Local/City News:
TORONTO CENTRE PART OF PROPOSED COMMUNITY SAFETY PILOTS
A new City report to be considered by Executive Committee next week recommends the approval of four community safety and crisis support service pilots, allowing for non-police led response for non-emergency, non-violent calls including those involving persons in crisis and for wellness checks.
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CafeTO – HOPEFULLY BIGGER, BETTER, LONGER IN 2021
TORONTO — City staff and the Mayor are recommending that the city bring back its popular CafeTO program, which saw hundreds of patios set up on sidewalks and in curb lanes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic last summer, reports Chris Fox and CP24/CTV News.
Read the City of Toronto news release about the report.
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ARE THERE ANY ‘BUTTERFLYWAY RANGERS’ OUT THERE?
The David Suzuki Foundation is looking for super awesome people to become its next troop of Butterflyway Rangers. They will join the Butterflyway Project’s award-winning efforts to reimagine our neighbourhoods as flower-filled corridors where wild bees and butterflies can thrive. Application deadline is February 5, 2021.
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SAVE THE FOUNDRY MOVEMENT HOTS-UP. MOMENTARILY
The Foundry news story we featured last week got a lot of coverage in the media. Unfortunately it seems that the Province hasn’t heeded the calls to halt the demolition.
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PLANS FOR THE SALE/REDEVELOPMENT OF ESSO STATION
The CRA received a copy of this Cushman & Wakefield brochure which talks about the planned sale of the Esso gas station at 581 Parliament and the opportunity to redevelop the land into a mid rise development:
“The Vendor has engaged Urban Strategies Inc. to provide the highest and best use scenarios for the subject Site. The scenario for a mid-rise development for the Property allows for a residential GFA of 74,363 sf, 101 units with parking and a retail GFA of 5,912 sf with parking and an FSI of 3.9. The combined total GFA from the development is 80,275 sf with a total of 126 parking spaces.
While this would be the tallest development on Parliament Street, this option conforms to angular plane requirements from the neighbourhood to the east and conforms to mid-rise design guidelines. There is retail space located on both Parliament and Amelia St, which mirrors the retail condition on the north side of Amelia Street. This option would require rezoning and Site Plan Approval from the City of Toronto.”
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LOCAL SPEED ENFORCEMENT CAMERAS
The City recently released stats, showing that over 53,000 speeding tickets were issued by its 50 Automated Speed Enforcement devices (ASE’s) from July to November 2020. Two of these cameras are located in Cabbagetown, on Prospect and Spruce. They issued just 10 and 13 tickets respectively. The lowest amount of any other camera. Well done Cabbagetown for respecting the speed limit!
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DOUG FORD GOES MULTILINGUAL
In an effort to get people to STAY HOME, Doug Ford decides he should try a bit harder to make it as clear as possible.
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Pandemic Updates:
CANADIAN VACCINE DELIVERIES SLOW TO CRAWL
Canada will receive zero Pfizer vaccines next week as the company temporarily suspends deliveries, further slowing a vaccine rollout that is lagging behind other countries as the pandemic kills more Canadians every day, reports Ryan Tumilty at the National Post.
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BUSINESSES PRESS PROVINCE TO REIGN-IN BIG BOX STORES
Toronto business owners and politicians are calling on the Ford government to prohibit big box stores from selling non-essential items in person in an effort to level the playing field with independent retailers and discourage unnecessary outings, reports Mira Miller at BlogTO.
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CANADIANS IN FAVOUR OF CURFEWS
Almost two-thirds of Canadians would support a nightly curfew if necessary to curb the spread of COVID-19 – even though they’re not convinced it would be effective, reports Joan Bryden at the Canadian Press.
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MAJORITY SUPPORT BANNING THE UNVACCINATED
More than seven in 10 Canadians support or somewhat support barring those who don’t have proof of vaccination from businesses where people are in close contact, according to a new Nanos survey, reports Christy Somos at CTV News.
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MAJOR NEW VACCINATION SITE FORCED TO PAUSE OPERATIONS
The COVID-19 vaccination clinic that just opened the Metro Toronto Convention Centre has had to pause vaccinations because of a shortage of vaccine supply.
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EVERYONE VACCINATED BY END AUGUST?
Ontario wants to have everyone vaccinated by late July or early August, says the head of its vaccine distribution plan. Report by CBC News .
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