants, and a peer review report. When these are received by the city, staff will forward copies to LPOA/Leaside Unite and we will meet again with staff and Councillor Parker to promote the neighbourhood’s case. City staff will eventually put forward their position,
and the matter will go first to North York Community Council and then to the full City Council for decisions. The LPOA and Leaside Unite will be there. In the meanwhile, I urge you to do two things. If you are not yet a member of the LPOA, please join; go to our website for details. And join Leaside Unite to volunteer and contribute what you can, because Leaside Unite is about to hire professional assistance, which will be essential whether this ends locally or goes all the way past City Council to the Ontario Municipal Board. Can we win this? Yes. Research indicates that up to 65 percent of big box retail development proposals never get built. No merchant wants to move into a negative location: it’s just not good for business! Strong opposition from residents does make a difference. And we have already had offers of support from other parts of Toronto. This is not just a local Leaside issue. Join us! Leaside’s quality of life is worth fighting for. Contact us at lpoa.ca, or LPOA, Sunnybrook Postal Outlet, 660 Eglinton East, PO Box 50055, Toronto M4G 4G1. n
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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Wicksteed From Page 1
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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He says the project was based on “demand from people in Leaside”. The business plan, which the company says complies with city planning requirements, features five large two-storey buildings with spaces from 1,000 to 30,000 sq. ft. It’s all still in the planning stages, but the Rockport Group aims to have the first phase occupied by August next year. Completion of the project could take three years. Michael Tucci, director of land development and acquisitions for the Rockport Group, said "they have done their due diligence with the city and have met with staff from the planning department, urban design, economic development and Councillor (John) Parker". He said plans will be filed with the city this fall and a presentation will be made to the Leaside Business Park Association this month. The first customer has already signed up: John Panagakos, of Dominion Lending Centres Home Financial Inc., bought a 2,000 sq ft. unit to moved his office here from Danforth Ave.
Winberg says their target markets range from “people retiring from a major job and starting their own businesses to those who want to live and work close to industrial and employment lands”. The Leaside Business Park is in a transition phase. Over the years many companies such as Canada Wire, WinPak, Alcatel, an aluminum smelter, and Corning have moved out. It’s difficult to compete with lower taxes and less expensive land in the 905 area. Some remaining business owners in the LBP are concerned about the loss of employment lands and that speculators may buy up the land. Some wonder whether the new condo owners will object to the noise and smells within the industrial area. n
Leaside Life Published once a month in Leaside,Toronto ON, by Ruth G. Publishing Inc., 66 Donegall Drive, Toronto ON, M4G 3G5 Circulation 8,500 to every door in M4G PubLIsheR: Lorna Krawchuk eDITORIaL: harry Goldhar, andrea Villiers aDVeRTIsING: Ruth Goldhar TyPeseTTING: L. Choy 416-486-7387 leasidelife@gmail.com leasidelifenews.com
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I have lived in Leaside for most of my life. As a child of the ‘60s, the centre of my culinary world was Sunnybrook Restaurant and Tavern. To cool off in the summers, my friends and I whirled on bar stools at Sunnybrook’s front counter, devouring skyscraper-high ice cream cones, boat-sized banana splits and mountainous milkshakes. It was a place where one did not merely go to eat, but to socialize. It was, quite simply, a home away from home. In the winters my friends and I dragged our wooden toboggans to the park surrounding Leaside High School. There we thudded down snow-packed slopes, or skated on an enormous ice rink. Later at Sunnybrook Restaurant we crammed into booths. Tuna fish or salmon salad sandwiches with cole slaw, or fresh cut French fries were our favourites, as were the home-made soups of the day. The waitresses wore paper hats then, with name tags pinned above the breast pockets of their uniforms.
kered deals, and everyone went to eat and relax. As late afternoons drifted into evenings our mothers enjoyed snacking after shopping at Sunnybrook Plaza. And, finally, it was a place where even in public a family could grieve inconspicuously. In 1968, when my eldest brother was killed in a car accident, my family gathered to remember at Sunnybrook. Sunnybrook also had its share of scandals. Rounding the entrance of the restaurant one evening on my bicycle, I witnessed two men trying to wrestle each other onto the pavement, one man incurring a sufficiently traumatic injury to the crotch of his pants to reveal the colour of his undergarments. More seriously, a few years later, a young man was shot after a drugdeal went bad in a nearby parkette. I moved away from North Leaside for several years. When I returned, I invited my mother to lunch at Sunnybrook Restaurant. Even by the millennium, the décor remained quaint. A patio had
Leaside Life, September 2012
By PATRICIA PHENIX
Leaside’s literary Fallis family
n DR. GEORDIE FALLIS
Leaside Life, September 2012
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A doctor among the funny guys By BETH PARKER He may be Chief of Family Practice at Toronto East General (TEGH) and an assistant professor at the University of Toronto, but Leaside physician Dr. Geordie Fallis is making a name for himself these days as a writer who’s already shared a stage with comedians like Jerry Seinfeld and Will Arnett. This April Fallis read from his recently published book, From Testicles to Timbuktu: An Eclectic Look at Love, Life and Laughter from The Other Side of the Stethoscope, at TEGH’s gala fundraiser. The event featured several comic stars. But those in attendance received an added treat— “an advance peak” at Fallis’ story collection, narrated by the author himself. The audio book, recorded at the Banff Centre this January by his son Kevin, is a collection of anecdotes that Fallis started gathering as a medical student over 30 years ago. “It’s in the stories that healing often takes place,” says Fallis, a Leaside resident. Fallis has already noticed that people about 90 years of age as well as teenagers are responding enthusiastically to his book. He believes it’s partly because readers enjoy seeing physicians in a different light—there is more to them than just handing out medical care, and “through these stories we get to hear this other side but through the patients’ perspective. “The book is not PG rated,” he warns, noting that he uses his patients’ words, without masking or editing out what they are thinking and feeling. “The narratives,” as Fallis explains in the book’s introduction, “are part observational, part humorous and part autobiographical. As one of my colleagues pointed out, you just can’t make this stuff up.” Fallis started the book in 1972 as a diary while training as a medical student in remote areas of British
Columbia, Newfoundland and Africa. At one point he decided to write down the “funny events” so he’d have something happy to read. A couple of years ago, in his role as Chief of Family Practice at TEGH, Fallis found himself retelling the stories to lighten the mood for elderly patients at a clinic for complex continuing care. With encouragement from colleagues and patients, he took a four-month sabbatical last year to write his book. This January, he went to the Banff Centre where the book was recorded and published. Described by some as TEGH’s own Patch Adams, Fallis is a firm believer that humour lends itself to the release of pent up emotions, especially when people face medical situations. Those who know Fallis are familiar with his sense of humour, his compassionate approach to patient care, quick laugh, unfailing kindness and dedication to his patients, medical students and those around him. He and his wife, anesthesiologist, Dr. Beverley Orser, and their three children have lived in Leaside since 1984. n
Dr. Fallis’ audiobook, From Testicles to Timbuktu: An Eclectic look at Love, Life and Laughter from The Other Side of the Stethoscope, is available for purchase at www.notesfromadoc.com and on iTunes.
‘That guy, he’s just a quack’ An excerpt from the book: July 1989. Mr. G. had called the office to say that his wife was in hospital and he had been drinking heavily to assuage his loneliness. He had had way too much to drink and was vomiting profusely. My nurse Anne thought that she should do a home visit while I carried on seeing patients. She found him stooped over the toilet with intractable vomiting. She gave him a shot of Gravol and anti nausea and he immedately had a gran mal seizure. She called 911 and he was taken to the hospital and admitted. I went to visit him the next day. He was hallucinating from alcohol withdrawal. He thought I was his best friend from London, Ontario. He said to me, “Hi Bob, how are you doin’?” Not to frighten him I responded, “Not bad, how are you doing?” He said, “Good,” and I asked, “Well, how’s the food?” to which he replied, “F… awful.” “Well, how are the doctors and nurses?” “Good,” he said. And then I asked him, “How’s that Dr. Fallis?” And he responded without a moment’s hesitation saying, “Well, that guy, he’s just a quack.” Feeling somewhat despondent after that not so rousing endorsement, I went back to the office. When I told Anne what had happened, she tried to cheer me up by saying, “Oh well, I guess he’s not that out of it after all.”
Leaside’s literary Fallis family
TERRY FALLIS n
Another funny guy and the hovercraft
Daniel Addison comes out of politics sick and disillusioned, before meeting Angus and becoming his campaign manager and co-conspirator. You worked as a political staffer for the federal and Ontario Liberals in the 1980s, under Chretien and Turner among others, before getting into PR. How did your feelings upon leaving politics compare to Daniel’s? I was ready to move on from politics at the time. I’m an eternal optimist, so I am not completely bitter about the experience at all, but I hope that one day we can rebuild public trust and public faith in the political process.
As the days tick down to the launch of his third book, Terry Fallis is a healthy mix of nerves and excitement. His self-published premiere, The Best Laid Plans, caused a significant stir after it came out of nowhere to win the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour in 2008. With the 2010 release of The High Road, Fallis cemented Angus McClintock, the accidental MP, into the hearts of Canadian booklovers, proving – to the surprise of many – that there is indeed an appetite for political satire novels. With Up and Down due to hit shelves Sept. 11, and plans for Angus to appear in a stage musical and a CBC miniseries, the local author swung by Leaside library on Aug. 2 for a reading, revealing why the new novel has him on edge. It’s not about Angus. Speaking to the hometown crowd – Fallis grew up in Leaside and still lives in the area – the former political staffer and co-founder of PR agency Thornley Fallis, explained how, in the new novel, it all begins with NASA. Hoping to stave off budget cuts by firing up waning public interest, the space agency launches a contest to recruit two citizen astronauts – a Canadian and an American -with the help of a cross-border PR agency. From Canada, NASA wants a handsome strapping stereotype, says Fallis, but the mission goes haywire when they get the opposite: a “71-year-old lesbian bush-pilot doctor who lives on the shores of a glacial lake in northern British Columbia”. Battle lines are drawn when she teams up with the agency’s newest Toronto recruit, and a new space race is begun. Fallis sat down with Leaside Life after the event to talk about his satire’s unlikely success, the NIMBY movement and how the original hovercraft was born in Leaside.
GEOFF DAVIES
By GEOFF DAVIES
Why is a book about politics a tough sell? I think it’s because not as many Canadians are as interested in politics as they ought to be. And I think how the game of politics is played has contributed to disenfranchising people. We happen to live in one of the best countries in the world and we have what I like to call the apathy of affluence. You turn on the hot water tap in the kitchen and hot water comes out. You put your garbage out on the street on Thursday mornings and, miraculously, it’s picked up. Life is good for so many people that there’s no real incentive for them to get interested in politics. In the books, The Best Laid Plans and The High Road, Angus refuses to play the dirty politics of his opponent, saying he’d rather people vote than turn away from democracy. How much of this disenfranchisement has to do with how the game is played? A tremendous amount. We get jaded and jaundiced and sometimes disgusted with what we see. So we withdraw, instead of doing what we really should do if we don’t like it, which is to get more involved and say stop doing that. It used to be 80 per cent of us would vote in the 1960s, but the
Did you have to play dirty? I’ve certainly been on a team that played dirty. And it made me uncomfortable. I haven’t participated in anything really scandalous or anything like that, but it just bothered me that we spent so much time focused on our opponents rather than focusing on the important stuff, namely policy. ...what about when the NIMBY issues land in your own backyard? I’ve never liked the Not-In-My-BackYard syndrome. It doesn’t mean I’m happy about everything that happens in my community or that I support it. But if the research is there and if a sound case is made, that’s where it should be rather than shoving it somewhere else. I was wondering if you see yourself as part of a… trend, of DIY authors. You self-published your first novel and promoted it by podcasting each chapter. You’re doing the same with your new novel, Up and Down. What’s behind your unique approach? A lot of people have said, ‘Wow, you must have had great faith in your own book to go to that trouble and get it out there,’ and that’s completely wrong. I had no faith in it, I didn’t know, I honestly didn’t know and I wanted to find out if it was any good. When you write something, and you’re a writer, you labour over it for a long time, your sense of perspective in what you’ve written completely abandons you. I was in no position to ANOTHER FUNNY GUY, Page 30
Leaside Life, September 2012
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brand of politics back then is differ- 17 ent than the brand of politics that is practiced now. Not nearly as partisan, not nearly as acrimonious and hostile.
Leaside Life, September 2012
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By ANDREA VILLIERS It’s not just that he lives next door that makes Deni Papetti fight so hard against the plans for an eightstorey condominium to replace the old post office at 2 Laird Dr. “I feel a level of responsibility to my neighbours and community because I understand the process that’s in place for development,” says Papetti, an architect. And if the condo is built as planned it will start an unwise change to the neighbourhood, he says. “We need to look at what’s appropriate and what fits into the existing context” now, so the neighbourhood won’t change drastically. The proposed condominium features mainly glass and brick and
could be an eyesore as one of the first buildings people see coming from Millwood Rd., he says. It would loom over houses on Krawchuk Lane. And it could be a precedent for change on Laird. The massive retail development on the east side of Laird raises the question of what will happen on the west side, where the old post office is, he warns. “There is a missed opportunity on Laird. The big box stores are so banal, they can be anywhere. Leaside is a residential community with shops on Bayview. “If Laird were lined with retail and residential above it could be pedestrian friendly.”
Communities stay vibrant and merchants thrive when there are places to go to shop and eat, he says. When he first learned of the proposal Papetti approached his neighbours and got a petition started which now has 300 signatures. Shortly after that Papetti, in consultation with Councillor John Parker, held a community meeting at the Leaside Library to get the facts to the neighbourhood. “We are ahead (on this). Typically the community is not aware ‘til the first official community meeting”. “Right now,” says Papetti, “it still looks as if a community meeting will be held in September.” n
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Deni Papetti leads the fight to stop the condo project at the old post office
Leaside Life, September 2012
Not only because he lives next door
PLAZA been added outside. There were still booths, although some jiggled. The paper placemats, however, were still part of the landscape. The contents of the plastic menus appeared unchanged, yet many dishes were retrieved from a freezer and heated in a stove or microwave oven. This included fish and chips and vegetable dishes. The restaurant was half empty. Suddenly it occurred to me that the heart of Sunnybrook Restaurant may have broken once its customers, including young families with children, passed by it in favour of nearby fast-food outlets such as McDonald’s, Subway sandwiches and Mamma’s Pizza. In April of this year the Food Network’s television show Restaurant Makeover redesigned Sunnybrook’s décor and menu, and renamed it Uptown. The owner hopes hip, young diners will be attracted to its fresh, home-made food and open concept. That remains to be seen. Change, sometimes, is hard to swallow. n
CYNDA FLEMING
From Page 15
WAY TO GO SHOPPING: Leaside resident Sue Thomson enjoyed a glass of wine in the upstairs bar of the Longo’s supermarket that opened last month in the new Leaside Village development on Laird Dr. Several other stores are now open too.
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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It was a summer of sports heroes in Leaside, starting in early July when baseball Hall of famer Ron Taylor joined hockey legend Ken Dryden for a City of Toronto appreciation night at Talbot Park to honour Howard Bernie’s 40 years of baseball leadership. Then in mid August, former Toronto Blue Jay and World Series Champion Kelly Gruber hosted a coaches’ clinic for the Leaside Baseball Association followed by a one-day baseball camp for players in the community...During the Olympics we all cheered on Leaside’s own Olympian, Martha McCabe, who finished 5th in the 200m breaststroke. McCabe is a graduate of Leaside High. McCabe studies human kinetics at the University of British Columbia...There was some gold in Leaside when four Leaside kids placed first playing basketball at the United World Games this summer in Austria. Great work Liam Mahoney, Avery Boda, Bobby Serpa and Hayley Everett...This past summer saw numerous fundraisers, including a BBQ for Community Living last July at the Motion Specialties Home Health Care on Eglinton Ave. and Hollywood Gelato Day in early August in support of Holland Bloorview...Next time you walk past the library, check out the new commemorative garden that honours the founding of the Leaside Garden Society. With a sign that bears the letters LGS, the garden was planted last May on the northeast corner of Trace Manes Park. This past year the Society
also donated an attractive new bench to the Leaside Public Library, complemented by a new permanent planter. On Thursday, Sept.13 at 7 p.m., there will a special ceremony acknowledging Leaside Gardens Society's 25 years...New Leaside Arena-watchers were glad to see construction begin this summer, starting with clearing the site. Councillor John Parker tells us that some of the lumber felled will be harvested for re-purposing...Also this August saw the opening of the new Longo’s on Laird in a site designated under the Heritage Act and repurposed for new use. The original locomotive shed was constructed for the Canadian Northern Railway a century ago...St. Cuthbert’s Anglican Church suggests if you haven't been in church for a while, or think this might be a good time to have a look, come out to their Back to Church Sunday on Sunday, Sept. 30. There’s a traditional service at 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. for a more contemporary experience. Everyone is welcome to stay afterwards for a BBQ on the church green (1399 Bayview, just south of Davisville)...Looking for a special treat? Check out the delectable (and peanut free) cupcakes baked and sold by Leaside resident Charlene, out of Bravo Pizza on Millwood Rd. Charlene’s sister died of breast cancer a year ago so besides supplying the neighbourhood with the best cupcakes you can find, Charlene raises funds for the Breast Cancer Centre at Sunnybrook Hospital. Her latest promotion, special pink-ribbon cupcakes, support the new breast cancer treatment centre at Sunnybrook Plaza, “Buy a cupcake a week,” suggests Charlene, “and support a great cause.” www.facebook.com/cupcakesbychar n
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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Few homes of our early settlers are left Leaside Life, September 2012
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The news earlier this summer that Nick Kypreos’ house at 33 Heather Rd. was up for sale raised some excitement in Leaside. Can a house here really be worth almost $3.5 million? The answer is: “We will have to wait and see.” But this is no ordinary house – that much is plain. It is an extraordinary house not only because of its healthy specifications, beginning with the size of the lot, 80 by 150 feet, but also for its unique origins and its story. Only a few homes in Leaside remain from the settler farmstead era: the James Lea House (201 Sutherland), the John Edmund Lea House (33 Heather) and the Elgie Family House (262 Bessborough). The first of the Lea family dynasty was John Lea, who in 1819 arrived from England by way of the United States. The Lea family, John, Mary, his wife, and William, his son, settled in York County because of its close proximity to an expanding community (Toronto, then known as York) and because of the fertile land in the region. Two more children, John and Mary, were born to the Leas after their arrival in Canada.
Geoff Kettel
Saving old Leaside John Lea settled on a 200-acre farm, some of the land having been previously cleared but the majority of it heavily timbered. Cows were pastured and a dairy established, and in the succeeding years the remaining land was cleared for an apple orchard. John Lea’s first house was made of logs, then replaced in 1829 by a brick house on the same site at Lea Dr. and Laird, which was reported to be the first brick house in York County. Much later, in about 1912, this house was destroyed by fire. When John Lea died in 1851 he left his son John Jr. 110 acres of land, including the house, orchard and all of the out-buildings. John Jr. married Sarah Charles and they had three children, Mary, James, and John Edmund. James Lea built his own brick house in 1909 on Lea’s Lane, a street which no longer exists. The house however remains as 201 Sutherland.
John Edmund Lea similarly built a house on Lea’s lane in 1902, now known as 33 Heather. When the Town of Leaside was designed in 1912, little consideration was given to the old settlement roads, or the farmsteads, the original dwellings. The new organization left the John Edmund Lea House with its front door facing its back yard and the front door of the James Lea House faced the side of the house next to it. Despite the disorientation to Sutherland Dr., the James Lea House’s exterior remains basically unchanged except for the addition of a porch and entranceway. The John Edmund Lea House was extensively renovated in 2004, including the addition of a new porch built facing Heather Rd. The third surviving settler farmstead, the Elgie Family Home on Bessborough, is believed to have been built in the early 1880s for Robert Elgie, of the Elgie family, who were original settlers on the property located east and south of what today are Bayview and Eglinton Aves. SETTLERS, Page 28
A stroke gets her to the top of blog list 23
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Marilyn Sherman: Leasider, avid gardener, former occupational health nurse manager, wife, mother… and now a stroke thriver blogger with almost 40,000 hits from around the world. In fact her blogs are the top of the list if you Google stroke thrivers. A stroke thriver is one who thrives despite the stroke. Sherman had her stroke in January 2005 and got to the hospital too late for clot busting drugs. Her right side became paralyzed. As an out-patient and then a volunteer at the Rumsey Neuro Centre in Leaside she learned that, “Most importantly, stroke people need to see another stroke thriver— even just seeing another thriver is important.” Marilyn wants people to know, “You can have a full and happy life after a stroke.” That’s why she started her blog in 2010. She writes, “Through this blog I hope to provide one way to obtain information and a means for stroke thrivers to communicate with each other. I encourage you to write about your own experiences and pass along your tips for survival.” Also from her blog: “One thing that has become evident to me over time, is that there are few means for stroke survivors to access information about stroke issues once they have left the hospital. As we all know, stroke recovery is fluid and changes over time, making ongoing access to the latest information about stroke a real need.” http://strokethrivers.blogspot.ca
The following is an article she sent to Fine Gardening Magazine: "Several years ago my husband Ian and I moved into a small house on a corner lot with a tiny front yard and a lawn surrounded by a chain link fence. We removed the grass and the fence and replaced them with a mixed perennial and shrub garden. “Then, in 2005 at age 52, I suffered a severe right-sided stroke and lost the use of the right side of my body. I was determined to return to gardening after my stroke, and bit by bit regained my strength and balance by doing more and more gardening jobs. “At first I could only sit on a small tractor and pull a few weeds, I tired very easily. “I began to think of creative ways to help me function in the garden. “Today I can do most any chore including transplanting, staking, and dressing the beds with compost. I use the old chain link posts, painted black so as to be less visible, to hold on to when I garden deeper into the beds. “When I have to go farther then the posts allow I use an old ski pole with the basket removed as a gardening cane.” The editor answered: “Wow. Marilyn, I don't know if I could have been as strong and determined as you've been, and so incredibly successful at what you love to do. Amazing, and so inspirational. Thank so much for sharing your story and your garden with us!” n
Leaside Life, September 2012
By ANDREA VILLIERS
Leaside Life, September 2012
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Most of us are familiar with the Leaside Property Owners' Association's recent successful battle to save the Talbot apartments from the redevelopment plans of the present owner, the Manitoba Teachers' Pension Fund. But do you know who Talbot was? Howard Talbot was the mayor of the former Town of Leaside for 10 years from 1938 to 1947. During that time the community changed from a small company town domiREDWAY, Page 25
Redway From Page 24
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nated by Canada Wire and Cable to a thriving Toronto suburb. This was the period when Leaside experienced much of its growth and began to take on its present physical character. Although he was born in England, Henry Howard Talbot grew up in Galt, Ontario. A carpenter by trade, he started his own construction business. Then in 1928 he bought land in Leaside and began building homes on Donegall, Cameron, Bessborough and Parkhurst. The row of duplexes north of Parkhurst on the east side of Bayview south of Eglinton were all built by Howard Talbot. But his largest project was the low rise apartment complex on Bayview south of McRae and north of Sutherland, known to long time Leasiders as the Talbot apartments. Today we would call Howard Talbot a developer. Not many developers hold public office these days. But in 1936 Mr. Talbot was elected to Leaside Council and two years later he became mayor. Many people feel that the best interests of developers are often contrary to the best interests of communities where they build, especially redevelopers who do not live in the community and thus do not have to live with the results of their own development. ln Howard Talbot's day, however, the residents of Leaside looked to their municipal government to provide basic essential services in the most efficient way at the lowest cost to the taxpayers. ln Talbot they saw a Leaside resident and a large Leaside property owner whose interests in low taxes coincided with their own. He did not disappoint them. To keep taxes at a minimum he stressed the development of the Leaside industrial area. It was through his efforts that a great many industries located in our community during and following World War II. Unfortunately today most are long gone. But as a result of Talbot's efforts, Leaside residents for many years enjoyed the lowest tax rate in the Toronto area. However, physical growth and low taxes were not the only features
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of his term as mayor. He also contributed to the quality of community life by arranging for the purchase of the land that now bears his name, Howard Talbot Park; by establishing the Leaside Lions Club; and by his early leadership in efforts to build Leaside Memorial Community Gardens. In addition he helped to build community pride by arranging for the sponsorship during World War II of both the Canadian Navy Corvette HMCS Leaside and the RCAF Leaside bomber squadron 432, and by planning the construction of the Leaside Town Hall at the corner of McRae and Randolph. Howard Talbot was the leader in moulding both the physical and the social character of our community. We must all do our part in preserving and improving it.n
John Parker Councillor, Toronto Ward 26 Don Valley West
More work coming to Bayview Ave. As we head into the coming months, watch for further improvements to be made to our part of Bayview and the pedestrian realm on our side. Bayview Ave. itself will be resurfaced curb to curb. The sidewalk on the east side between Parkhurst and Eglinton will be torn up and replaced as was the southern section about a year ago. This will come at no cost to the taxpayer, as the cost will be covered by the utility companies that made cuts into the existing sidewalk in the first place. (By the way, the way the City of Toronto handles this sort of thing is to save up all the required utility cut restoration work in a given area and try to carry it all out in a single project, rather than have the utility company do the full restoration PARKER Page 27
work at the time of completion of the original utility work. That is why Leaside underwent a torrent of sidewalk repairs earlier this summer.) The trees that were removed as part of last year's sidewalk project are due to be replaced by new trees this fall, to be planted directly in the ground in the spaces currently covered by asphalt patches. I have asked for extra benches and waste bins to be installed on our side of Bayview. These should arrive this fall. I have also ordered new bike rings for our side of Bayview. The city is experimenting with new designs for bike rings, and ours will be installed once the new standard design is settled. Also some time this fall, news box "corrals" will be installed on our side of Bayview in response to my demand that we take steps to eliminate the random installation of news boxes along the curbside. Why can't I be specific as to project execution and asset installation dates? Each work order is subject to a contract that is negotiated centrally in company with related projects being undertaken in other parts of the city. Once a contract is signed, the contractor carries out its projects according to schedules influenced by a host of factors including procurement timelines, workflow issues arising from other job sites, etc. Tree planting, meanwhile, is a seasonal activity. Efforts are made to plant all the city's new trees during the optimum planting period each spring and each fall. … A word as to parking on Bayview: Everyone has a story about the enthusiasm with which parking enforcement officers pounce on cars parked marginally over the time allowed on the coupon displayed in the car window. This is a particular issue with Bayview merchants, who need this disincentive to business like a hole in the head. With this in mind I voted earlier this summer along with a majority of my colleagues on council to implement a 10-minute grace period for cars parked overtime in pay-and-display areas, such as Bayview. n
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Leaside Life, September 2012
Parker
Look what I found exploring the Business Park Leaside Life, September 2012
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Who would think that businesses in the Leaside Business Area would be expressing connections to a world after this one? Read on, to see what I found out when I went exploring east of Laird Dr. A parking lot full of Jaguars of various ages, but mostly black ones, and the name on the sign above the door is Safe Passage Canada. What springs to mind? Yes, a funeral escort service. Ian Johnson, who has lived on Laird Dr. since 1981, owns Safe Passage Canada. His wife’s mother dreamed up both the concept and the name of the company for this man who has owned and loved Jags for years. His funeral escort business ended with changes in legislation in Ontario in the funeral business a few years ago, but with Ian’s great knowledge of Jags and ability to fix them well known to Jaguar dealers and owners, he continues in business with repairs and consultation, but hasn’t bothered to put up a new sign on his property. Ian’s road to this business was not straight. He’s from Stratford, New Zealand, and trained there as a teacher. From there, he went to Eng-
Lorna Krawchuk Publisher Leaside Life
land and then arrived in Toronto, teaching at Earlscourt P.S. in downtown Toronto in the early 1970s. “The magic word is ‘fun’” says Johnson, and that led him into his entrepreneurial life being involved with Jaguars. Now 71, he continues to work at his business on Esandar Dr., saying, “I’ve never heard of the word retirement.” Esandar Dr. – what kind of a name for a street is that? If you’ve lived in Leaside for a long time, then you already know the answer. For the newcomers, the original factory on the new Leaside Village site on Laird was E.S. & A. Robinson, and if you play games with that name, you get Esandar. Another similar street name is Canvarco, named for the Canada Varnish Company, founded by R.E. Edwards, whose other legacy to Toronto place names is Edwards Gardens. Wicksteed Ave. is named for Henry K. Wicksteed, Chief Engineer
of Surveys for the Canadian Northern Railway. Tucked away at the far end of Wicksteed Ave. is Divine Furniture Rental. Michael Devine, one of the owners, enjoys the play on his surname, saying, “I’m doing the work of the Lord every day.” The truth is, he is being careful, “I would never put my family’s name at risk by putting my name on a business,” so Divine is as close as he gets. The 42,000 sq. ft. warehouse, and seven trailers are filled with items needed for rentals at trade shows, corporate events, bar/bat mitzvahs and other large scale events. About 70% of the items he rents he has made in Canada, and imports the rest from India, China and the USA. The business has only been here since November of 2010, but Michael’s family credentials are all over the rental business. He was part of the family-owned Exclusive Affair Rentals until he left amicably in 2010 to start Divine. His Leaside connections? He owned the Wexford Raiders hockey team, and one of his coaches for 10 years was Kevin Burkett, who lives on Sutherland Dr. n
Councillor John Parker and City of Toronto
Settlers From Page 22 East York Town Centre Saturday, September 15, 2012 (east parking lot) 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. 45 Overlea Blvd. (at Thorncliffe Park Dr.) Items donated to local schools for reuse*
Products Available - Fees may apply Backyard Composter Green Bin Kitchen Container
Pick up for FREE Green Bin and Kitchen Container (with proof of new residency in the last 90 days or in exchange for a damaged bin) Leaf Compost (limit one cubic metre per household)
Drop off for recycling or proper disposal Computer Equipment & Peripherals (e.g., desktops, laptops, hand-held portables, monitors, printing devices, etc.) Audio/Visual Equipment & Peripherals (e.g., telephones, cell phones, pda’s and pagers, cameras, small TVs, radios, receivers, speakers, tuners, equalizers, turntables, projectors, recorders, DVD players and VCRs, etc.) Household Hazardous Waste (e.g., cleaning supplies and solvents, motor oil, paint, batteries, old/unused medication, mercury thermometers/thermostats, pesticides, fluorescent and compact fluorescent bulbs, propane tanks, etc.) Note: You can recycle plastic shopping bags, foam polystyrene, empty paint and empty aerosol cans in your blue bin.
o Water e Toront more Visit th to learn info tent rams that will og y about pr e water wisel u us me! help yo your ho around in and
Art supplies (e.g. pencils, markers, crayons, etc.) Buttons, keys, and collectors’ coins and stamps Clipboards, corks and cork boards CDs and cases Children’s books Costume jewelry including broken/old watches and clocks with hands Dress-up clothing (e.g. costumes, prom dresses, uniforms, etc.) Fabric pieces and yarn 35 mm cameras and equipment
Other Items donated for reuse * (Please keep separate from others)
Sporting goods (e.g. skates, hockey equipment, bikes, rackets, etc.) Books (excluding school/university curriculum books) Medical equipment in good condition (e.g. eyeglasses, walking aids, hearing aids, etc.) Small household items (e.g. dishes, ornaments, kitchen utensils, artistic drawings, games, etc.) Textiles in good condition (e.g. clothing, linens, etc.) Non-perishable foods will be donated to a food bank *All donated items must be in very good condition
Donate sports helmets at Community Environment Day trailer for reuse in scientific testing. Please do not bring: Construction waste, gasoline, garbage, wood, cassette and videotapes, commercial/ industrial hazardous waste and scrap metal.
Visit toronto.ca/environment_days
Robert Elgie inherited the property from his father, Thomas Elgie, who came from England in 1841, and who for several years after his arrival managed a hotel in the Toronto area before purchasing the 200-acre property. This house has been altered and substantially enlarged since that time, and in the 1990s the lot was split to allow a house to be built on the second lot to the north. So what is the heritage status of the three homes? Can they be demolished and replaced with new homes? All three are included on the City of Toronto’s Inventory of Heritage Properties. While this does not by itself convey legal protection, in the event of an owner’s application for a demolition permit it provides for a 60day delay during which the city can consider designation under the Ontario Heritage Act. -Much of the information for this piece comes from Jane Pitfield’s Leaside. n
Leaside Public Library, 165 McRae Dr., 416-396-3825. Canadian Film Series, Wednesdays in September, 2 p.m. Sept. 5: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (PG). Sept. 12: Cool Runnings (PG). Sept. 19: Monsieur Lazhar (G), French film with English subtitles. Sept. 26: Incendies (PG), French film with English subtitles. Vitamins: Your Gateway to a Healthier Longevity, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 7 p.m. Dr. John David Stewart, Associate Professor of Medicine at University of Toronto, on the impact of vitamins to overall health. Chess in the Library, Saturdays, Sept. 15 – Dec. 29 (except Nov. 10 and Dec. 15) 12– 1:30 p.m. Back by popular demand. All skills and all ages. Registration required. Youth Opportunities Fair, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2–4 p.m. for ages 13 and over. Meet new people, participate in new activities, and volunteer to serve the community with information from various organizations. Author Jose Latour, Tuesday, Sept. 18, 7 p.m. The Cuban crime fiction writer will speak about his book, Crime of Fashion, set in Toronto and Havana, and about his experiences when he was labelled an “enemy of the people� when one of his novels was called counterrevolutionary. Celebrate Culture Days 2012, Friday, Sept. 28, 2 p.m. Learn the basics of tapestry weaving with textile artist Juana Sleizer. Canadian author Brian Francis, Monday, Sept. 10, 7 p.m. The 2012 Evergreen Award Nominee speaks about his recent book, Natural Order. The eh List Author Series, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2 p.m. Canadian author Joseph Romain and TPL staff member, will preview new offerings from authors visiting this fall, including Peter Robinson, Emma Donohough, Susan Swan, Giles Blunt, Vincent Lam, Terry Fallis, Cordilia Strube and more. The eh List Author Series is the TPL premier Canadian new books series. Fall 2012 NFB Film Club, Saturday, Sept. 29, 2 p.m. Bone, Wine, Fire (30 min.) and The Mystery of Mazo de la Roche (52 min.). Special Ceremony, Thursday, Sept.13, 7 p.m., acknowledging Leaside Gardens Society's 25 years. Community Corn Roast, on Sunday, Sept.16, 12–5 p.m. at Trace Manes Park, hosted by Leaside’s Rotary Club. St. Cuthbert’s Anglican Church Back to Church Sunday, Sept. 30. Traditional service 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. for a more contemporary experience. Everyone welcome afterwards for a BBQ on the church green (1399 Bayview, just south of Davisville). n
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From Page 17
Leaside Life, September 2012
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Another funny guy
side of it, they’re writers because they like being by themselves and writing. I actually quite enjoy going out and talking to readers.
know whether this was a good book. So podcasting it and getting it out there was really just my way of saying ‘What do you think about this? What should I do about this?’ Who knows, I may not have proceeded with the actual self publishing of it had I not had that really almost unanimous response, positive response to the podcast. The other half of your promotion efforts involves a lot of touring around, and a lot of readings like you did at Leaside library. So I don’t say no to very much, to very many invitations, and it helps that I actually enjoy it. Lots of writers don’t, they hate the book promotion
Now in one small corner of (the) country, in Leaside, that’s where the original hovercraft was born. Correct? Correct. But it was preceded by hanggliders. A classmate of my mine, Geoff Elmer was his name – he was a good friend, we played hockey together, he was in my class from grade one at Bessborough school onwards – he had the same kind of mechanical bent as I. When were in Grade 7 and 8, we built three hang-gliders. Big, real hang-gliders that, if I’m truly honest, didn’t work. We tested them on the hill behind Leaside High School. Later, I got interested in hovercrafts, learned all about the history of hovercrafts, and we said ‘Why don’t we build a hovercraft?’ So we designed it, we talked to a hovercraft manufacturer here in Toronto, he gave us some useful insights and we built the hover-
craft. It was a twin engine model, not like the one in the novel. That was a single-engine design. The one described in the novel I designed when I was at university. It’s never been built, though. This issue, you’re sharing the pages of Leaside Life with another Leaside-area author named Fallis. Any relation? Geordie Fallis is a doctor and a fine guy. His father and my father were second cousins … so if our respective fathers were second cousins, I don’t know what that makes us. Third cousins or second cousins once removed? But he’s a fine guy and his book is quite funny, about his exploits as a doctor. From 1973-78, you were at Leaside High School, the alma mater of greats like Margaret Atwood, comedian Will Arnett, and this reporter. So what’s in the water? (Laughs) Oh, who knows! n
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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Leaside Life, September 2012
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