SPRING/SUMMER 2007

MIHEVCJoe

Ward 21 St. Paul’s West Report

Councillor

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Dear Friends and Neighbours,

I want to wish you a pleasant and happy Spring. I love this time of year

and the sense of reinvigoration it brings to our community.

As this is the first newsletter since the Fall 2006 election, I want to

thank you for the opportunity to provide continued leadership for our

community at City Hall. My staff team and I will work hard to ensure

this term of Council is productive and beneficial for the City and our

neighbourhoods.

The mandate residents gave for this term is clear: bring to fruition the

exciting initiatives we have developed such as the St. Clair transit and

street improvement project and the Wychwood Barns Art Park project,

and foster new projects that make Toronto and our St. Paul’s West

community more livable. Residents told me they wanted continued

support for community building work such as: annual community

celebrations like Salsa on St. Clair, St. Clair Art Walk and the Melitaville

Fall Festival; capital improvements for parks like Laughlin Park and Glen

Cedar Park; promoting a revitalization on St. Clair, Spadina and Eglinton;

and environmental events like the annual Environment Day and Compost

Days.

My approach as local Councillor is to facilitate community dialogue that

engages residents to develop projects and find solutions that promote

healthy environments and community development. My passion is fueled

by seeing the connections made by residents and by realizing community

aspirations. We have shown over and over that together we can create a

healthy, sustainable Ward that serves as a model for others across the city.

It is this community spirit that sees many St. Paul’s West residents in the

forefront of civic engagement city-wide working on environmental, social,

artistic and entrepreneurial projects.

I look forward to working with residents this term and making our

midtown community the best possible.

Sincerely,

Councillor Joe Mihevc

Ward 21 St. Paul’s West

GREEN, CLEAN & HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT- Get smart with W.I.S.E. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

- Green Neighbours 21 launches in our ward . . . 2

- Environment Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

- Compost Days . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

- Reducing your carbon footprints starts at home 3

- Promoting our urban forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

- Green bins coming soon to apartments

and condos! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

- Bike for fun, bike for your health,

bike for the planet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

- Community clean-up days . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

ST. CLAIR RENNAISANCE - Green Neighbours 21 launches in our ward . . . 4

- Underground hydro wires on St. Clair . . . . . . . 4

- Green Neighbours 21 launches in our ward . . . 4

- St. Clair West Avenue study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Transit City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

WYCHWOOD BARNS ART PARK PROJECT . .4

PARKS- Dogs in Cedarvale Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

- Improvements to Laughlin, Glen Cedar and

Cedarvale Parks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

SUMMER FESTIVALS- 3rd Annual Salsa on St. Clair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

- Melitaville Festival . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

- 40th Annual Caribana Festival . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

NEED HELP? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

WARD 21 EMAIL LISTSERVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

YOUR WARD 21 ST. PAUL’S WEST TEAM . . . . . . . 8

INSIDE:

CITY’S ENVIRONMENT PLAN: NOT JUST KEEPING UP, BUT GOING BEYONDOn March 26th, Mayor David Miller released Change is in the Air: Toronto’s Commitment to an Environmentally

Sustainable Future, a framework for public discussion and a blueprint to make Toronto the greenest city in North America.

The document discusses a variety of green policies that City Council can adopt to achieve its green-house gas reduction targets. It sets clear and

achievable targets to improve our air and reduce greenhouse gases: 6% by 2012; 30% by 2020; and 80% by 2050. It also contains 27 potential actions that City Hall and Toronto residents can do to reduce the use of fossil fuel, improve energy and heat use, adopt energy-efficient technologies and use renewable energy sources.

St. Paul’s West residents can get involved by joining a Climate Action Team that will help the city research, plan and execute strategies aimed at reducing climate change and air pollution.

You can also join Green Neighbours 21 (see page 2). The city needs people with all types of backgrounds and expertise, from the arts and design communities, urban planning, sci-ence fields and, above all, people with passion and commitment. You can also attend a major public and stakeholder engagement meeting on Sunday, April 29th, 2007 at the Direct Energy Centre at Exhibition Place For more information, visit www.toronto.ca/health/2020 or call 416-392-2020.

MIHEVC

GREEN, CLEAN & HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT

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L Get Smart With W.I.S.E.The West Toronto Initiative for Solar Energy (WISE) is an exciting, locally-led environmen-tal initiative which aims to reduce reliance on the power grid and help families reduce their carbon footprint by installing zero-emission solar panels on their roofs.

WISE is now moving into its next phase. A request for proposals is being tendered from contractors this Spring. The initial estimate is that a one kilowatt system will cost $10,000-12,000, while a three kilowatt system will be about $25,000. The cost will be lowered with the purchase of solar panels en masse. Pre-arranged financing will also be made avail-able through a major bank for qualified par-ticipants. Other similar projects demonstrate that installing a one kilowatt, residential solar panel system can offset energy costs by about $400 to $450 per year. The province, through Ontario Power Generation, is offering an incentive by agreeing to purchase the solar power for 42 cents per kilowatt hour – more than six times what residents presently pay for power.

WISE has attracted tremendous support thus far in the St. Paul’s West community and cur-rently has about 300 West Toronto residents on its email list. I believe the project can be-come the largest residential solar installation project in Canada, serving as a template for communities across the country. WISE will hold a public meeting once it has selected a contractor and has financial information available. For more information, please visit www.ourpower.ca.

L Green Neighbours 21 Launches In Our Ward

A couple dozen St. Paul’s West residents have formed a local group to address environmental issues. Green Neighbours 21’s (GN21) main purpose is to engage the residents of Ward 21 (and beyond) by offering ideas for greener living solutions and by drawing attention to commu-nity and city-wide environment events.

The first meetings were hugely successful and covered a variety of topics ranging from education and awareness to political advocacy and starting an annual Eco Fair in the neighbourhood. GN21 meetings have special guest speakers and focus on participation and group discussion. A newsletter and website are in the works. Please contact GN21 for more info and meeting dates: greenneighbours@yahoo.ca.

L Compost DaysGardeners – don’t miss our free compost days. Bring your shovels, wheelbarrows, wagons or whatever you need to move the compost to your garden.

Monday, April 30th (4 – 6 pm) St. Alphonsus Catholic School, 60 Atlas Ave.Tuesday, May 1st (5 – 7 pm) McMurrich Public School, 115 Winona Dr.Wednesday, May 2nd (4 – 6 pm) Cedarvale Community School, 145 Ava Rd.Thursday, May 3rd (4 – 6 pm) St. Bruno’s Catholic School, 402 Melita CrescentFriday, May 4th (4 – 6 pm) J. R. Wilcox Public School, 231 Ava Rd.Friday, May 11th (4 – 6 pm) Humewood Community School, 15 Cherrywood Ave.

L Environment Day – Sunday, May 6th, 2007.Environment Day is our annual community celebration and get together. This year’s event will be held on Sunday, May 6 from 10am. to 2pm. at the Wychwood Barns. The event will include: free compost; a community barbeque; mobile facilities where recyclables and hazardous waste can be deposited; information on environmentally-friendly City products and programs; a pre-sentation by WISE; an art exhibit made from recyclables; and children’s entertainment and events.

A new feature this year will be a community chess tournament, run as round-robins by age-group. Master Hans Jung will be available for simultaneous chess demonstration. All are invited to play in the free chess tournament. Chess boards and equipment will be made available by the Chess Institute of Canada and local resident and chess teacher Ted Winick.

Also, the Community History Project (CHP) will once again host a giant yard sale on site. The proceeds from the yard sale will be used for the restoration of the Tollkeeper’s Cottage in Davenport Square Park. You can also support the project by donating items for the yard sale (between 8 and 10am, on the day of the event), and then return at 10am, to purchase something!

SPRING / SUMMER 2007

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L Reducing Your Carbon Footprint Starts At HomeReducing your carbon footprint means reducing your use of fossil fuels, such as oil and natural gas, in order to decrease the amount of greenhouse gasses released into the environment. There are many ways to diminish your carbon footprint. Here are some simple ideas to get you started:

• Replace incandescent light bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. In the average house, this can save up to $250 per year on electricity bills.

• Install a programmable thermostat for your heating and cooling systems.• Dry laundry on racks and wash your clothes in cold water thereby reducing hydro bills.• Do little things with big impact: turn off lights when you leave a room; run the dishwasher

only when it is full; leave the car at home; and buy locally-grown produce.• Modify your home’s downspout to run rain water onto your lawn or into a rain barrel and

not into the sewer system. • Do a home energy audit to identify more ways to make your home energy-efficient.

Thanks to Toronto Environmental Alliance (TEA) and Earth Day Canada for their suggestions.

L Green Bins Coming Soon To Apartments And Condos!Residents living in apartments and condominiums in St. Paul’s West c o u l d soon get the chance to participate in the city’s Green Bin compost-ing program. City Council will debate a plan that will see the Green Bin expansion begin as early as next year.

The multi-residential unit Green Bin pilot program, which began in Fall ‘05 and included 29 buildings, examined ways to implement the program in high rises and multi-unit dwellings. Currently 510,000 sin-gle family homes are participating in the Green Bin program, which diverts 110,000 tons of organic materials from landfills per year. With half of Toronto residents living in apartments and condominiums, this number could significantly increase with city-wide implementation.

The City is also studying suitable sites where organic materials process-ing facilities might be constructed. Community consultations are hap-pening in April. With the construction of two to four new facilities, the city’s processing capabilities could rise from 25,000 to 180,000 tonnes annually. For more information, please visit www.toronto.ca/greenbin.

L Bike For Fun, Bike For Your Health, Bike For The Planet

Bike Week kicks off on May 28 with the annual group commute and pancake breakfast at Nathan Phillips Square. Cyclists will meet at five locations around the city, converge at Bloor Street West and Yonge Street and ride together to City Hall to enjoy the free breakfast. Bike Week also features events across the city, including a screening of the film An Inconvenient Truth, a cycling-themed art show and a Toronto Island bike race. For more information, please visit www.toronto.ca/cycling/bikeweek.

L Promoting Our Urban ForestOur goal as a City is to almost double our tree canopy from the current 18% to 33%. Resi-dents of Ward 21 can support this goal by par-ticipating in a “tree audit” of our ward. I am inviting residents to perform a tree audit in their neighbourhoods to identify missing trees on boulevards and streets and public spaces. I will take the completed audits to our Urban Forestry Department and have the trees plant-ed. Send me an e-mail to info@joemihevc.com. Remember that suggestions should be limited to public lands.

Also, the City offers free tree planting on the city-owned property between the sidewalk and your front yard property line. The depart-ment has nearly 30 species of trees, with 15 native species from which to choose. You must complete an application by July 15 for the fall planting.

Spring is the time to get planting on your pri-vate property and Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests (LEAF), a non-profit environmental group, offers a backyard tree and shrub planting program. LEAF provides information to residents about native species, helps identify the right tree for your backyard, and delivers and plants the tree. For more in-formation about LEAF, visit www.leaftoronto.org, and for more information about the tree audit, contact my City Hall office.

L Bike Racks & Bike LockersStarting this spring and summer, the TTC will implement a motion I moved that will outfit 360 new TTC hybrid buses with bike racks, making it easier for cyclists to integrate public transit into their travel. This will be an expansion of the “Rack It and Rocket” pilot project that included the Bathurst 7 and 310 bus routes.

Another new improvement in service for cyclists is the Bike Locker Program. This program installs secure bike lockers around the city that can be rented by cyclists for $10 per month. Currently, Bike Lockers are in place in six locations, including City Hall, Finch and Downsview Subway Stations, Exhibition Place, Bloor, Spadina and the Toronto Island Ferry Docks.

Plans are in the works to offer lockers in more locations around the city. If you would like to suggest a location, please call 416-392-7592 or email bikelocker@toronto.ca. For more information, please visit www.toronto.ca/cycling/locker.htm.

L Community Clean-up DaysWe need to clean-up our public spaces in Ward 21! Following up on the recent success of the City’s 20-Minute Toronto Makeover and the Mayor’s Community Clean-up Day, my staff and I will bring bags and gloves and help clean three of our parks. All three clean-ups will take place on Sunday, April 29th: • Cedarvale Ravine at 9am. – Start at the

foot of the Glencedar Footbridge; • Nordheimer Ravine at 10am. – Start in

front of the south entrance to the St. Clair W Subway station, across from Loblaws;

• Kay Gardner Beltline Park at 11am. – Meet at the Old Park entrance to the park

Come out and bring friends and neighbours, and let’s make our community shine. You can also organize clean up dates with your family, friends, school mates, service clubs and/or faith groups. We will provide the gloves and bags.

MIHEVC

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ST.CLAIR RENNAISANCE

L St. Clair Transit And Street Improvements – Phase 2On February 18th, 2007, our community welcomed back an old friend. The 512 St. Clair street-car resumed full service and started running on the newly-constructed transit lanes from Yonge St to Vaughan Rd. I joined dozens of transit lovers and riders on that afternoon to celebrate the return of our beloved streetcar. I take public transit most days and have already found a marked improvement in travel times. Once the improved line is complete, we will experience the full benefit of a reliable transit thoroughfare.

The construction from Yonge St. to Vaughan Rd. was Phase 1 in a three phase construction schedule. Phase 2 construction plans for this year have been changed, to better accommodate the undergrounding of hydro wires west from Vaughan.

The new construction schedule will be as follows:2007 - Hydro undergrounding from Vaughan to Westmount.

- Renovation of streetcar turnaround at St. Clair West station (June to August).

- Installation of Phase 1 (Yonge to Vaughan) transit shelters and plantings.

- Track re-construction and sidewalk replacement from Westmount to Caledonia (*the hydro undergrounding is already complete in this section)

(*if the Phase 2 hydro undergrounding goes well, sidewalk replacement will take place between Vaughan and Oakwood in Fall ‘07).

2008 - Track reconstruction and sidewalk replacement from Vaughan to Westmount and from Caledonia to the Gunns Road streetcar loop west of Keele.

- Installation of public art and interpretative plaques in all shelters between Yonge and Gunns Road.

If you want on-going access to construction schedules, answers to your questions, or before and after photos, please visit http://www.toronto.ca/wes/techservices/involved/transportation/st-clair_construction/index.htm.

New low-floor LRT to appear on St. Clair in 2010.

TRANSIT CITYIn March ‘07, the Toronto Transit Commission released a transit plan that will create 120 new kilometres of light-rail transit lines across the entire City. For our community, the plan calls for an Eglinton Cross-town LRT that will travel 30.8km from Scarborough Town Centre to Mississauga and the Lester Pearson Airport. The portion of the Eglin-ton line running through our Cedarvale and Forest Hill communities

is proposed to be underground, due to the narrower width of the road-way. This will bring the boost Upper Village businesses were hoping for from the Eglinton subway line that was cancelled in the mid-90s. Imagine the convenience of going to the airport by public transit in an efficient manner!

The $6-billion Transit City plan is a 15-year proposal. It will support the population growth anticipated in the City’s new Official Plan and will address the environmental, social and economic problems caused by traffic congestion in our city. The Transit City plan requires vision, conviction and a financial commitment from all orders of government. The return on that transit investment is significant. Ridership on the seven proposed lines will more than double, resulting in fewer cars on the road, improving our air quality and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions.

As a TTC commissioner for the last 10 years, and now as the TTC Vice-Chair, I have been advocating for an expansion plan that will make transit cost and time efficient. European and North American cities have proven that light-rail technology is a very cost effective form of transit. A kilometre of new LRT construction costs one-tenth of the cost for the same kilometre of underground subway. For more detailed information, visit www.transitcity.ca.

L Undergrounding Hydro Wires On St. Clair

In March ’07, the City adopted its Capital bud-get and approved funding to underground the hydro wires from Vaughan to Dufferin. This was a big victory for our community. Infra-structure upgrades like this are important to revitalizing the retail strip. The excavation and installation will occur from April to No-vember ’07. This construction will not disrupt the street in a major way as the contractor will proceed block-by-block along St. Clair West. If you have any issues with construction, please call Terence Ho, Project Designer, 542-3100 x.33008 or Sean Hill in my City Hall office.

L St. Clair West Avenue StudyIn early 2006, the City Plan-ning Department and its consultant firm, Brook McIlroy, hosted a se-ries of community meetings to discuss possible revisions to zoning by-laws and urban design guide-lines to manage fu-ture growth on St. Clair West between Bathurst and Glenholme. Since the last meet-ing in June ’06, the consultant and City Plan-ning staff have been preparing a report that will incorporate resident and stakeholder feedback. That document is likely to be available for fur-ther community input in June ’07. It will then inform the final report to Toronto East York Community Council in September ’07.

The Avenue Study is important because of the revitalization occurring on St. Clair. The pur-pose of this study is to stay one step ahead of that growth, so that it can be directed in ways that are most beneficial to our community. I encourage you to stay engaged in the process so that we can define the kind of St. Clair of which we can be proud.

SPRING / SUMMER 2007

WYCHWOOD BARNS GREEN ART BARNS PROJECT

L Construction Begins On Green Art Barns

As major construction begins on the Wychwood Barns Green Art Barns project, I am filled with excitement, gratitude and pride in our commu-nity. The seven years it took to secure the ap-provals and money to begin this construction demonstrates the commitment, hard work and vision of many special residents and organiza-tions. It is a testament to what a community can achieve together.

On the City side, construction of the parkland and related structures is set to commence this summer. The entire project should take about 14-18 months to complete. Barring any com-plications, by the summer of 2008, a leading edge community, art and green project will take root. I am convinced that the Wychwood

Barns Art Project will be a model for others to replicate.

If you want to be informed regarding the prog-ress of construction, funding, special events and community opportunities related to the Barns, you can sign up to receive Artscape’s communi-ty e-newsletter. Simply email to subscribe@torontoartscape.on.ca with “Green Arts Barns Com-munity” in the subject line and you will receive ongoing updates of the construction project.

L Wychwood Green Art Barns Fundraising

Many will fondly remember “Sweet on the Park”, our last high-visibility opportunity to gather and celebrate this project. The next high-style fundraiser will take place on Octo-

Provincial announcement of $3M contribution to Wychwood Green Art Barns project

ber 18th, 2007 at the historic and newly-reno-vated Palais Royale on the Lakeshore.

The event will celebrate the interplay of food and art. A select group of well-known chefs will create a menu that is inspired by a work of art of their choosing. The artwork will also be featured with the presentation of the dish dur-ing the event. The work of local artisans will be featured in a live auction. Individual tickets will be $150 and corporate packages will also be available. For more information, or to purchase tickets, contact Marion O’Sullivan in my City Hall office or Elizabeth Dalgleish at Artscape at 416-392-1038 x 29 or at elizabeth@torontoartscape.on.ca.

L Organizations Moving Into The Barns

The redeveloped barns will showcase sustain-able, energy-efficient design principles. When completed, the Green Art Barns will provide new homes for 14 non-profit arts and environ-mental organizations, including: B Current; Cahoots Theatre Projects; Citizens’ Environ-ment Watch; Images Festival; LEAF – Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests; Na-Me-Res/Tumivut Arts Workshop; Salvador Allende Arts Festival for Peace; The Storytell-ers School of Toronto; Toronto School of Art; Theatre Direct Canada (the anchor tenant); Theatre Gargantua; and Women’s Healthy En-vironments Network. The Barns will also pro-vide space for 15 artist work studios and 26 live/work studios.

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PARKS

L Improvements To Laughlin, Glen Cedar, Ben Nobleman and Cedarvale Parks

Over the last few years, we have seen needed face-lifts to the facilities and play equipment at Gra-ham, Wells Hill, Humewood, Marian Engel and Cawthra Parks. Three more St. Paul’s West parks will be upgraded over the next three years with $75,000 each from the Capital budget: Laughlin Park in 2008, Glen Cedar Park in 2009 and Ben Nobleman Park in 2010. The sum of $75,000 buys a modest renewal of the park equipment. I will be hosting a community meeting on May 30th at 7pm at Cedarvale School to explore whether residents are interested in fundraising to add more & better equipment to any or all of these projects. Everyone is invited.

I am also pleased to announce that, over the next five years, Cedarvale Park will also receive: $675,000 in 2008 for internal repairs and upgrades to Phil White Arena; $345,000 in 2010 to replace the aging tennis courts, equipment and fence; and over $1.25 million between 2010 and 2012 for upgrading projects.

L Dogs In Cedarvale Park – Finding Common Ground

A multi-stakeholder committee consisting of dog-owners, non-dog owners and park users, has been meeting since sum-mer ’06 to provide input on a set of new policies and guidelines for dogs in Cedar-vale Park. In March ’07, a public consultation meeting was held at Arlington Middle School to receive community input on the propos-als. Unfortunately, an unforeseen snowstorm prevented many people from attending. As a result, another meeting has been scheduled for May 14th at 6:30pm at Arlington Middle School (501 Arlington Ave). The two dozen who attended the March ’07 meeting gave me more ideas to advance the work put forth by the working committee. Since that meeting, my staff has also been working to get answers to questions and concerns raised at that meeting and, in the process, have unearthed more in-formation on how other North American cities are handling the issue of dogs in parks.

MIHEVC

SOCIAL INCLUSION SUMMER FESTIVALS

I was appointed by Mayor David Miller as Chair of the Community Development and Recreation Committee. In that role, I am promoting oppor-tunities to address the social challenges facing a large diverse city like Toronto. The theme that best captures the challenges and work confront-ing the Committee is that of “social inclusion”. Toronto must be a city that provides opportuni-ties for the optimal well-being and healthy devel-opment of all children, youth and adults. There have been two key developments on this front.

At the April 2nd meeting of the Committee, we heard from a panel of expert speakers address-ing different perspectives on the City’s role in advancing social inclusion. The speakers set the framework for the initiative that I have dubbed “Toronto for All”, which the Committee is now undertaking.

“Toronto for All” facilitates the active engage-ment of the public in civic dialogue and debate on key social issues and frames the City’s pri-orities, positions and key actions. Central to the process is a special committee meeting on May 3rd, 2007 at 7pm at the North York Civic Centre to discuss income security in Toronto. The idea is to move out into different areas of Toronto to hear directly from Torontonians on social issues that are important to them. If you are interested in social issues facing our city, please join us.

Given the current momentum and public debate on income security issues such as the campaign for a $10/hour minimum wage in Ontario and Canada, restoring the National Child Benefit clawback, and increases to social assistance rate, this should be an interesting discussion.

The “Toronto for All” approach will also be used to address our community infrastructure, parks and recreation, childcare, community space and schools needs. I am energized by the opportu-nity to shape policy that aims to make life more fair and affordable for Toronto families. I will keep you posted on developments.

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ROADS

The City will be work-ing on Hursting Ave in April and early May. The road and sidewalk will be reconstructed and will re-place sub-standard residential water services up to the City line. For more information, contact Chris Myers at 416-338-5553.

The sidewalk reconstruction and water service improvements on Chiltern Hill between Ava and Avenal is slated to begin in mid-April. The road and red brick replacement will commence in June. For more information contact Dan Chiu at 416-392-1798.

L 3rd Annual Salsa On St. ClairTelelatino TLN and Hillcrest Village BIA hosted Salsa on St. Clair in 2006. It attracted 250,000 people and has quickly become a major feature in Toronto’s summer calendar. The increased at-tendance last year and the anticipated increase this year has convinced the organizers that the festival needs a larger staging area. As a result, the physical boundaries for Salsa on St. Clair 2007 will be extended east from Christie to Wychwood and will add a third major sponsor, the Wychwood Heights BIA.

The event which celebrates all things Latin – music, food, dance and culture, will run all day Sat-urday July 14 and Sunday July 15, 2007. The enormous success of Salsa on St. Clair has prompt-ed Mayor David Miller to declare the week of July 14th-21st, 2007, Latin Week in Toronto.

L Melitaville Festival:The 3rd annual Melitaville Festival, in the area south of Christie & Davenport, will be held on Saturday, September 8th from noon to 3 pm. Last year’s festival was a great success and organiz-ers have already started planning this year’s festivities. In addition to a community barbecue, local entertainment, rides and entertainment for the kids, this year’s festival will feature a much larger flea market and craft sale, and silent auction with items for the whole family. To book a table for the flea market, become a member of the organizing committee, or get more informa-tion, call Marion O’Sullivan in my City Hall office.

L 40th Annual Caribana FestivalCaribana is so much a part of the cultural and economic life in our City that one can hardly think of summer in Toronto without Caribana. As Caribana celebrates its 40th year, in this the year that is the 200th anniversary of the end of the transatlantic slave trade, we see a festival that is expanding. We see a Caribana that has matured into a professionally managed cultural organiza-tion that attracts 1 million revellers and increased corporate and government sponsorship. As the Council liaison to Caribana for the last 10 years, I can attest to the growth and maturation of the festival. The year 2007 is a not only a historic milestone year for Caribana, but it will also be the year the Caribbean cultural celebration begins to integrate new events that incorporate

some of the original dreams of its founders – to showcase the rich tapestry of Caribbean art and culture. Come and join me for a month in July and August to enjoy the culture, the colour, music and the pageantry of Caribana.

Joe and his daughter jump up at Caribana.

SPRING / SUMMER 2007

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COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENTS

L Intersection Of Allen and EglintonFinding the correct balance between the safe passage of pedestrians and motorists entering the Allen Expressway has been very difficult. Since the reconstruction of the intersection in December ‘06, motorist queuing and delays have increased, resulting in frustration and aggressive driving. In response, the City’s Transportation staff has made or will be making further changes such as: fine tuning the signal timings to reduce delays to turning motorists; installing flexible bollards to deter dual westbound right-turn movements at the intersection; and repainting the lane mark-ings. I ask for patience as we try to balance often competing interests.

L Beth Tzedec/United Synagogue Day SchoolA working group consisting of representatives from Beth Tzedec and United Synagogue Day School (USDS), local residents and City Plan-ning & Transportation staff have been meeting for the last year to ad-dress parking rules and enforcement. As a result of those meetings, by-laws have been altered and an enforcement protocol has been agreed upon. Now, the primary issue of the re-development of Beth Tzedec and the USDS is beginning to be addressed.

The proposed renovations include: an underground parking garage; an addition to the west of the existing building to house a gymnasium, classrooms, the congregational school and USDS offices; and an addi-tion to the south face of the existing building for offices for synagogue clergy. Residents have voiced concerns about parking, encroachment, trees, lighting and urban design. The Beth Tzedec/USDS project team, having listened to the community concerns, are now working on revi-sions to the plan.

L Holy Blossom TempleA draft plan is being internally considered by congregants of Holy Blos-som Temple and Leo Baeck Day School parents that could see a renova-tion of the site. The intent of the renewal project is to better organize the layout and function of the building, create a green buffer between the building and the residences to the west, locate the parking under-ground and modernize the Leo Baeck Day School facilities. A pre-sub-mission community meeting was held in March ’07. More meetings will occur once the actual plan is submitted. Stay tuned!

SHOP LOCAL

Our St. Paul’s West community has three exciting and vibrant retail ar-eas served by 4 Business Improvement Associations (BIAs): St. Clair West between Bathurst and Winona; Eglinton between Bathurst and the Allen Expressway; and Spadina between Montclair and Thelma. These four BIAs are putting a lot of effort and funds into attracting new local customers to their many shops and restaurants. For more information on: Spadina Rd: visit www.foresthillvillagebia.com; Eglinton Ave. West: watch for the “Eyes on Eglinton” style magazine; St. Clair Ave. W: visit the neighbourhood website www.MyStClair.com, for all things St. Clair.

L Rose Of Sharon Seniors Home – 171 VaughanConstruction is well underway on a new Korean seniors home at the corner of Vaughan and Maplewood, and should be completed by early 2008. The 10-storey Rose of Sharon seniors facility will include 60 long-term care beds and 66 life lease apartments. The development will pro-vide needed senior care for the Korean community, and will beautify a long-neglected corner. I know that Rose of Sharon Retirement Commu-nity will be a welcome neighbour for many years to come. The road and sidewalks on Maplewood, by Vaughan, will be reconstructed once the development is complete.

L The Forest Hill – 500 St. Clair WestConstruction will begin shortly on a new 22-storey “gateway” develop-ment at the northwest corner of St. Clair and Bathurst. Once completed, the corner will continue to have commercial/retail tenants on the first three floors. The City has secured additional sidewalk on both sides of the corner for pedestrians and transit users.

L Forest Hill Village Vision CommitteeIn late-February ’07, the Forest Hill Village BIA, under the leadership of Peter McClelland and local resident Corrine Spiegel, hosted a commu-nity forum to solicit views and ideas about how to improve Forest Hill Village. The BIA wants to better preserve the “village” aesthetic that makes Forest Hill Village unique. This meeting was its first public step.

Nestled north of Heath St. and south of Strathearn Blvd, the Forest Hill Village BIA has been considering many capital improvements includ-ing widening the sidewalk to improve pedestrian traffic, new banners and planters, and street fairs to attract people to the Village. Residents also suggested the BIA seek heritage designation for all the buildings in the area in order to preserve its village character. It was a fascinating evening. I want to encourage more residents to share their ideas with the BIA on how best to improve Forest Hill Village. If you have specific ideas or want to attend a future meeting, please contact Emily Nichol-son at villagebia@hotmail.com

L Clean and Beautiful City InitiativesFor the third year, the City has invested in local Clean and Beautiful City projects to enhance the cleanliness and beauty of our neighbour-hoods. In 2007, our Ward will have $3,000 in seed money to spend on a few beautification projects. Having invited input from the community, I have received many interesting and exciting ideas. For 2007, we will be working on: new street furniture by Tarragon Theatre; improved land-scaping in Connaught Circle Park (by the Glencedar foot bridge); and a mosaic on the concrete walls north of Bathurst and Davenport. Other ideas will be pursued as time and money permits.

Davenport/Christie area lane named after Chilean poet, Victor Jara.

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MIHEVC

All numbers listed are area code 416. For general information and numbers not listed here, call Access Toronto at 338-0338 or try our community office at 392-7460.

ANIMAL CONTROL Toronto: 338-7297 York: 338-6281

FLOODING/WATER PROBLEMS (After hours) Toronto: 392-7737 York: 394-2630

GARBAGE (Missed pick ups) Toronto: 392-7742 York: 338-2010

LEAD PIPE REPLACEMENT 394-2646

PROPERTY STANDARDS & BY-LAW Toronto: 338-0338 York: 394-2535

STREET CLEANING & REPAIR Toronto: 392-7737 York: 394-2630

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Calendar of Events

Welcome Package available for New Residents

If you have recently moved into Ward 21, we have a welcome package for you! The package includes material on a variety of services, from daycare centers to schools to places of worship –important information to help you settle into our community. Feel free to pick up a package at our community office at 747 St Clair Ave. W. You can also call us at 392-7460 and we’ll arrange to have a package delivered to you.

L Representing Ward 21 at City HallIn addition to my responsibilities as our community’s advocate at City Hall, I have been appointed to the following agencies, boards and committees:

- Chair, Community Development and Recreation Committee- Vice-Chair, Toronto Transit Committee- Executive Committee- Budget Committee- Toronto East York Community Council- Civic Appointments Committee- GO Transit Board- Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) Transit Members Board- City Council Liaison to Caribana Festival

Spring and Summer are wonderful in Ward 21, and we have a number of community events to help celebrate the seasons. I hope you will join us in these activities!

April 29 - Community Clean Up Day – Cedarvale Ravine (9am), Nordheimer Ravine (10am) & Kay Gardner Beltline Park (11am).

Apr 30-May 11 - Compost Days

May 3 - Special meeting of Community Development & Recreation Cte., North York Civic Centre.

May 6 - Ward 21 Environment Day, Wychwood Barns

May 14 - Dogs in Cedarvale Park community meeting, Arlington MS, 6:30pm.

May 30 - Park improvements to Laughlin, Glen Cedar & Ben Nobleman Park, Cedarvale CS, 7pm.

June 10 - Strawberries and Asparagus, 11am-5pm,

Cedarvale Park Children’s Garden

July 14-15 - Salsa on St. Clair

August 4 - 40th Annual Caribana Parade of the Bands

August 18 - Hillcrest 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament (to be confirmed)

September 8 - Melitaville Festival (Marian Engel Park)

October 18 - Artscape Fundraiser for Green Art Park Project, Palais Royale

YOUR WARD 21 ST. PAUL’S WEST TEAM(from left to right – JOE MIHEVC; Lucy Deluca, Constituency Assistant;

Sean Hill, Executive Assistant; Marion O’Sullivan, Constituency Assistant.

CITY HALL COMMUNITY OFFICE

100 Queen St. West 747 St. Clair Ave. West

Toronto ON., M6C 4A4 Toronto, ON., M5H 2N2

416-392-0208, 416-392-7460

fax: 416-392-7466 fax: (416) 392-7459

www.joemihevc.com

NEW WEBSITE – Improving Community Access

My newly-designed website, www.joemihevc.com, offers many opportunities for you to connect with me and your community. The new website provides an interactive window into our Ward and lets you voice your opinions and ideas directly to me. You will be able to email me at info@joemihevc.com, sign up for regular e-newsletters, checkout my events, post your own events, search for local businesses and artists and give me feedback on issues. The technology used in the creation of my new website will better serve your needs and facilitate a community dialogue on local issues.