blogTO | Posts by Jerrold

Air Show gets green light on Sunday

Jerrold Litwinenko — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 12:29:36 EDT

Despite continued windy weather, The 2010 Canadian International Air Show will go on today, starting at 12:30pm.

Organizers were forced to cancel yesterday's show (the first of three) after high winds created swells on Lake Ontario, which made for unsafe conditions.

Today is rather cool and still a bit windy, but so far so good. Here's what plane watchers can expect:

CF-18 Hornet at 12:30pm
Aurora at 12:38pm
Navy Demo at 12:55pm
Harvard Aero Team at 1:40pm
Air Cadets at 1:55pm
Mike Wiskus - Lucas Oil at 2:00pm
B-25 at 2:13pm
F-16 Viper at 2:35pm
Heritage (Tutor/Corsair) at 2:50pm
Corsair at 2:58pm
C-130J at 3:08pm
Rob Holland 3:15pm
Snowbirds 3:43pm

Morning Brew: drive-thrus in residential areas, would Miller be reelected if he ran again?, residents vs. preacher video goes viral, arrests in GO parking lot thefts, Shakespeare on the subway, Darth Vader yoga and picnic

Jerrold Litwinenko — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:46:54 EDT

Years ago, bylaws were introduced to prevent drive-thrus from permeating unchecked into residential areas. But along with an attempt to harmonize regional bylaws across Toronto, a tweak to the rules may also be coming. This might allow for companies to set up coffee shops, gas stations, and fast food outlets in residential areas previously safe from the fumes of queueing cars and the squawk of the ordering box.

A poll, well ahead of the October vote for Toronto's next mayor, indicates that Rob Ford (unbelievably, somehow) maintains a healthy lead. But an interesting twist is that were David Miller to throw his hat back into the ring, he might very well be re-elected with convincing numbers (despite his uncharacteristically whack handling of the G20).

Details are slowly emerging and bringing more context and understanding to a now viral video depicting a residents-versus-preachers showdown that occurred recently in Leslieville. While conducting an "open-air" sermon on the street, residents quickly moved in and confronted the group, accusing them of intentionally choosing to preach their word outside the home of a homosexual couple. The couple aren't convinced that this is the case, and the worshippers are standing by their right to conduct their rites as they have been for 70 years.

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Morning Brew: prisoners accidentally released, Bombardier Q400 planes inspected, tough steak leads to domestic violence, G20 charges dropped, TTC transit museum moves ahead, Bautista chasing home run record

Jerrold Litwinenko — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 07:41:41 EDT

All organizations are susceptible to administrative errors now and then, but knowing that several convicted prisoners have been accidentally released from Ontario prisons seem like a major problem worthy of serious scrutiny. In addition to being rather tight-lipped about the number of incidents (after an 16-month wait on a freedom of information request, we now know that the number is 143 over a period of 8 years), the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services is still withholding information about the nature of the crimes involved, the number that are still at large, and more. Aren't you curious? Is community safety at risk?

Earlier this year, Bombardier discovered an issue with cracking of an engine cover on their model Q400 planes - a problem which in turn required inspection of over 90% of the total fleet. Porter Airlines, operating out of Toronto island, uses the Q400 exclusively, and has stated that they've already done the inspection on their planes and found no problems. This issue appears to be mostly resolved, and won't likely be fuel for the anti-island-airport fire.

A Barrie man is in custody and charged with assault after he allegedly struck his girlfriend with a metal pipe and threw her purse out into the rain. Perhaps more disturbing though is that the violent domestic dispute started after his steak came off the grill and wasn't cooked to order. Yikes!

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Morning Brew: TTC customer service report, G20 mass court appearances, earthquake crippled government web page, Pattison ads replaced by art, pizza eating contest wows Barrie

Jerrold Litwinenko — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 13:40:31 EDT

The long-anticipated blue ribbon panel report on the state of customer service at the TTC is due to be released today. The document will feature 75 recommendations for improvement and "cultural change" including easily implemented strategies (for example, having the sign on the front of a full bus indicate that it's full) to more complex, long-term overhauls (such as modifications to the hiring practice, to bring in more customer service-oriented people). Councillor Joe Mihevc says that "Torontonians will hear they've been heard," but hopefully this report won't simply be reiteration of what we already have said time and time again, without action.

The circus is back in town this morning. In what is being described as "one of the largest mass court appearances the city has ever seen," over 300 people facing charges stemming from the G20 weekend will all appear in court. Today. All at once and at the same place. Court staff are apparently prepared to handle the hundreds that will descend onto the Finch Avenue court house, but there will likely be logistical challenges. Why the heck would they hold proceedings for all 303 accused at the same time and place? Perhaps most will be processed quickly when charges are dropped? Will it look good or bad to have all the "anarchists" and "activists" herded up one more time for the media cameras?

Remember the rare, rather strong earthquake that shook Toronto back in June? Documents obtained via Access to Information show that the event caused major problems for the government of Canada's Natural Resources'website, which couldn't handle the influx of viewers.

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Morning Brew: new waterfront condo plans unveiled, mystery man may bail out accused cancer faker, Molson to produce Labatt beers, massive medical malpractice suit, CNE opens, Bills in Toronto can't fill Rogers Centre

Jerrold Litwinenko — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 07:37:24 EDT

Plans have been unveiled for a new condo community on the city's waterfront. Despite the current significant slump in the market, 1700 residential units will be introduced, along with rooftop gardens and a retail and entertainment corridor -- all on a 10 acre site along the waterfront between Sherbourne and Parliament. The first units will be ready by 2014, and the entire project will be complete by 2021. I can't imagine that waterfront condos will be that tough a sell, given that people are seemingly happy to scoop up shoddily built pigeon coops all over the city.

Ashley Kirilow stands accused of multiple counts of fraud in a case that's gotten a lot of media attention. It's alleged that she faked having cancer by removing her hair and starving herself, and then running a charity to raise money for cancer research (which she appears to have pocketed for her own use). Her parent's have all but disowned her, but when question of bail came up, a stranger stepped forward with an offer to post her bail. His motives are unclear at this point. I'm just as curious to understand what has motivated him to post her bail as I am to understand why he's chosen to tattoo his entire face.

Molson-Coors brewery facilities in Toronto and Montreal may soon be producing several Labatt's products for export to the US market. While it's common for some mass market beer makers to be contracted to produce other brands of beer, it's less usual to see iconic brands being made by major competitors. How this came to be involves a string of complicated sub-contracting and licensing requirements south of the border. Given that mass-produced beer is pretty much all the same crap, this kind of thing just gives us all the more reason to drink far more enjoyable craft brews!

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Morning Brew: photo radar proposed, Kurt Browning had a leaf blower and house fire, Rob Ford to speak about his former drug possession charges, school prinicpal accused of assaulting teacher, deep-fried butter balls coming to the CNE

Jerrold Litwinenko — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 07:23:07 EDT

Photo radar. It's a two-word term that doesn't sit well with Ontarians. Remember in the mid-90s, when police had speed detection and license plate photographing equipment in vans that would automatically nab offenders and send them fines in the mail? Scarborough city councillor Norm Kelly isn't calling for a return of this kind of policing, but he is calling for stationary photo radar to be installed on a stretch of road near two schools, where passing drivers are often speeding and putting the lives of students at risk.

Two residential fires caused destruction and loss in Toronto yesterday. A blaze at skating star Kurt Browning's Forest Hill home started in the garage, when he reportedly left his leaf blower unattended for a short time (he was using it to dry the interior of his car; not a good idea evidently). Another fire, in the Ossington & Dupont area, saw an estimated 30 of 40 resident cats succumbed to smoke inhalation after a fire started in the basement of the home.

Mayoral candidate Rob Ford continues to get blasted by his opponents (and others, including Premier Dalton McGuinty) for controversial comments he made about immigration and Toronto. During a televised debate, he said "Right now we can't even deal with the 2.5 million people in this city. I think it is more important to take care of people now before we start bringing in more people." Today, Ford is dealing with another controversial incident -- a 1999 run in with authorities in Florida, where he was arrested for possession of marijuana.

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Morning Brew: kite flying ban, "Mink Mile" upgrades near complete, traffic signals may slow new waterfront streetcar, G20 compensation expanded, metal in cookies, stabbing at outdoor film screening, Toronto Star denies Rob Ford wiki edit

Jerrold Litwinenko — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 07:19:09 EDT

Kite flying has been banned at Milliken Park near McCowan & Steeles after string left behind following kite fights has become problematic for wildlife. Rather than banning kite fighting, kite flying in general has been banned simply because it would be too difficult to enforce just the one form of the activity. The City took the measures after residents complained of several wild animals and pets being harmed and city employees also have had to cope with the string tangling up their maintenance equipment. It's too bad kite fighters couldn't clean up after themselves.

Extra manpower has been brought in and rather than being complete in December, the $25-million street-level upgrades to Bloor Street's "Mink Mile" will be finished by late October. It's been more than two years of construction and delays, but in the fullness of time we'll be able to stroll in Yorkville and window shop along the widened, granite pedestrian walk, enhanced with greenery.

Putting two-way TTC streetcar service beside two-way car traffic (rather than mixing them or using dedicated transit lanes sandwiched between car traffic) is a novel idea. But the TTC's plans for a new East Bayfront rapid streetcar service along the waterfront (to run from Union Station, down to the lake, then east) is at risk of being not so rapid at all if it's going to be hampered by so many traffic signals.

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Morning Brew: police officer shot in training facility, survivor of scaffolding collapse suing the Province, bed bug solution may be heat, ski hills saved for now, left-handed menus at Chili's

Jerrold Litwinenko — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 18:20:23 EDT

A Toronto police officer was whisked away by EMS from a 22 Division training facility in Etobicoke yesterday after reportedly being accidentally shot in the leg. All we know is that he wasn't shot by anyone else, but police wouldn't confirm whether or not he accidentally shot himself. The details might be embarrassing, but does that make them worth hiding?

Dilshod Marupov, the sole survivor of the tragic scaffolding collapse that killed four fellow workers on Christmas Eve of 2009, is suing the Ontario Ministry of Labour and the companies involved for over $16 million. This news comes shortly after the Ministry of Labour laid 61 charges against the companies under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Citing their failure to ensure worker safety, Marupov seeks compensation for his extensive injuries and pain.

The explosion of bed bug cases here in Toronto (and around the developed world) may be in part due to the banning of the harmful pesticide DDT way back in the 1970s. The bug sure is resilient, but there's a chemical-free way to kill them. Applying high temperatures will do the trick, but comes at a high cost and isn't something you want to do on your own unless you don't mind visits from the fire department.

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Morning Brew: Wi-Fi may be harming school children, Clubland diluted, diesel fuel spill in Don River, taxi fleet not so green, man struck by lightning, can MMA surpass hockey's popularity?, Kaberle remains a Leaf

Jerrold Litwinenko — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 13:36:30 EDT

Are Wi-Fi networks in schools harming our children? Parents in Barrie are leading the call for change to wired connections, because they are convinced that wireless Internet setups at their kids' schools are causing them to become ill -- from headaches to nausea to rashes to memory loss to hyperactivity. These symptoms apparently aren't present on weekends, when the kids aren't at school.

Toronto's "Clubland" is in a major state of flux. Just five years ago, there were about 90 clubs operating in the club district. But after many failed as businesses, coupled with concerted, ongoing residential development in the area, that number has dropped to just 30. City councillor Adam Vaughan is quite content about all of this, but one of his opponents for re-election in Ward 20, Mike Yen, wants Clubland back and is putting the issue on his campaign platform. Also, see this article we published last week.

A construction crew accidentally pierced an 10,000-L underground diesel fuel tank yesterday, spilling an unknown quantity of diesel into the Don River via a sewer. The spill has been contained and authorities are investigating the incident, trying to understand first why the tank was there. No major damage is expected.

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Morning Brew: Rob Ford slammed for making corruption allegations (and widens his lead), wild cat populations skyrocket, going the wrong way on the 401, waterfront hockey arena price tag is $88M, suspect sought in hammer sex assault

Jerrold Litwinenko — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 07:49:13 EDT

Mayor David Miller, several city councillors, and others in the race for the city's top job are blasting candidate Rob Ford for "irresponsible" and "disgusting" remarks he recently made about city council. Specifically, Rob Ford has openly suggested that there's corruption at city hall (referring to the exclusive 20-year contract recently awarded to Tugg's Restaurant, an Ashbridge's Bay boardwalk pub), but he hasn't filed any official complaints or provided any evidence to support his very serious accusations. In related news, polling of decided voters shows Ford widening his lead over George Smitherman.

A warm summer, abandonment, and failure to spay and neuter cats is resulting in a major spike in feral cat populations in Toronto. The City has estimated that there are 20,000 stray cats on our streets, but cat rescue officials peg the number at closer to 100,000 now. 15 years ago, 80% of adoptions from city shelters were canines but now there's been a complete reversal, with 80% of the animals looking for homes being cats. Maybe its time we invite Bob Barker to town, to give us a scolding and teach us some lessons.

Last night a driver ended up travelling eastbound in the westbound lanes of the 401. OPP at Port Credit got the call, but it took them nearly 15 minutes to finally pull the driver over (he managed to drive against traffic from Trafalgar Road all the way to the 427). A 39-year old man is facing charges, including impaired driving and refusing to take a blood alcohol test.

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Morning Brew: Emery Village may get tallest flagpole in North America, big Casino Rama slots win, Presto falls short with the visually impaired, Ontario's worst roads, fugitive in disguise, a Toronto wish list

Jerrold Litwinenko — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 07:48:57 EDT

If approved, the North York community of Emery Village would be the new home of a public space featuring the tallest flagpole in North America. Former mayoral candidate and standing city councillor Giorgio Mammoliti has been working with the local B.I.A. and has high hopes that they'll become "the most patriotic community in the country." Some 2500 local business owners are expected to chip in to pay for the $3.5-million pole.

Imagine dropping $20 into a MegaBucks slot machine and winning really, really big? This kind of windfall doesn't happen very often, but after playing the machine for just the third time a Toronto-area man lit up the floor with a $1.7million win at Casino Rama yesterday. The house always wins, but once in a blue moon a gambler scores.

Disability rights activist David Lepofsky (the blind man who took the TTC to court, which resulted in the implementation of audible stop calls on buses and streetcars) is now pointing at flaws in the Presto transit payment system. Visually-impaired Presto users will not be able to read their card balances when they scan their way onto transit. An executive at Presto rebuts that from safety and privacy viewpoints, it doesn't make sense to have the card readers report balances audibly and any other option would create bottlenecks at gates.

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Morning Brew: inmates stage hunger strike, teen charged after bragging online about speeding, G20 charges were delayed in the mail, Blurred Vision get Pink Floyd's support, Greyhound Canada lockout looms, cocaine bust at Pearson

Jerrold Litwinenko — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 22:42:56 EDT

According to an inmate at the Toronto East Detention Centre in Scarborough, the food served is not healthy enough, the portions are too meagre, and special dietary needs aren't being acknowledged. As a result, some 300 inmates are staging a hunger strike and may even consider rioting. Generally speaking, being incarcerated doesn't come with the same expectations as staying at a resort hotel, but if inmate health is at risk, perhaps this should be looked at more closely.

It's not clear to me exactly how charges were laid, how the prosecution supported their case, or why the suspect plead guilty, but a 19-year old has been charged and convicted for street racing without having even been caught in the act. Instead, he was reported by an online forum reader, who pointed police to his online boasting about doing 140kh/r in a 40km/h zone. Is being caught bragging about committing a crime enough to substantiate charges and result in a conviction? It would appear to be so.

The only G20-related charges that were laid under the controversial Public Works Protection Act were mysteriously absent when David Vasey, the sole suspect, showed up for his scheduled court date back on July 28th. Police originally stated that an administrative error must be to blame for the missing charges, and now, two weeks later, the official explanation is that the documents' arrival was inexplicably delayed in the mail. Vasey remains sceptical, however, saying that "We know they're scared to challenge us now in the open court system because they know that they will lose this public battle.

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Morning Brew: Union Station rail workers' strike averted, mayoral candidates reject pay raise, two ski hills in jeopardy, green-bin processing machine needs repairs, botched jewelry heist, elaborate missing puppy case

Jerrold Litwinenko — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 22:16:55 EDT

Railway maintenance and construction workers based at the Toronto Terminal Railway (at Union Station) have reached a last minute deal to prevent a strike. Without a contract since the end of 2009, the tentative deal includes wage hikes and improved benefits.

A report by The Hay Group, which cost City Hall $50,000 to commission, has declared that the job of mayor of Toronto is under-compensated compared to other municipalities such as Mississauga and Montreal. The group recommends that our city's next mayor should get a $16,000 raise to bring the annual salary up from about $167,800 to around $183,600. How do the leading mayoral candidates feel about this? All are rejecting the suggestions, instead maintaining that they would actually reduce the top job's wage, freeze it, or donate any increases to charity.

Two ski and snowboard hills previously operated by the City are in danger of being shut down this coming winter. As a cost-cutting measure, the idea was to have private companies step in and operate the facilities, but since the call was put out for bids and proposals, none have come forward. The hills in question -- at Centennial Park Etobicoke and Earl Bales in North York -- may still be saved via public funds, but how and when this might happen is a big question mark with a tight timeline.

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Morning Brew: threat to dogs at Cherry Beach, lost and found in a cornfield, office space vacancy rates spike, Tory's decision and Thomson's campaign, Toronto Hydro tries to settle with stray voltage victim

Jerrold Litwinenko — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 07:24:38 EDT

It would appear that a malicious crazy has made an attempt to harm dogs and/or dog-owners in Toronto. A board containing several sharp nails facing upright was discovered buried in the sand at an off-leash dog park at Cherry Beach. This kind of thing isn't new in the city, but it's equally disturbing and alarming each time nonetheless. Poisoned food was a problem in 2008 in High Park.

He was lost in a Bradford cornfield overnight, but at about 6am this morning a three-year old boy was found after surviving a 12-hour ordeal. The boy went missing yesterday behind the family farm, but with the help of a search helicopter, police dogs, and about 50 officers he was found tired and a little dazed, but safe.

Vacancy rates of downtown office spaces are hitting double digits. Despite the overall economy having been on an upward recovery from a fairly significant recession in 2009, there's a growing number of unoccupied offices in the core. A variety of factors appears to be at play here, including downsizing trends as a result of the recession and a glut in recent and ongoing new office space developments.

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Morning Brew: police administrative error makes G20 charge vanish, horrific stench in the Scarborough air, Smitherman taunts Ford in schoolyard style, hydro rate hikes on the horizon, Colangelo reflects on Bosh

Jerrold Litwinenko — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 07:42:50 EDT

The sole person arrested and charged under the highly controversial G20 security fence law (under the Public Works Protection Act) showed up in court yesterday -- only to learn that the courts had no record of the charges. Police are suggesting that this was the result of an administrative error. Whether or not they plan to correct this administrative error and still pursue charges isn't yet clear. What is clear to me, however, is that security and policing of the G20 was a monumental challenge fraught with confusion, miscommunication and screw ups.

Residents of Birkdale and Midland Park neighbourhoods in Scarborough have been pinching their noses and forced to abandon their own backyards as a seemingly worsening, putrid odour emanates from a paper milling company in the area. Atlantic Packaging (the company responsible) says it hasn't changed its processes, and is investigating the problem (but has been doing so since March with no solution). Until the problem is found and fixed, residents will have to try to ignore the smell of rotting eggs and sewage while they enjoy that poolside cocktail or backyard barbecue.

Things are getting heated in the municipal politics arena, which, at times, seems more like a school playground. Mayoral candidate Rob Ford is turning down an opportunity to go one-on-one with fellow candidate George Smitherman on a CFRB talk show, and Smitherman isn't shying away from calling it like he sees it. Accusing Ford of "chickening out" and his bid being a "peekaboo candidacy," Smitherman suggests that Ford is afraid to take him on in debate. The Ford team has responded by saying that they will debate, but on their own terms and when the time is right.

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