Morning Brew: August 27th, 2008
Photo: "taking a break from fighting fires" by Suziesaurus, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.
Your Toronto morning news roundup for Wednesday August 27th, 2008:
Remember all the budget crisis management news from back in the fall? Next Monday marks the introduction of one of those controversial new taxes specific to Toronto residents. The $60 "personal vehicle tax" will be collected when drivers renew their license plates, and we'll suck it up and pay it (because a metrosexual driver moving to Mississauga, Vaughan, or Ajax would be so terribly uncool).
Police have staged a major crackdown on "health spas" on the Danforth that cater only to men, and offer services ranging from reverse nude massages to full on intercourse. The undercover officers that were on this case must have been operating under some strict guidelines.
A garbage truck slammed into a house in south Etobicoke yesterday, after the driver is believed to have suffered from a panic attack. Perhaps the driver's composure was overcome by constantly having to dodge the vast array of gigantic blue recycling bins dotting the collection route.
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In theatre news, Mirvish Productions has scooped up two more larger venues. Their acquisition of the Canon and Panasonic theatres was approved despite an attempted legal injunction led by the rival company Dancap.
In TTC news, the German company Siemens is poised to scoop up the major streetcar manufacturing deal that for a while looked like it would go to Montreal-based Bombardier (before the TTC expressed concerns that Bombardier's design would derail). Siemens claims its design won't derail, Bombardier claims that just $10million in track modification will keep their design upright, and Adam Giambrone claims that it would cost 100 times that.
And tomorrow, before heading out for the day, do up a scrambled egg breakfast to celebrate the launch of Toronto's first scramble crossing. At 11am at Yonge & Dundas, the traffic lights will be red on all sides, as pedestrians flood the intersection and feel all Tokyo.
Comments (15)
How does the city taxing citizens just for owning cars - regardless of how little they use them - encourage people to use their cars less?
I guess in the same way that charging drivers who park their cars at TTC lots encourages them to get on the TTC more.
wicked. nothing like a controlled scramble intersection! welcome to the international scene Toronto.
I wonder if the garbage truck driver realized he was a germaphobe?
"Police have staged a major crackdown on "health spas" on the Danforth that cater only to men, and offer services ranging from reverse nude massages to full on intercourse."
Was the wording of crackdown intentional? :)
I have a funny feeling that the scramble crossing is going to take Torontonians a while to get used to...let alone tourists.
The tax is Toronto specific and not GTA specific?
That's pretty balls. I, who uses my car once every 2-3 weeks because I live downtown will have to pay this. My brother, who lives in Mississauga and drives to and from a GO station in his daily commute to the downtown, would not?
Yep. Balls.
I love scramble crossings... we'll be all Tokyo indeed! They seem to work pretty well in Hong Kong and there's way more people/tourists.
Can't wait to see the post on blogTO!
"In theatre news, Mirvish Productions has scooped up two more larger venues. Their acquisition of the Canon and Panasonic theatres was approved despite an attempted legal injunction led by the rival company Dancap."
That sucks. I love that DanCap is trying to bring variety to musicals in Toronto. Mirvish is to afraid to let them in. They've been a monopoly for so long. Mirvish would never have the guts to produce "Avenue Q" or "Spring Awakening".
um... Sara, Spring Awakening is at the Canon in 2009.
And this is hardly "news", Jerrold. This is what, a week old?
so explain to me why we are funding athletes to compete in olympics and won us nothing.. wouldn't the money better spent on covering the vehicle tax? so what do these olympic athletes, which are essentially lazy bums, contribute to my well being? so when they get an advertising endorsement contracts, do they share the money with me?
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