Leaside Daily Updates
The latest news, views and things to do in Leaside neighbourhoods
The latest news, views and things to do in Leaside neighbourhoods
Former police chief joins mayor’s race
Former Toronto police chief Mark Saunders, who ran for MPP in this riding last year, confirmed to media yesterday evening he is seeking election as the city’s next mayor.
Saunders contested the 2022 provincial election as Progressive Conservative candidate for Don Valley West, but was defeated by the Liberals’ Stephanie Bowman.
See CP24’s video report on the breaking news.
Tattoo removal brought to midtown
Regret that “True Love Forever” tattoo you got for your ex? Or the facial tat that makes it look like you’re always crying? Or that scary design on your arm you’ve been hiding under long sleeves even in summer?
Now there’s a place in midtown where you can get rid of or fade your unwanted tattoos.
The Removery tattoo removal studio recently opened at Yonge and Eglinton. Read all about it on Streeter.
Winner of Agnes Macphail Award named
The 2023 Agnes Macphail Award is to be presented to East York resident Dr. Shakhlo Sharipova for her many contributions to the East York community.
The public is welcome to attend the award presentation on March 19 at 2 p.m. at the East York Civic Centre, 850 Coxwell Ave.
For more about this year’s award recipient and the awards ceremony, see the Streeter Things To Do listing.
Outdoor skating continues to Sunday — if the ice holds up
The city is encouraging skaters to enjoy the last few days of the official outdoor skating season at our local rinks. However, the weather seems poised to end the season earlier than the scheduled March 19 deadline.
Sunday evening is when the city starts to close its outdoor artificial ice rinks, natural ice rinks and skating trails and begin its annual conversion of spaces into skateboarding parks, tennis courts and pickleball spaces.
Meanwhile the forecast for the next four days calls for rainy and overcast days with temperatures mainly above zero.
Public consultation on Eglinton tower planned
A 32-storey condominium building is proposed to replace the eight-storey medical building at 586 Eglinton Ave. E., west of Bayview Avenue. The development is to be discussed at an online community consultation on the evening of March 21.
For more information and to register for the meeting, see the Streeter Things To Do listing.
Leaside basketball phenom hailed as top U.S. college player
Zach Edey, who grew up in Leaside and attended Leaside High School before moving to the U.S., is continuing to tear up the American college basketball scene, reports HITC today.
The 7-foot-4 Edey has been playing for Purdue in the Big Ten conference since 2020.
At end of this past season, his junior year, Edey was named the Big Ten Player of the Year.
The HITC article calls him the “the best college basketball player in the country” and delves into his Chinese-Canadian background.
Pruning to be discussed at Zoom meeting
“Proud of my pruning” is the topic to be presented by Master Gardener Sean James at the next meeting of the Leaside Garden Society.
It takes place via Zoom on March 9, starting at 7 p.m.
See the Streeter Things To Do listing for more details.
Metrolinx to move planned layover facility from Don Valley
Metrolinx appears to have given in to demands that a planned layover facility not be built in the Don Valley alongside the parkway north of the Prince Edward Viaduct.
Yesterday the provincial agency overseeing public transport announced it has found a new location in a light industrial area near York Mills Road and Leslie Street.
The proposed 11-acre site in the valley has been the subject of protests and petitions from environmental activists and community members who said building the facility there could damage the valley’s sensitive ecology.
Success! Metrolinx has moved the proposed Don Valley Layover facility out of the Valley. Thank you to all the advocates who’ve spoken up to protect this important natural area. https://t.co/i6sgwF41bc pic.twitter.com/5vNSnHUWh1
— Paula Fletcher (@PaulaFletcherTO) March 1, 2023
Summerlicious applications open
Winterlicious seems barely over and it’s already time for local restaurants to sign up for the summer edition of the fixed-price dining festival.
Applications to participate in the Summerlicious program will be accepted from today to March 22, the city announced.
This year’s Summerlicious runs from July 7 to 23 and there’s good news for participating restaurants: the fees have been cut to less than half the pre-pandemic rates. The new fee is $550. The city says this reduction should “make it easy and affordable for restaurants to participate and will encourage more Toronto residents to dine out and celebrate Toronto’s diverse culinary scene.”
Restaurants can find more information on the City’s Summerlicious 2023 Restaurant Participation webpage.
Pictures posted of downed cement truck
Local resident Rudy Limeback posted photos on Twitter today of that cement truck that fell over on Bayview Avenue today.
update, 3:30pm
slings have been fitted around the cement truck’s mixing drum
must’ve been full pic.twitter.com/muGZ08d862
— Rudy Limeback (@rudydotca) February 27, 2023
High-end nail salon opens on Millwood
Providénce Nail Atelier has opened a new studio at 1515A Bayview Ave, second floor, with the entrance on Millwood Road. But don’t go wandering in to get a quick manicure. Appointments are by reservation only.
And judging by prices on its website, this is a high-end nail salon. Services, most of which take two hours or longer, cost from $90 to $265.
View this post on Instagram
Professional incompetence allowing home-sale scammers, Rocca says
Home-sale scams are happening in Toronto due to agents, lawyers and banks not doing their jobs properly, Leaside realtor Patrick Rocca says in an interview for a Toronto Observer story today.
In the article Rocca goes on to discuss how home buyers and sellers can protect themselves from these scams,
Real estate board figures show drastic local drop
Home prices are down by 17.4 per cent from last year in this area, one of the biggest drops in Toronto, according to figures recently released by the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board.
The report indicates the year-over-year decrease for the real estate “E11” area, including Leaside, Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon Park.
As of January, the average home here is now about $1.2 million, TRREB reports. Single, detached houses have taken the biggest hit, dropping 21.4 per cent to about $2.4 million.
Parking restrictions eased for Family Day
Police have announced they will not be ticketing vehicles parked on the street on Feb. 20 on rush-hour routes and in areas with posted Monday–Friday regulations.
Family Day fun planned at Todmorden Mills
Todmorden Mills is one of seven Toronto History Museums planning Family Day activities. It’s free to drop in for crafts and games in the Papermill Gallery on Feb. 20 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Todmorden Mills Heritage Site is at 67 Pottery Rd.
For information about the Family Day programming at history museums across Toronto, see the Streeter Things To Do listing.
Report our potholes to be fixed
You may see repair crews out on the roads today as the city launches its first pothole-fixing blitz of the year.
Chances are, though, plenty of Leaside-area potholes will remain unless they are reported. To get those car-wrecking eyesores filled, report them via the 311 Toronto mobile app, online at Toronto.ca/311 or by calling 311.
The city says most repairs are carried out within four days of potholes being reported.
Don Valley West soon to have three cameras to catch speeders
The city is adding 25 automated speed enforcement cameras, one for each ward in Toronto. The most recent ASE site in Don Valley West is on Harrison Road near Vernham Avenue.
The new camera will join two existing speed ameras in the ward.
See the full Streeter story on the new cameras.
Town hall budget meeting for east-end residents
Have your say at the town hall meeting on the city’s 2023 budget, co-hosted by Toronto-Danforth and Beaches East York councillors. The meeting’s on Feb. 3. See more about it in Streeter’s Things To Do listing.
Start making reservations for Winterlicious
Winterlicious is back, set to offer prix fixe lunches and dinners from Jan. 27 to Feb. 9 — including several restaurants in Leaside and the surrounding area.
You find the entire Toronto list on the city’s Winterlicious page.
CampTO registration set to open
It’s time to start planning the kids’ summer camp activities at local parks and centres this summer. The city has announced its CampTO programs are online for your consideration, ready for registration beginning Feb. 11.
Some new programs have been added to the CampTO lineup for the programs that run from July 4 to Sept. 1.
For more information on the program and registration, see the Streeter calendar listing.
Letter to Ford opposes ‘strong mayor’ bill
Don Valley West councillor Paul Fletcher is among 15 city councillors sending a letter today to Premier Doug Ford opposing the province’s Bill 39, the so-called Better Municipal Governance Act.
The act would, under certain conditions, let the mayor of Toronto propose and pass bylaws with support of only one-third of city council, a move that critics have called undemocratic.
See full text of letter at Progress Toronto.
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