Ontario Place is set to be torn down and re-imagined. The 1970s "landmark" has certainly seen its better days, and with 39 hectares of waterfront land, the redevelopment of the site represents a major opportunity to reinvigorate the area west of Harbourfront (which still needs its own share of work...). Initial proposals for the project need to be submitted by September 10, with major work expected in a few years. This I plan to keep tabs on.

Most have heard that the TTC Customer Service Panel report is running late (again), but what about some of the recommendations that they're tabling? Of the 100 or so that have already been drafted, some of the highlights include improving the design of schedules on bus poles and ensuring that fare collectors acknowledge customers entering the system. A decent start, but let's hope the best is yet to come.

If the TTC Panel seems a bit slow, that's nothing compared to the City's response to a sewage backup problem affecting a residential property near Wilson Subway Station. Shondra Nauth's basement has been flooded with her neighbour's sewage 18 times since 2002. After a litany of failed attempts to address the problem with a holding tank, Toronto ombudsman, Fiona Crean, stepped in with an aptly titled report "No Time to Waste," which led to city council voting 29-1 in favour of finding an immediate solution to the problem. The quote of the day, then, goes to Ms. Nauth, whose frustration is understandable: "They want me to call it a nice name, sewage. It's s---. And for eight years, these people knew it, the mayor, the water people, the councillor, and none of them did anything about it."

Although police have charged Russel Kirkpatrick for the assault of a 61-year-old women in a Scarborough cemetery, they fear that the accused may have preyed on other victims who've yet to come forward. In the hopes that someone who's recently seen him might come forward, they've released his picture.

In Brief:

The mad scientists at African Lion Safari have announced that Jake, an 8-month old Asian Elephant, is the first to have been conceived through artificial insemination.

A multi-vehicle crash as the result of a mudslide is causing commuters on the 403 near Hamilton loads of trouble as all eastbound lanes of the highway have been closed.

Lotto Max has another big one tonight, with 60-million up for grabs.

Oh, and because it hasn't been mentioned this morning...G20. That's all I have to say about that.

Photo: "Swan Lake 2" by blogTO staffer and Flickr member Roger Cullman.