Steering Committee Meeting

NNNow is holding a Steering Committee meeting on Wednesday April 21. Anyone who would is interested in joining the committee and can commit a couple of hours a month or add an idea / agenda item, please email nnnow@nnnow.ca.

Liberty Village Pedesrian Bridge

Slightly outside of our area, but still interesting:

On March 9th, Joe Pantalone's office hosted a Public Open House regarding a proposed King Liberty Pedestrian/Cyclist link. The original invitation is below (apologies for any quality issues).

We found out about this meeting after the fact: for further information, please contact Joe's office or the contacts on the invitation.

We will post more info as it becomes available.

90 Niagara Development Documents

Documents for the proposed 90 Niagara development can be found here:

http://nnnow.ca/90_Niagara_Package.pdf

Great War Authors' Lecture at Fort York

Fort York is offering a free lecture on Saturday, February 27, 2010 from 7 pm to 9 pm. The Great War Authors' Night features Ward McBurney - author of And After This Our Exile and Bruce Cane - author of It Made You Think of Home: The Haunting Journal of Deward Barnes, CEF 1916-19.

Please see below for more info.

Great War Authors’ Night

Fort York National Historic Site
Saturday, February 27, 2010 7 pm to 9 pm

100 Garrison Road
Toronto ON M5V3K9
416-392-6907

Email:fortyork@toronto.ca
Website:www.toronto.ca/fortyork

FREE Light refreshments

Ward McBurney 'Away Back: Canada's Epic and the Great War'

Ward McBurney will discuss & after this our exile, his novel of the First World War and soldiers returning to postwar Toronto, in the context of Homer, Milton, and the epic tradition. He will discuss the making of the book, the importance of home, and the meaning of remembrance to those with no memory of the war.

Bruce Cane 'This Story Shall the Good Man Teach His Son: The Great War Diary of Deward Barnes'

Bruce Cane both edits and comments upon the fascinating diary of an 'ordinary' soldier, and thereby disrupts the usual top-down narrative of Canada in the First World War. Cane began researching and writing articles on military history while a curatorial assistant at Historic Fort York, Toronto. In 2004, he published his first book 'It Made You Think of Home: The Haunting Journal of Deward Barnes, CEF, 1916-1919.'

Upcoming G20 Summit Info

From Councilor Vaughan, important information regarding the upcoming G20 Summit and impact on the downtown core.

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Dear Residents,

This notice is particularly important for people who live, operate businesses, or work in the south end of Ward 20. The recent announcement by the Prime Minister’s office regarding the G20 Summit is going to have a dramatic and difficult impact on our neighbourhoods.

On June 26 and 27th, heads of state and leaders from the world's twenty largest economies will be holding their annual meeting in Toronto. The Federal government has chosen to locate the event in Ward 20 without any prior consultation.

There will be several zones of security established to protect the meeting. Summits such as this in Quebec City and Seattle have presented serious challenges to host cities. Anti-terrorism precautions, crowd control and the reality that these meetings usually draw large numbers of protestors, will mean that much of the ward will be severely impacted by security initiatives.

The city has tried to convince Ottawa to move this event to Exhibition Place, but the Federal government insists on staging it near Front Street, between Yonge and Spadina.

There will be fences, security checks and a significant number of street closures. The event may only last for two days, but preparations and clean-up will extend the period of disruption. Transit and the PATH system could also be impacted.

At my request, a Town Hall meeting has been called to brief all affected persons in the ward. It is set for:

Date: Thursday April 29, 2010

Times: Afternoon: 3:00 – 5:00 pm or Evening: 7:00 – 9:00 pm

Location: Metro Hall, 55 John Street, Room 308/309

As your councillor I will continue to work to try and move the summit, and if it can’t be moved, mitigate its impact. I will also use my seat on the Police Services Board to make sure the interests of the ward and the city are respected as security issues come forward.

I have received a ‘classified’ briefing so far. There will be serious disruptions. The security perimeter will be much larger than the area affected by the recent NFL games, and the protests are expected to be larger than last spring’s Tamil demonstrations.

I will forward what information I can when I receive it. Please let my office know as soon as possible if there are any special events or needs that require accommodation.

Ordinance Street Parkland Designation

A note from Joe on some potential new parkland in the area:

Dear neighbours,

I am writing to let you know I have requested that the City of Toronto-owned, industrially-zoned parking lot located at 10 Ordnance St be formally designated parkland and that the Chief Planner, City of Toronto, has written a report which favourably supports my request. (See link for Staff Report, including map.) I have also attached the letter I wrote to the Toronto East York Community Council in support of this change.

I strongly believe that, as this vibrant part of our City continues to be revitalized, the future designation of these lands from industrial to parklands will be a great improvement for us all. I will keep you updated as I do on all the issues affecting our neighbourhood. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at 416-392-4009.

Sincerely,

Joe

TE 30.42 - Staff Report - 10 Ordnance Street. - Zoning of the Lands

(http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2010/te/bgrd/backgroundfile-25893.pdf)

Fort York's New Visitor Centre - Article in the Star

More info on the Fort York Centre in the Toronto Star:

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/741720--fort-s-future-linked-to-past