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Big Hole Summary

It was lively.  And there was a range of opinions – to say the least – which is going to make writing this particular entry a bit tricky but I’m going to put on my old reporter’s hat and try to represent it best I can.

The first thing to know is that this was not part of the formal consultation process. I understand that there are two tentative dates for future meetings.  The first is Feb. 17th for the immediate neighbours including the developer, Councillor Bussin and a representative from the City.  The second (once again tentative) date is March 3rd for a formal public consultation meeting with the same folks.  Watch your physical mailbox if you are an immediate neighbour or this space for information about those meetings.

Thank you to Councillors Bussin and Davis for coming out, the fifty or so people who braved the snowy night and to Kimbourne Park United Church for hosting.

The current status of the project, according to Councillor Bussin, is that the City’s planning department is encouraged by the sophisticated design of the building that takes into consideration Toronto’s Official Plan for increasing density along main thoroughfares and transit lines, is stepped down on the Danforth as it backs into the residential part of the property and a developer who seems willing to accommodate local requests for things like types of fencing and green space.  The only way to lower the tower would be to extend the building further back into the more residential part of the property, says Bussin, because if you lose too many units in the building it quickly becomes not worth the cost of developing it.  (The current application is for 141 condo units, 107 one bedroom and 34 two bedroom.)

Some of the immediate neighbours said they disliked the idea of twelve stories primarily because it wouldn’t fit in with other buildings on the street, and they definitely would not want the building to come back any further into the neighbourhood. In addition, there was a lot of discussion about what the impact would be on parking around the building as parking can already be a challenge on the side streets.  Parking for condos is worked out by a formula and in this case the building proposes 120 parking spaces, including 14 visitor spaces.  There was also some discussion about how much shadow the building would cast.  (A shadow study is being done, apparently.)

On the other hand, there was plenty of support for the building and the height.  Many thought the building was aesthetically pleasing, close to transit, adding density that is much-needed to support our struggling commercial strip and a good option for single people and seniors who may want to stay in the neighbourhood but have few options.  One person even suggested that the view from many of the units is going to be spectacular and that this building could be a real catalyst for the kind of Danforth that we are all hoping for.

Putting aside the issue of height and looking at the first ten feet of the building there were a number of interesting suggestions including:

  • building the main floor retail with tall, fourteen foot ceilings and big windows so they would appeal to a higher-end tenant
  • parking for customers of the main floor retail
  • a green, eco-friendly building that meets the City’s Green Standards with plenty of native trees and vegetation at the front, back and top of the building, bike friendly and possibly a bioswale.
  • a well-designed, well-maintained building that is welcoming and adds beauty to the street.

We also talked a little bit about Section 37 community benefit funding, which developers sometimes provide for projects that will benefit the community, essentially in exchange for increasing the zoning density.

Read here for more comments from others who attended.

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Did Someone Say Pastries?

You’ve been waiting for it…Celena’s Bakery is set to open this Saturday.  If you, like me, have been peering inside the window for the last few months, you’ve seen a great deal of construction going on inside.  This new bakery and cafe is at 2036 Danforth, just west of Woodbine on the north side (where Ciraco’s framing shop used to be).  The website says they will be serving hand-made pastries, breads, cookies, cakes, loaves, sweet and savoury pies, soups, preserves and, of course, coffee.  I note the website also asks that we bear with them as they refine their hours, amounts, service and menu.  Can’t wait to drop in!

Free Checkup For Moms-To-Be

Have you heard that old line that women lose a tooth for each baby they carry?  As if being pregnant wasn’t hard enough, you also need to remember to take extra special care of your teeth.  On Saturday, February 13th, Impressions, The Dental Hygiene Spa is offering oral assessments, education and advice to pregnant women free of charge.  It’s part of Gift From The Heart – a day for dental hygienists across Ontario to educate people about how oral health affects overall health – free of charge.

Oh – and Impressions is an absolutely lovely place.  Georgia and Natalie and delightful and we are fortunate to have this unique spa-like dental hygiene office right here in our neighbourhood.  Here is a link to the Danforth Gem that I wrote about Impressions back in 2008.

P.S. I’m going to post a summary of last night’s big hole meeting soon.

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Healing, Helping and Heating

Our thoughts are in Haiti.  Cynthia, a friend of DECA, is coordinating a collection of gently used summer clothing, blankets, sleeping bags, sheets and towels to send to Haiti via the consulate, which is sending containers to Haiti in 2-3 weeks.  Apparently, sleeping bags would be extremely helpful as there are so many people without a bed to sleep in. If you can donate something or want to know more, contact Cynthia at cynthias@rogers.com.  As an aside, I happened to notice when I was on the Red Cross Canada website that you if you enter Amazon.ca via the Red Cross website, a portion of the funds will go to the Red Cross.

Meditation. Here’s a bit of personal information about me.  I’m most certainly not the kind of person who is into meditating…let alone someone who would go out to do it with other people even if you do get to sit on a pretty silk cushion.  However, I did go to a yoga/meditation class called Mama, Get A Grip, (run by a DECA member) because the title seemed to be talking directly to me.  And I gotta say, it was a wonderful way to spend 90 minutes.  I walked out of there feeling like a different person…a better different person. It was quite down to earth.

All of this is to tell you that the same group is offering weekly meditation sessions at the Pape/Danforth library every Sunday from 3:30-4:30 starting this Sunday.  Each class will include instruction on a variety of meditation techniques.  It is suitable for “absolute beginners” or experienced meditators.  Bring your favourite cushion or blanket to sit on.  Or chairs are available in the room. $15  For more info contact Rhondda at smileymadsen@yahoo.ca

Home Heating and Home Hardware.  I notice the new, permanent sign is up at the Home Hardware, just east of Woodbine.  Soon there will be another sign there urging you to take a few simple steps to cut down on your home energy use and your energy bills.  Thanks to Mary Margaret for this bit of winter info.

Get Foamy!  Get a can or two of low-expansion foam, put on a pair of rubber gloves and old clothes, read the directions and seal up those holes. Use a smoking incense stick to check for holes around any pipe, wire or hole that enters or leaves the house, especially in the basement, including plumbing vents, well intake and outdoor pipes, gaps where electrical wiring enters the house, openings around exhaust fans, and gaps at the top of exterior walls.

Caulking and Weather-stripping are Your New Best Friends! Caulk the attic hatch – in some cases, you can reduce your heat loss by five per cent.  Keeps hot, moist air from collecting in the attic and contributing to ice damming too. Imagine leaky doors and windows as holes in your walls.  Caulk and weather-strip them.

Window Dressing – Put heat-sensitive plastic film on drafty windows. Extend the border to outside the window frame to block draft from under the frame.

Down Boy Down – Turn down your thermostat and put on a sweater.  Install a programmable thermostat.  Set it to drop by four degrees C when you’re out or asleep. Such a drop could reduce your bill by 15 per cent.  That will easily pay the cost of the new thermostat.  If you’re on a furnace, especially oil, and haven’t had it cleaned in a few years, make an appointment right away. Again, depending on individual situations, a dirty burner can be costing you an extra 10 per cent.

It’s that Time of the Month – Change your furnace filter every month.  Dirty filters reduce the efficiency of your furnace costing you more money and wasting energy.

Lights, Compact Fluorescents, Action – Invest in compact fluorescent bulbs for your home.  Consider this: replace one 60-watt incandescent bulb with a 15-watt compact fluorescent and save about 570 kilowatt-hours of electricity over the life of the bulb – at Hydro One rural rates of 5.5 cents/kilowatt-hour, that’s approximately $31.35. Invest in LED light bulbs for high-use areas.

Use motion sensors and timers to limit energy use.  Beware of phantom power (when your appliance is plugged in and turned off but still drawing power).  Unplug appliances not in use (microwaves, music boxes, chargers) and put your computers, TVs, modems, tool/game chargers on power bars with timers so they go off when you’re not using them.


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Winter In The Park

Wow.  My family and I went to East Lynn Park on Sunday afternoon.  I counted roughly one hundred people sledding and another 20 or so on the skating rink along with several other folks walking dogs and playing in the park.  Let me reiterate the big thank you to Beth Binnington and the other neighbours who created and maintain that rink.  Actually, I’d rather word didn’t get out how great it is, so keep it under your hat, o.k?

Also, check out this post from the Danforth Mosaic Business Improvement Association about the Esso/Timmies development at Danforth and Greenwood

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Make Your Own

You loved the canning workshops!  Now, it’s time to learn some more old school skills.  Mark your calendars for these ‘reskilling’ workshops.  All workshops are at the Danforth Mennonite Church at 2174 Danforth (north side, just east of Woodbine) and cost $10-$15.  RSVP to Mary-Margaret McMahon at 416-693-9276 or spargy@rogers.com

January 25th 7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. – Medicinal Herbs

– with Linda Rose of Black River Gate House (available at the St. Lawrence Market North Building every Saturday)

February 25th 7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. – Soap Making Part 1

– with DECA member Amanda Montgomery of Simply By Amanda (available at Better Bulk and Grassroots)

March 11th 7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. – Soap Making Part 2

– with DECA member Amanda Montgomery of Simply By Amanda (available at Better Bulk and Grassroots)

These workshops are proudly presented by DECA in partnership with the East Toronto Climate Action Group and Live Green Toronto.

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City Feeds Farmers!

From DECA’s Feed The Farmers’ Coordinator, Catherine Porter…

We did it again. But this year, our team of community cooks didn’t just feed 20 farmers a week. They fed 32.  What am I talking about?

Well, if you arrived at the Farmers’ Market this year around 5:30 p.m., your nose would have told you. Each Thursday, someone from the neighbourhood arrived with a steaming dish of food, be it pasta or lentil curry to feed the farmers. More often than not two neighbourhood cooks arrived to dole out plates for the swelling number of farmers and their staff.

We started this tradition last year for a number of reasons.  The first was pure etiquette. Our market hours run smack into dinner. We didn’t want our farmers to leave for the long drive home with empty bellies.  The second was marketing.   Happy sellers make regular sellers.  And that brings back regular customers.  As odd as it sounds, luring farmers to a new market in the big, bad city is not an easy task. We wanted to give farmers every reason to choose us. Our strategy has already worked. A number of the new farmers this year said we were their favourite — mostly because of the community spirit.

Which brings us to the third and most important reason. Community. For us, starting a farmers’ market wasn’t about just eating healthy, local food. It was about building a stronger community in our area. We wanted people to come to the park, buy some strawberries, join in a square dance, watch their kids get transformed into a butterfly via face paint, and chat with their neighbours. The farmers were part of that. What better way to build community than over a plate of hot green curry?  Plus, it’s cool to feed the people who feed us. It just feels right.  This year, DECA paid a small honorarium to community members who cooked for our farmers. Most of the time, it didn’t cover their costs. They are generous souls. Many cooked more than once. A few cooked three times. We want to thank them all individually.  You all helped to make our market a huge success again this year.  We think you rock.

If you’d like to throw on an apron and join us in cooking a meal next year, please e-mail me at catherine_porter@rogers.com

Our beloved 2009 DECA cooks include:

Jessica Schmiedchen, Susan Spratley, Shelley Pogue, Mary Egan, Ellen Long, Lorraine Cheng, Laurie Smith, Tanya Geisler, Wayne Chee, Alisha Austin, Diana Gonzalez, Carolyn Rouse, Martha Wallace, Nicola St. John, Ruth Heathcote, Michael Polanyi, Mary Pickering, Alisa Haggert, Andrea Rourke, Robin Forbes, Sarah Eshelby, Sara Heinonen, Catherine Porter and our fabulous baker Mary-Margaret McMahon.