Realtor.ca has finally launched and soon the much loathed MLS.ca will finally be put out of its misery. The recent shut down of the popular Housing123 caused quite a stir and reignited the debate over not just the fact that there is are lack of a quality website for viewing properties in this country, but also the Real Estate Industry's handling of the information itself.

Photo: "The Happy Hohner" by sniderscion, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

Your Toronto morning news roundup for Friday July 4th, 2008:

The entire city is breathing a communal sigh of relief. TTC special constables will not be given the right to carry and use guns or tasers on our public transit system. The batons, cuffs, and pepper spray will have to do for now. If they want to be more kickass, I recommend that they all get full training in mixed martial arts.

Rogers CEO Ted Rogers has been named Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur Of The Year 2008 and given the Ontario Lifetime Achievement Award. The announcement comes not long after Rogers announced its exclusive and insane iPhone service pricing. In related news, Canadian consumers will give Rogers the Highway Robber Of The Year 2008 award and the Go Ahead and Take My Earnings Achievement Award.

Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair is talking tough after two police officers were arrested for their alleged role in an intricate organized crime ring that bought up houses and turned them into marijuana grow-ops. Ironically, one of the two officers was given a "teamwork commendation" just last year.

What's Your Story? features the different characters that roam the streets of Toronto. Every Monday and Thursday, a new person shares their story, likes and dislikes about the city, a little secret and more.

Photo: "Here I am, but I am there" by Jeremy Nathan, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

Your Toronto morning news roundup for Thursday July 3rd, 2008:

It smells like death in the King & Bathurst area. The nearby slaughterhouse is becoming the stinky bane of condo life. Dare I predict that it's only a matter of time before some shady insurable incident or developer initiative forces its closure?

Ontario nursing homes are sounding more like torture chambers than care facilities. The majority are failing to meet basic provincial standards for care, and residents are being left in unsanitary, inhumane conditions. Imagine your grandmother being unnecessarily strapped down to her bed for two hours while waiting for someone to tend to her soiled pants. Yikes.

Do TTC drivers often leave their vehicles and passengers to go and get something to eat? For about four minutes my 505 streetcar sat on Dundas West, blocking all westbound traffic, as the driver got out to get take-away food from Ali Baba's. I've seen a TTC bus driver park at a stop for an extra few seconds to run in and grab a cup of coffee on a cold day and I'm okay with that, but what I saw last night was ridiculous.

The University of Toronto School (UTS) has cultivated a spiffy '2008' out of the vines on its Annex facade (Bloor and Spadina).

Maybe it's vandalism; it's just the kind of benign, numerical message those cheeky UTS math geeks would come up with as a summer prank.