AND……WE’RE BACK
Hello Everyone,
After a few weeks of summer-time R&R we’re back in the saddle and raring to go again, bringing you all the local and city news that you’ve come to rely on.
As always, if you have anything to share that you feel the community would value hearing about, feel free to drop us a note at info@cabbagetowner.com.
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GOT DOG POOP ON YOUR STREET?
We’ve received a few complaints from residents over the last few months about an uptick in “un-scooped poop” on the sidewalks of Cabbagetown. So we created some free lawn signs for you, to provide a gentle reminder to dog owners that perhaps forget to stoop and scoop their lovable pooches poop.
If you’d like one to display in your front garden please email us at info@cabbagetowner.com, indicating your preference for design A or B.
City Expands Dog Waste Pilot Project
While we’re on the subject of poop, the City has announced an expansion of the pilot to test the collection of dog waste in street litter bins based on the success of the first phase of the pilot. Read all about it here.
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CABBAGETOWN SAFETY AND SECURITY UPDATE
Recently we’ve had a number of community members share experiences about bicycle thefts, mail and package thefts (from porches and mailboxes), arson (lighter fuel sprayed on front doors), as well as open air drug deals. This may be an indication that these types of crimes are on the rise, or that we are all just being more vigilant.
Most of these are crimes of opportunity, and there are a few things we can all do that have reportedly worked well for other Cabbagetowners:
- Install motion sensitive lighting in poorly lit lanes, walkways or yards – reduces interest in people hanging around. Solar powered security lights are now readily available, making these much easier and cheaper to install.
- Install video cameras (such as RING, NEST, Blink, etc.) to cover your porch, mailbox, garage, shed, laneway etc. – to capture potential thieves in the act to share with police. Again, some of these (e.g. Blink) are wireless and therefore a breeze to install.
- Improve the security and locks on sheds and garages and securely lock bicycles, even if they are inside sheds/garages.
- Replace your mailbox with one that locks – this has proved to be a good deterrent for some residents.
- Post security or CCTV signs near your door as a warning to would -be thieves.
- If you see something, say something! It’s imperative that you report crimes to the Police at 51 Division 51, so that all incidents get added to crime stats. This page provides details on how to do this. (Please don’t report crimes / issues to CRA as a first line, as we are not able to help in the moment.)
- Talk to your neighbors about what is going on in your area (good and bad) – sharing your knowledge and experience helps!
Thank you all for your vigilance and effort in keeping Cabbagetown safer!
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SPRUCECOURT FAMILY MEETUP
We received this note from Sprucecourt School yesterday:
Whether you’re a new or returning family, we would like to welcome you back! Join us for a meet up on any of the following days (weather depending). This is a great chance to meet other families, ask questions and get ready for school. Look for a person wearing an “Ask Me” tag, like in the photo below. Hope to see you soon.
Saturday August 28th 10am-12pm
Monday August 30th 4:30pm-6:30pm
Saturday September 4th 10am-12pm
BONUS: Welcome Back Poster making
Wednesday, September 8th 4:30pm-6:30pm.
Bring materials (or borrow some of ours) to make posters to decorate the school and welcome students and staff back after a long 5 months away!
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FESTIVAL SIDEWALK SALE – SEPTEMBER 11-12
We have had several inquiries about whether the annual sidewalk sale associated with the Cabbagetown Festival is happening this year.
While the Festivities on Parliament Street have been cancelled, we spoke with the organizers of the Cabbagetown Arts & Crafts Fair this week and they have told us that they are still planning for it to go ahead, so there will no doubt be an influx of visitors into the neighbourhood. As such, for those that are interested, it would seem like a good weekend to set out sidewalk stalls, assuming things stay as open as they are currently and that there is no significant increase in Delta driven cases.
As has become customary over the last 18 or so months, we strongly encourage everyone that intends to participate to take suitable precautions to keep residents and visitors safe, including wearing masks, providing hand sanitizer and respecting social distancing guidelines.
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NOTICE OF LOCATION FILMING
We’ve received notification of a couple of new film shoots from Alice Lilwell at the City film permitting office. Here are all the details. Both are starting around the same time in Mid-September. One is at 200 Winchester Street and one at Winchester and lower Metcalfe Street. The latter will lead to closure of lower Metcalfe Street for September 18th. This production company has also asked to return for 4 filming days each month, but it is not yet clear for how many months.
As the latter request is for a reoccurring location, the production requires signatures from the residents in order to move ahead with the permit. The production company is putting together a notification to send out to residents to this end.
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CaféTO PUBLIC SURVEY LAUNCHED
CaféTO now supports nearly 1,200 restaurants with expanded outdoor dining space in curb lanes and on sidewalks. A new public survey has been launched, to help the City better support recovery of the restaurant industry, enhance understanding of the appropriate use of public sidewalks and curb lanes, and identify the effects of expanded patios on private properties.
The survey is currently live and will be open until September 19, 2021.
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TORONTO/PROVINCE REACH AGREEMENT ON FOUNDRY SITE
Two of four buildings at the disputed Foundry on Eastern Avenue will now be saved under an agreement reached between the City of Toronto and the Province of Ontario.
“There’s still a lot of work to be done but we’re in this for the long run. We’re just really happy we’re able to start working together on it,” said Franca Leeson, co-founder of Friends of the Foundry. News report from Ashleigh Stewart at CBC.
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TORONTO RANKED 2nd SAFEST CITY IN THE WORLD BY EIU
Despite last year’s spike in incidents of gun violence, stunt driving and more amid lockdown, Toronto was just ranked the second safest city in the world, coming only behind Copenhagen, which regularly places high on lists of the best and safest places to live.
The new list for 2021, courtesy of the Economist Intelligence Unit, takes into account a slew of factors, from digital, infrastructure and personal security to environmental security and, especially important after COVID-19, health security.
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SUPPORTING REFUGEE HOUSING
Techfugees Toronto reached out to the CRA recently. They are looking to connect with small landlords who would consider renting to refugee claimants (supported by settlement workers) in the future.
Do you own a rental housing unit? Perhaps in your basement, above a store or in a condo? Would you consider renting the apartment to a refugee family?
Techfugees Toronto is working with Romero House on a new project called the Refugee Housing Network, to help families living at Romero House transition from temporary to affordable permanent housing faster. They are looking for landlords who agree to be contacted by Romero House in the event that a settlement worker identifies a potential match with a refugee family living there. Settlement workers will only make tenant recommendations if the tenants have stable income.
Conditions for joining as a housing provider:
- ️ Agree to share your unit information with Romero House (location, price, availability).
- ️ Agree to be contacted by Romero House if a settlement worker identifies a potential match with a family.
- ️ Agree to meet with the settlement worker and the family if a rental arrangement is possible (with no obligation to rent).
- ️ Acknowledge that many refugee claimants do not have a credit score upon arrival and that many receive stable income from provincial assistance.
If you can help, email toronto@techfugees.com to find out more.
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CITY NEWS UPDATES
MEDICAL OFFICER RECOMMENDS WORKPLACE VACCINE POLICY
Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Eileen de Villa, is strongly recommending local employers institute a workplace vaccination policy to protect their employees and the public from COVID-19.
To help with implementation, Toronto Public Health is launching a workplace toolkit including guidance on developing a workplace vaccination policy.
75% OF 12 YEARS+ NOW FULLY VACCINATED
Mayor John Tory announced this week that the City of Toronto and Team Toronto vaccination partners have now administered two doses of COVID-19 vaccine to 75 per cent of eligible Torontonians age 12 and older. To reach this exciting milestone, the team has administered more than 4.5 million doses of vaccine across the city.
INFO SESSION ON LANEWAY SUITES BY-LAW REVIEW
The City will host two virtual information sessions about the Laneway Suites Review and Monitoring work. Links to each session are available on the Changing Lanes website under the “Meetings & Events” tab. Both meetings will include the same content.
Dates and Times: August 31, 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm and September 1, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm,
City Planning staff will present preliminary findings from laneway suite applications to date, summarize comments we’ve received from the building industry and residents since the Laneway Suite By-law was enacted.
Want to see a real live laneway suite? There’s one under construction at the bottom end of Broadcast Lane.
LIVE GREEN NEWS
Here’s the August update on green news from our friends at Live Green Toronto.
As you probably know, Sinking Ship Productions is currently filming a series called Jubilee in Cabbagetown, mostly located around the Coop at the corner of Winchester and Metcalfe. As a gesture of thanks to our community for the disruption filming can cause, they have already made several donations to local concerns, including a $2,500 donation to Sprucecourt School for their food program.
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