St James town news

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www. printable canadian coupons .com cabbagetownnews.com Issue # 3 Feb/March New Neighbourhood Association Launched St. James Town News Newspaper in Transition: St Jamestown News is merging into cabbagetownnews.com INSIDE: CabbageTown New Neighbourhood Association Ana Bailao the new middle Chat with Adam Vaughan Craig Scott NDP Grant Gordon Liberal Toronto’s Transit Problem New Classified Section The Best Caribbean Cuisine $4.99 Lunch Special 1104 Bloor Street West 522 Bloor Street West jerkkingrestaurants.com 416-531-0300

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Transcript of St James town news

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cabbagetownnews.comIssue # 3 Feb/March

New Neighbourhood Association Launched

St. James Town News

Newspaper in Transition: St Jamestown Newsis merging into

cabbagetownnews.com

INSIDE: CabbageTown√ New Neighbourhood Association√ Ana Bailao the new middle√ Chat with Adam Vaughan √ Craig Scott NDP √ Grant Gordon Liberal √ Toronto’s Transit Problem√ New Classified Section

The Best Caribbean Cuisine

$4.99Lunch Special

1104 Bloor Street West522 Bloor Street Westjerkkingrestaurants.com

416-531-0300

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Local News - Editor: Daniel MurtonThis is posted on the respective sitesVisual Art - Writer: Nicole Witkowski. This isposted on toronto-artreview.comTheater - Writer: Cynthia Yan. This is postedon torontotheater-reviews.comMusic - Writer: Melissa PetersThis is posted on musicpage.caFood Reviews - Writers: Melissa Peters +Marty G This is posted on reviewed-rated.com

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toronto-advertising-agency.com416-693-850 Paul Murton (Owner)416-907-4618 Frank, Milan (Sales)

The other big news we want to share is therevamping of our websites so that we canshare content with you via Facebookintegration. So you can like us, comment onarticles and let us know on our wall what youwant us to cover in your neighbourhood.

Also Daniel Murton is our new editorHis site TorontoNewsNetwork.com will runstories from our group of papers. DanielMurton is a web designer at smallbizmedia.ca

This the last issue of “StJames News” it is nowgoing to be renamed Cabbagetownnews.com

More Papers

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Janet’s Danforth Mosaic BIA Missing In ActionDaniel Murton A Business Improvement Area is City Of

Toronto sanctioned committee that decideshow to spend hard earned local businessesmoney. The BIA’s job is to help local retailbusiness get more customers to shop in theirarea. Typically a street festival, like theBeaches Jazz Fest, would be one their mainobjectives. On the Danforth, Pat Silver startedThe Mosaic BIA in 2008. This BIA lies betweenJones Ave and Dewhurst Blvd along DanforthAve. Pat Silver has a very long record ofspending time doing both charity work andgood deeds to improve her neighborhood. PatSilver is not an employee of the city nor is sheelected. But we must assume she know therules. The first unofficial rule inside TorontoBIA’s is suck-up to your local city Councillorlike Janet Davis. The other rule; make sure thisBIA helps get Janet Davis elected. You see thisBIA and its budget are part of the Queendomthat Janet runs. So when Pat Silver awards aBIA contract to herself does Janet call theIntegrity Commissioner to investigate the clearviolation of ethics at the BIA? In fact theseasoned Pat Silver runs a booking agency thatbooked all of the BIA events. Hey! She’s notgetting paid to run the BIA for the city , so let’sat least throw her a bone. Along comes a localmerchant; Lia Kostouros, who is paying extrataxes to pay Pat Silver to pay herself throughher booking agency, and wanted to change thecurrent NDP flavour of the board. She wantsaccountability and a focus on getting the BIAmoving in the right direction. Bringing backcustomers and bringing back local businesseswho represent the board and the area. Theyhave a Annual General Meeting and Lia winsthe election by a land-slide. But did she followthe unofficial rules? No so Janet dismiss theelection result and put her NDP people back on

the board. Now the newly elected board can’tget anything pasted as they are out voted.There is a great video on torontobia.ca of Janetshowing her true colours. She is not helpinglocal retail. Now Lia Kostouros has never run aBIA, with no pay, so she lacks the experience.But most important she does not have Janet’sblessing. The results are a poor deal for thelocal stores. In efforts to get rid of this local do-gooder, Janet calls the City of Toronto IntegrityCommissioner and has the little right wingerpublicly tarred and feathered. Lia efforts tohelp out are a waste of tax payer money due toJanet power hungry appetite. So why help outyour neighborhood for free? When you canhave the right friends and get the rightcontracts, but remember you must follow thesimple rule on the Danforth which means makeJanet happy, because Janet runs this street! Ifyou try to defy her you’ll end up with adysfunctional board, an empty office and abroken website. Janet Davis where do localbusinesses apply for their refund? More ontorontobia.ca --- Paul Murton

NDP’s Janet Davis Toronto Ward 31

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Transit To Nowhere:Toronto’s TransitProblem

The great transit debate of 2012has its second casualty this week.First it was Mayor Ford’s transitplan and the second was the firingof Gary Webster the TTC GM.Between the Mayor, his allies andrival city councilors each side isplaying a giant game of Chess andwere the ponds. St Clair West andits great streetcar constructionproject are getting dragged backinto the limelight as an example ofa Mayor Miller fumble. It may be butthen the Sheppard Subway projectthat Ford wants to fund with newparking taxes isn’t going to comewithout complaint or at all with thecurrent status quo at council. So wehave a transit system heading tonowhere and a province finding away to pull the plug.

St Clair West Streetcars vs EglintonCrosstown LRT

The biggest debate so far is thecomparison between Streetcarsand LRT’s. I guess the best way to

look at LRT’s is an in between compromisebetween subways and streetcars. The biggestdifference between the two, is LRT’s have lessstops; therefore, their faster. While at the sametime they both take up a minimum of two lanesof traffic which kills parking spaces andbusiness. This is the main argument behindFord’s comparison and it’s a valid argument.Ultimately though the St Clair W streetcarproject is vastly different than Eglintonbecause there is a lot more parking spaces onEglinton and the costs are dramatically higheron Eglinton. Just think about the cost totunnel under the Don River and the DVP andyou’ll understand why it would cost 2 billionmore under Ford’s plan.

My other big gripe with the St Clair Weststreetcar comparison is the fact that Ford isagainst St Clair W Streetcars because it killsparking spaces and business yet the only wayhe can pay for his subways of the future is bytaxing parking or through tolls. Either one ofthese would do just as much harm aseliminated parking spots. The hypocrisy is veryclear to me but at the same time this doesn’tnegate the effects of the lack of parking on StClair W so I can only hope when they do fix thismess we can learn from the mistakes on StClair W and do a better job on Eglinton. Eitherway we’re in it for a long one and I hope peoplecan but their differences behind them and getshovels in the ground may it be subways,streetcars or LRT’s - Pic and Story by Dan Murton

LOCAL : St Clair West Streetcars vs Eglinton Crosstown LRT

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ART: PechaKucha Toronto is “like a box of chocolates”toronto-artreview.com

is printed in five

local papers. S

tory B

y: Nicole Witkowski

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Outside it’s dark, and the Garrison isbarely noticeable from the sidewalk.Inside the low building, it’s darker.Suddenly, a short woman with a jetblack bob dashes inside, disappearsand leaves even more confusionbehind. Was the event tonight? Itdidn’t seem like it.

But half an hour later, theDundas St W venue became asardine can - the typicalturnout for a PechaKuchaevent.

PechaKucha draws from theJapanese word for the sound ofa conversation - “chit chat”.

Jean Snow and architects Kleinand Dytham held the first eventin Tokyo for friends to share anddiscuss their design and artwork.Now, presenters submit 20 slides andhave 20 seconds to explain each slideand their stories end in 6 minutes 40seconds.

Since its original inception in 2003, itssprawled into a worldwidephenomenon, and gatherings havetaken place in over 450 cities trans-nationally.

To present, you need only “bringenergy to the room and a story to tell,”said Trevor Embury, creative directorof design for PechaKucha Toronto.

Good PechaKucha presentations arethe ones that uncover the unexpected:“unexpected talent, unexpectedideas... making each PechaKuchaNight like - box of chocolates,”according to an email by Vivien Leung,host and coordinator for Toronto’sbranch of the event.

All 14 presenters spoke withenthusiasm about their niches. Theyinclude:

Michael Santolupo, who stood in theWorld Trade Centre in 1983.

Lori Harrison, who believes sides ofold buildings look like abstractpaintings.

Miles Keller, a Nuit Blanche 2011presenter who’s said his exhibit wascalled “a slow and fuzzy acid trip”.

Robert Wigington and ChristopherDew who believe public spaces shouldbring a smile and create a memory.

Cassie McDaniel, who wrote a bookwith her estranged father andreceived donations from the website

Kickstarter.com.

Stanley Sun and Ashley Rumsey, whoshared what some people’s wallswould say if they could talk.

Katrina Tompkins, who buildsfurniture with more than one purposeand varying capacities in differentstates

Dominic Ayre who believes in fate andchance and their effects on design.

Jade Rude who once built arollercoaster based on the first oneever invented.

Sherri Lin who believes we areinspired to create and we only createso we can share.

Whitney Smith, who foraged wildfoods and sold them to chefs who

“transformed them into cuisineand culture”.

Ryan Wilding, Roman Badovinacand Jano Badovinac, whodesigned a lamp in the shape of arough dog bone for 40 Oaks,located in Regent Park.

Greg Bolton, who believes wordscreate designs and designs createwords in a never-ending circle.

The Brothers Dressler who turnedchurch pews and shoe casts intolighting and furniture.

PechaKucha kicked off Toronto DesignOffsite (TO DO), part of Design Week.The social gathering takes place in thecity several times a year. If you areinterested in being a presenter, visitpecha-kucha.org/night/toronto/.

pic by NicoleWitkowski

pic by Nicole Witkowski

LoriHarrison

Trevor Embury +Vivien Leung

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MUSIC: Harris Institute Achieves Milestonesmusicpage.ca

is printed in five

local papers.

Harris Institute, a leading Canadianmedia arts college, created the firstaccelerated one-year diplomaprograms in audio production and themusic industry and has now expandedthe approach to include degrees andmaster’s degrees in partnership withthe University of the West of Scotlandand Edinburgh Napier University.Seventy-two graduates have earneddegrees in an additional 8 months atUWS and Napier with tuitions waivedand graduates who complete both theAudio Production Program (APP) and

Arts Management Program (AMP) arebeing accepted directly into MAprograms.

“Everything is moving faster and mostconventional post secondaryprograms are too slow, unnecessarilylong, lacking intensity and far toocostly ”, says John Harris, thecollege’s president. "Our partnershipswith UWS and Napier are anunprecedented milestone in theevolution of post secondary education.Students are able to earn twoDiplomas and a Master’s Degree in atotal of 32 months”.

Harris Institute rated 0% for the thirdtime in the Ministry of Training,Colleges and Universities KeyPerformance Indicator (KPI) forStudent Loan Default Rates, making itthe only college, university or privatecareer college in Canada to achievethis milestone.

The Ministry posts Default Rates forOntario's 179 post secondary schoolsto help students evaluate education

choices and advises on their website,"Higher default rates are an indicationof greater financial risk".

COSCAP, one of the largest musicindustry associations in theCaribbean, is funding two annualscholarships for students to attendHarris Institute in Toronto and thegovernment of Barbados is partiallyfunding HIWI, Harris Institute WestIndies, the first satellite campus of aCanadian college in the Caribbean.

Harris Institute is the only school tohave been featured in both BillboardMagazine's "Schools That Rock" andMix Magazine's "Finest Media ArtsInstitutions", the world's leadingmusic industry and audio productionpublications. The college’s graduatesare achieving unprecedentedmilestones in all areas of the musicindustry.

For more information visitwww.harrisinstitute.com or [email protected] or call416.367.0178. See their ad on pg 24

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looking for a product, or service for yourself.I don't know about you, but for myself, if Idon't find what I am looking for afterscanning the 1st page of my search, chancesare I will type in another "key-phrase" or"key-word" to find what I am looking for. Intoday's world... who has time? We want itnow, and we want it fast... no muss... no fuss!Go get found! We can help! This site isoffering a "Spring Special" Free web hostingfor a year, (includes our WebsiteOptimization Service), starting at $350.00Give us a call (416) 693-9413 ~ or visit usonline:

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LOCAL : Church-Wellesley Neighbourhood Association Launched

History was made in the Church-WellesleyNeighbourhood with the creation of theChurch-Wellesley Neighbourhood Association(CWNA). The Association was officiallyestablished at its inaugural Annual GeneralMeeting at the 519 Centre in February 2012.The boundaries of CWNA are Charles Street inthe North, Yonge Street in the West, CarltonStreet in the South and Jarvis Street in theEast.

Momentum to create the Association had beenbuilding for over a year as residents began tomeet to talk about development applicationsfor condominiums in the neighbourhood.Residents began to realize that if they didn’twork together and reach out to theirneighbours, it would be difficult to advocatefor the priorities of the community. TheChurch-Wellesley Neigbourhood Associationis modelled after other successful downtownneighbourhood associations such as the St.Lawrence Neighbourhood Association.Residents elect delegates who then elect anExecutive. The delegates will meet quarterlyand the Executive will meet monthly, with

Committees carrying out work between themeetings. Everyone is welcome to attend all ofour meetings.

CWNA has a number of key priorities for 2012-2013. In my role as VP Internal, my key taskwill be to grow our membership base so thatwe can be representative of one of Toronto’smost diverse and complex neighbourhoods.We will be approaching all of the differenttypes of buildings and residentialconfigurations in our neighbourhood to jointhe Association. This includes tenants inprivate rental buildings, Toronto CommunityHousing buildings, condo owners, tenants insingle-family or townhouse units,homeowners, and co-op members. TheAssociation also has a website, www.cwna.ca,and I encourage everyone to stop by to learnmore about us!

There are a number of key issues theAssociation will be providing representationon for the neighbourhood. One of the mostdramatic and challenging is development,specifically the intense condominiumdevelopment pressures our neighbourhoodand areas surrounding are neighbourhood arefacing. The Association will attend meeting,notify the community of public meetingstaking place, and offer advice to planners onwhat we expect for our neighbourhood. Giventhe volume of applications, developmentissues will require an extensive amount ofattention from the Association. The good newsis that with each passing year, members of theAssociation and Executive will become moreexperienced with development issues andhave a better understanding of how tostrategically communicate our positions. Inaddition, our Association benefits from thewisdom and talents of many members of ourAssociation and our proximity to twouniversities with schools relating to urbanplanning and architecture.

One of the ways we will be working on thedevelopment issue is by meeting regularlywith our City Councillor for Ward 27, KristynWong-Tam. Kristyn was elected in October2010 and since then members of our workinggroup and now Association have met with herto discuss the vision for our neighbourhood.We may not always agree on everydevelopment application or issue, but it’sessential that we have a professional andconstructive relationship so that the

Association can properly represent the viewsof our residents and accurately provideinformation to community. An active andrepresentative neighbourhood associationalso assists our elected representatives withunderstanding what our neighbourhood wantsand makes the process of consultation moreeffective and efficient. Before the creation ofthe CWNA, development applications oftenreceived very little input from the Church-Wellesley neighbourhood.

The Church-Wellesley neighbourhood featuresa number of historical buildings and importantsightlines. Sadly, we’ve seen the aggressivedestruction of several important heritagebuildings in our neighbourhood. TheExecutive of CWNA has been working with theCouncillor’s office to propose ways thatheritage building can be better protected.Residents of CWNA also intend to get directlyinvolved by assisting with the process todocument and research heritage buildings.This information can then be passed on to Citystaff to assist them with designating andprotecting buildings.

Finally, the Church Wellesley NeighbourhoodAssociation will contribute to theneighbourhood in other unique ways. Justrecently members of the Association appliedfor a small grant to paint over several uglybrown-coloured Bell Canada boxes withcolourful and eye-catching murals. Membersof the Association have also volunteered atHalloween events in the neighbourhood, aswell as street festivals.2012-2013 will be an exciting year for theChurch-Wellesley neighbourhood and theAssociation looks forward to representing allresidents on critical issues and strengtheningour capacity to organize residents. I havebeen privileged to have been part of theprocess leading up to the creation of theAssociation and it is wonderful to work soclosely with a dynamic, diverse and dedicatedgroup of neighbours.

Chris Drew is the VP Internal for the ChurchWellesley Neighbourhood Association. He isan Associate with EN Consulting at the Centrefor Social Innovation. Chris graduated with adegree in Urban and Regional Planning fromRyerson University Chris is also Co-Captain ofthe Bike Union Ward 27 Advocacy [email protected]

Chris Drew

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You might haveheard that amidthe roar, echoingfrom the belly ofthe Grand ole’Dame, at 60Carlton Street inthe 1930’s. Calleda miracle ofengineering at thetime, Maple LeafGardens, aniconic piece ofCanadian HockeyHistory, wasconstructed in

just 5 short months. She opened her doors onNovember 12, 1931. For the first game at theshiny new Maple Leaf Gardens, the TorontoMaple Leafs hosted the Chicago Black Hawks,another of the “original 6” teams in the NHLfranchise at that time. The first goal scored onthat opening night in 1931 was scored by“Mush” March, a then right winger for the Leafs.As it would happen, he would also officiate at theceremonial closing game on February 13, 1999,the Leafs again facing off against theBlackhawks. For the opening faceoff that night,“Mush” dropped the same puck he had used toscore the very first goal scored in Maple LeafGardens, some 68 years earlier.Pretty cool…alas, The Leafs lost both the opening and closinggames in our beloved Maple Leaf Gardens.

For you history buffs, or if you’re just plain

curious, there were only 6 teams in the NHL atthat time. They were: The Toronto Maple Leafs,The Chicago Black Hawks, The Detroit RedWings, The Montreal Canadiens, The New YorkRangers and last but certainly not least TheBoston Bruins. Neat huh! It remained this wayuntil 1967 when another 6 teams were added,and the rest as they say is history. We arecurrently sitting at 30 teams in the NHL, 7 ofwhich are Canadian… Go Canada… Go!

Gone are the hockey sticks and aisle after aisleof seating for adoring fans, now replaced bycelery sticks and aisle after aisle of freshproduce and groceries from around the world.Yes indeed… twelve years in the making, andnow Loblaws has finally moved in and set upshop. Hats off and kudos to the Loblaws group ofcompanies! Their attention to detail in managingto retain the iconic charm of this Grand ole’ Lady,and all her rich Canadian history with this recenttransformation is unsurpassed. One of, if not themost beautiful grocery stores I have ever beenin, and now opened much to the delight of theChurch and Wellesley Street community, as wellas to the thousands of condominium dwellersdotting the Carlton Street, and Yonge/CollegeStreet neighbourhoods. Up until Loblaws GrandOpening on November 30, 2011, there really wasno such grocery shopping facility of this naturein the area, certainly not anything of thismagnitude, as well thought out, or as stunninglybeautiful…

Bon Appetites!

Welcome to the“Rainbow Report” a newinsert to our city-wide series ofnewsletters, a bridge, to and from the newsand reviews of the services, shops, dining,arts, cultural, and entertainmenthappenings in the dynamic and diverseChurch & Wellesley Street community. Anexchange of news & views with sistercommunities throughout the GTA. A new,full page, news & reviews feature to bepublished in each of our, (as of this date), 5neighbourhood and community-basednewsletters. Community based...exchanging community based ideas,concerns and issues. If you are a businessor service in the vibrant Church & WellesleyStreets community we would love tofeature you in an upcoming issue. Justcontact Michial at metromultimedia.ca andI will come by, take photos of yourbusiness, (if you wish), do a write-up andreview, and post you in an upcoming issue.And get this… no charge whatsoever! Weconsider this a community based serviceand to be offered free of charge. YesEunice; believe it or not there really are“free lunches!”

Michial McGuire is a freelance writer withthe “Bloor Street News” consortium ofnewpapers.

RAINBOW Report : HE SHOOTS! HE SCORES!

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S L A C K E RCANADIAN MUSICWEEK WelcomesOne of ROCK'Smost influentialguitarists JEFFBECK

CMW is pleased towelcome guitarlegend Jeff Beckin an exclusiveo n e - o n - o n ecelebrity interviewat SlackerCanadian MusicWeek on Friday,March 23 at theFairmont Royal

York Hotel. Delegates will have a chance tolook into the career of a Rock and Roll Hall ofFamer as Beck shares his memoirs andreflects on his longevity in the music business.On Thursday, March 22, the evening before hisappearance, Beck will be taking the stage fora show-stopping performance open to thegeneral public at The Phoenix ConcertTheatre.

A groundbreaking artist, Jeff Beck's inimitablecombination of primal shredding and coolperfectionism has left an indelible mark oneverything from hard rock and jazz fusion torockabilly and techno in a remarkable careerthat has spanned almost half a century. Histalents are infamous with such acts as TheYardbirds (with Eric Clapton), The Jeff BeckGroup (with Rod Stewart and Ron Wood), andBeck, Bogert and Appice (with Tim Bogert andCarmine Appice).

An eight-time Grammy Award winner, Beck's

live shows and virtuoso solos are legendary,while his playing style continues to reflect thediversity that is his trademark. His last studioalbum Emotion & Commotion, released in April2010, received two Grammys - one for BestRock Instrumental Performance for"Hammerhead" and one for Best PopInstrumental Performance for "Nessun Dorma"- marking only the second time an artist haswon in both of these categories in the sameyear. Beck's newest offering, Rock `N' RollParty Honoring Les Paul, has been nominatedfor a 2012 Grammy Award in the category ofBest Rock Album.

2011 saw Beck receive two honorary degreesfrom British universities - the first an HonoraryFellow from the University of the Arts ofLondon in recognition of his "outstandingcontribution to the field of Music" and thesecond a Doctor of Music from the Universityof Sussex.

To participate in this exceptional opportunity,visit www.cmw.net to register as a delegate orpurchase a limited ticket to this individualevent.

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RENOWNED ROCK IMPRESSARIO HARVEYGOLDSMITH TO SPEAK AT SLACKERCANADIAN MUSIC WEEK

Legendary UK promoter and visionary HarveyGoldsmith will participate as a keynotespeaker at Slacker Canadian Music Week2012. The live event mogul will speak onFriday, March 23 at the Fairmont Royal YorkHotel as part of the event's 30th anniversarycelebrations.

Harvey Goldsmith began his career in 1966,and since then has been awarded numeroustimes for his outstanding contributions to themusic and live event industry. His dossierreads like an encyclopedia of stars, workingwith some of the world's biggest names inmusic, including The Rolling Stones, Queen,The Eagles, Bob Dylan, U2, Jeff Beck,Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, The Bee Gees,Oasis, Diana Ross, Coldplay, Pink Floyd,Luciano Pavarotti and Elton John.

Harvey's passion for charitable contributionsturned 1985's Live Aid and 1978's The Concertfor Kampuchea into historic events raisingmillions to benefit victims of terror and famine.He was the mastermind and producer thatbrought us Led Zeppelin's reunion show in2007 at London's O2 Arena.

In 2008 Harvey took over the management oflegendary guitarist Jeff Beck.

In April 2010 Goldsmith was presented withthe International Music Person of The Yearaward to commemorate his outstandingcontributions to the Music Industry at theMUSEXPO by the City of West Hollywood.

About Slacker Canadian Music WeekCelebrating 30 years, Canadian Music Week isCanada's leading annual entertainment eventdedicated to the expression and growth of thecountry's music, Canadian Music Fest - CMWspans a five-day period from March 21 toMarch 25, 2012 at the Fairmont Royal YorkHotel and over 60 various downtown Torontovenues, attracting participants from acrossthe globe. For more information, visitwww.cmw.net.

MUSIC : SLACKER CANADIAN MUSIC WEEK: JEFF BECK

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Theatre: The Trojan Womentorontotheater-reviews.com

is printed in five

local papers. S

tory B

y: Cynthia Yan

This winter’s night, Alumnae TheatreCompany is ready to take you on a journey toancient Greece through the company ‘sremarkable “Countdown to 100” play - TheTrojan Women. Adapted from Euripides’classical Greek tragedy and translated byCanadian poet Gwendolyn MacEwen, theplay was directed by Alexandra Seay, andperformed by returning alumnae performerMolly Thom, professional actor Nicole St.Martin, Tara Zacharias, Suzette McCanny, etal. The synergy of top talents, profoundcontent, quality stage effects, authenticcostumes, and well-applied theatricaltechniques rendered The Trojan Women tobe the must-see play of the season.

First staged in Toronto in 1978, and lastperformed at the Alumnae Theatre for the1992-1993 season. The Trojan Womenrevisited the stage after 20 years and stillcaptured the audiences like never before.Despite the lapse of time, timeless plays likethis indeed leave lasting impressions on itsviewers. With the ruined city of Troy beingthe setting, the play vividly portrays the fate,

social position, and complex emotion of theTrojan women. To fully comprehend the play,it would be helpful to take a glimpse into thehistorical event - the battle of Troy. Morespecifically, it was eleven years of Greekcivil war between Athenian and Spartanempire that revolved around Helen, thebeautiful wife of a Spartan soldier but laterwedded to the king of Troy. Despite elevenyears of efforts, however, the Spartans werestill unable to penetrate the gate of Troy andwin back Helen. Eventually, a scheme wasdevised. Hiding soldiers inside severalwooden horses, the Spartans pretended tosurrender, and offered the king of Troy thewooden horses as gifts. Once inside thegates, the Spartan solders stepped out ofthe wooden horse at night and conqueredTroy, which marked one of the dark momentsof civilization.

Based on the historical background, the playtook a refreshing approach to portray the lifeand mentality of Trojan women in theaftermath of the battle, which is conveyedsuccessfully through poetic lines, choruschanting, dynamic change in voices, lightand sound effects, symbolic usage of props,etc. Specifically, Hecuba the Queen of Troy,her innocent daughter Cassandra, and thesix mourning ladies were featured, as theylamented over the once splendorous citylost to the relentless Spartan army. Undermuch distress and despair, these Trojanwomen were confused over self-identity,weakened and even abandoned their beliefstowards the Greek gods, and devastated bythe loss of their loved ones. Yet theyendeavoured to hold on to the dim hope, andstruggled to disguise their fear in the face ofthe enemy. Like helpless preys trapped by

the predator, so were these powerlessTrojan women imprisoned under thepatriarchal society, waiting to be claimed byGreek kings and masters. The play thentakes a step further to explore thecharacteristic of Helen, the source of thebrutal war, and exposed her vain, deceitful,materialistic nature despite her breath-taking appearance.

These Trojan women brought to life thecentury-old history that modern audiencescan in fact still relate to, considering thatsorrows, fear, helplessness, as well ascynicism developed through the crucible oftime, are all too familiar. The issue of genderinequality does not disappeared in modernsociety, though it may be relatively moredisguised and subtle in certain area of theworld. Whether it be Queen Hecuba’sendeavour to be strong in spite of hercollapsed citadel, or Helen’s vanityalongside her beauty, are the shadow ofthese traits not existent in modern society?Is the symbolic of a ruined citadel notechoing still representing the loss of thatwhich was precious in life? The worldseemed to be ever-changing, in which loss isprevalent but inevitable; yet the worldseemed to have changed little. Look around,one can easily find another Helen lost invanity, another Cassandra forsakingpersonal value in face of danger, or anotherHecuba mourning over another collapsedcitadel. This winter’s night, from January 20to February 4, 2012, Alumnae TheatreCompany presents The Trojan Women, anoutstanding play where history andmodernity will converge ever so close foryou to experience.

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QUEEN NEWS: Adam Vaughan On Transit and TCHCDaniel Murton (our editor) spoke with CouncillorAdam Vaughan from Ward 20 a couple days agoand he spoke about his ward along Queen St andthe big issues affecting city hall these days. Onthe table were TCHC, TTC and Co-Operation atthe city.

On Housing:

We discussed the possible sell off of 675TCHC homes throughout Toronto. TCHC saysthis will create $220 million that will gotowards the capital repair shortfall that theTCHC pegged at $675 million. Asked aboutthis plan Councillor Vaughan said he thinksìit’s a band aid solution that will throw goodmoney down the drain.î He further states hedidn’t want to see council create a fire sale ofTCHC assets but rather find solutions throughconsensus at city hall. Councillor Vaughanisn’t new to the housing file and he and othershave already suggested possible solutions.One such solution is use Section 37 moneywhich is given to the city when developersbuild and use some of that money to fund newaffordable housing throughout the city.

I think this is why Councillor Vaughan doesn’tlike the TCHC selloff and neither do I. One ofmy biggest concerns with the TCHC selloffwas the movement of TCHC residents thatreside all over the city into high-risesbuildings owned by the TCHC. I feel it wouldlead to the increased ghettoization of parts ofthe city. I asked Councillor Vaughan about my

concerns and he said ìselling off TCHC houseswill get rid of economic diversity and give citymoney to landlords through rental subsidies.Torontonians want economic diversity and adiverse city. Nobody in my ward is asking fortheir neighbours to be moved. Nobody wantsthis but the TCHC.î Councillor Vaughan addedfurther to this message when he asked amental health and housing expert at the Feb17th Exec Committee meeting on the TCHCsell off. He asked if the effects of selling offhousing would affect people with mentalhealth concerns by asking ìhave you looked atwhether housing in neighbourhood settingsand stand-alone housing settings is preferableto high rise situations especially when dealingwith people who have isolation and mentalhealth issues may be exasperated by beingisolated in taller buildings away from generalcommunity.î His question was more of astatement than a question but clearly the selloff to Councillor Vaughan would have a biggerimpact on the city than the TCHC would wantus to believe.

On Transit:

Councillor Vaughan was abig supporter of the newtransit compromisewhich will move theEglinton LRT tracks ontothe street starting fromLaird Ave. Many of Ford’sallies are comparing thiscompromise to the StClair West Streetcarproject because it wasdelayed and plagued withcost overruns it alsoupset a lot businessalong St Clair West. Hesays it’s foolish tocompare the twobecause ìwe have to digunder the Don ValleyPark Way and dig underand the Don River.î Bothof these would add onhundreds of millions ofdollars that can beredirected to othertransit plans. I askedCouncillor Vaughan aboutthe supposed confusionwith different transitplans and the lack ofconsensus at city hall.Vaughan said there is no

longer any confusion because ìWe have thevotes under this current transit plan and wewill have the votes at future council votes. CityCouncil runs this City!

Finding Middle Ground at City Hall:

The media depending on what political sidetheir leaning on is using words like mighty andmushy when talking about the new citycouncil. I asked Councillor Vaughan about thisperception and the perception that council hastaken too much time to get together and findsolutions. He states “the coming together ofcouncil took quite a short time. The media isjust plain wrong. We have 15 new citycouncilors and we have found substantialcommon ground to work with on and I thinkFord realizes this and he will work with us onCouncil. “

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Food Review: Much Me on St. Clair Ave Westreviewed-rated.com

is printed in five

local papers. S

tory B

y Melissa

Peters

“Much Me” is a comfortable and cozyrestaurant with friendly andprofessional staff, serving soups,salads, appetizers, entrees anddesserts at affordable prices.Considering owner/head chef,Kajandran’s, culinary skills, thispromises to be a welcome and excitingaddition to Hillcrest Village..

Between the trio of grown-ups at thetable, we could fully experience thePrix-Fix menu of the day ($24 for soup,appetizer and entree- 3 dishes tochoose from for each second and thirdcourse). A glance at the draught menu(only $4 for a pint!) indicated apreference for smaller, local suppliers,featuring Ontario craft and micro-brews.The same rings true for thefood- with meat, fish and producepurchased from the surrounding areaand pride in serving locally sourcedmeals.

We enjoyed complimentary bruschettawhile we perused the menu- a nicealternative to plain bread, and thendove into the soup of the day- a uniquecombination of roasted potato andcauliflower, blending together nicelyfor a pleasant dish. Taste-wise, I wastorn between the Bocconcini wrappedwith roasted red pepper appetizer andthe mixed mushroom bruschetta withparmesan cheese. I did enjoy theSauteed broccoli and beans toastedwith garlic-white wine sauce as well-the differing textures and tastescombined well. Brocolli and redpeppers are perfect for presentation-they seem to deepen in pigment whenwarmed, adding such rich colour andcontrast, especially alongside spudsor white cheese. Whether, part of anappetizer or sitting alongsidefish/meat and potatoes, they evokedcheer and freshness to the table andthe food.

The entrees all looked, and tasted,wonderful. The TWO fillet mignons,topped with the perfect peppercornsauce- were tender and juicy. Thegarlic mash was nice and smooth withjust the right amount of garlic. Pan-seared grouper was expertly seasonedand topped with a lovelypomegranate-brandy sauce. The

seafood pasta was a unanimousfavorite- al dente fettuccini noodleswere simmered in a dill cream sauce-elegant and rich; the dill adding a hintof flavour without compromising thesurrounding tastes.

Most kids, and even some adults,reluctantly fight their way through abalanced supper for one simplereason- dessert. I am not one of thosepeople. This, however, was one ofthose occasions in which the dessertwas the highlight of the diningexperience. I would have a hard timeever passing Much Me withoutstopping for a slice (or two) of theirunbelievable Caramel Apple Pie. TheCrunchy Chocolate Mousse andCherry Amaretto Tiramisu were lovelyas well, and what’s even better is thatnot one of these tasty treats cost morethan five bucks, even with a scoop ofcreamy vanilla ice cream.

The new kids on the block havearrived with much to offer; full flavour,fair prices and friendly staff, andHillcrest Village has much to lookforward to in the sparkling little gemthat is “Much Me”.

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NEWS : Toronto-Danforth By ElectionOn March 19th,voters in Toronto-Danforth willhead to the pollsto select the MPwho will succeedJack Layton.Human rightslawyer andOsgoode Hall lawprofessor CraigScott, is the NDPcandidate andcurrent front-

runner in the race. In many regards, Scott isstill riding the momentum gained from hishistoric nomination meeting last month. Askany political operative and if their beingtruthful with you, they'll admit that getting afew dozen supporters out on a cold Monday inJanuary is often a tough sell. More than 800members attended Craig's nominationmeeting.

When I asked why he had chosen to stand forpublic office, the distinguished academic andhuman rights activist spoke of a "deep senseof urgency, that I hear echoed by people onthe doorstep, a strong disagreement with thedirection Prime Minister Harper and the Toriesare taking the country. People want a strong,experienced voice to hold the Tories toaccount."

In addition to his almost intimidatinglyimpressive C.V. (he's also a Rhodes Scholarand London School of Economics graduate),Scott is attuned to the community at large.He's a twenty year Riverdale resident, andactive on several boards. An art enthusiast, heran the Craig Scott Gallery.

When our conversation turns to balancingeconomic and environmental priorities, Scottis at his best. He proposes that economicexpansion does not necessarily have to beaccompanied by environmental degradation.He endorses a "blue green economy": Apeople oriented, job-producing economy,which is combination of a green shift andmore targeted investment in emergingemployment sectors. He admits that "youngpeople not seeing a stable economic future isone of the biggest challenges we have to faceover the next few decades."

To that end, Scott supports additional federalinvestment in post-secondary infrastructureand student debt relief, but addressingpolitical alienation among young people is justas pressing in his mind. In some cases though,as Scott relays in a intriguing story from thecampaign trail, many young Canadianseschew the stereo typical label as apatheticor disenfranchised, and are in fact quitepolitically engaged. He says, only half joking,that sometimes it's the kids who are readingthe flyers and newsletters and then briefingtheir parents. (by Justin Chatwin)

--------------------------------------------------

I attended the Liberal nomination meeting forToronto Danforth last night. Though the by-election is just a short time away the Liberalsare finally getting out of the gate. The meetingwas attended by all sorts of Liberal luminariesand was opened by Ralph Goodale who saidthe riding would return to its Liberal roots.The two candidates were given time to speakand then the vote was on. Grant Gordon wasfirst up and spoke of how he didn't need to bea woman to stand up for their rights. I thinkthat was a barb at the Liberals for Life whoseemed to have a presence at the meeting. Healso mentioned that he was living in the areawith his wife and three kids for the pasttwenty years "coaching half the kids in theriding".

Next up was Trifon Haitas who stressed thefact he had been brought up in the riding andhad family and business there. He actuallylives in Richmond Hill. He also felt he would bethe one to restore the riding to its old Liberalglory. I think his definition of old Liberal glorywas defined with pro-life in its definition.

The voting began and would go on till 9:30and it was very strictly done with some peoplefeeling they had been cut out of the process.Clearly the party apparatus was trying to limitthe influence of the Liberals for Life on thisnomination. This group was over shadowed bythe Liberal star power like Carolyn Bennet,Sarah Thompson, Dennis Mills and at the veryend making a grand entrance the leader of theparty Bob Rae.Rae and his wife Arlene. Theymade a great photo op but in the words of aGreen Party pundit Chris Tindal he didn't thinkeven with all this weight that they would take

back the seat. He said the NDP has too muchorganization and volunteers something he feltthey wouldn't be able to muster. I gave thatsome thought and here is what impresses methe most. A lot of the Liberal youth were outand very enthusiastic. People like Chris Drewa community and cycling activist who did a lotof community work in St Jamestown. ChrisDrew told me you have to build and serve forquite a while before you can run and maybethat's a good way at looking at the Liberalparty at the moment. They need to serve theirconstituents and serve their community andworry less about winning. The party did notget into trouble overnight and it won't getback on its feet overnight. They must buildtheir base and move forward.

The work will start with the election andbeyond and it will be the young peoplerestoring it if not to glory at least to somesense that they are not their father's party.There is three years to go before the generalelection and you build because it's the rightthing to do not because of the winning. MaybeGrant Gordon the new Liberal candidateportrays this new mantra when he says "theNDP candidate works in an Ivory Tower: I slugit out in the trenches every day, creatingcampaigns for social change- for lower carbonemissions, less discrimination, healthier foodsfor kids and better education." (by ConnieHarrison)

Craig Scott

Grant Gordon

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Bloor Ward 18 News: Ana Bailao 1. When I first saw the list of TCHCproperties for sale, I immediately recognized acouple of addresses of different communityorganizations. Two organizations doing greatwork in my area are Sistershare and St.Vincent de Paul's, and are organizationsrunning out of TCHC buildings that were onthe list. These organizations are providing avaluable community service, and their clientsare familiar with that location. I felt stronglythat to move these people put the programs atrisk and I requested that any buildingproviding community service programming betaken off the list.

Fortunately, we were successful, and TCHCremoved all the properties from the sale listthat had community organizations workingwithin them. The most important thing to keepin mind, though, is that the houses in Ward 18are just like the houses across the City, andthe only way to get the best result forTorontonians is to develop a comprehensiveplan for how to maintain affordable housinglevels in good repair. This is why I moved tohave the sale of these properties delayed untila Special Working group could consideropportunities for non-profit, private andpublic sectors to come together and addressand improve Toronto's housing situation.

2. I think the conversation about what's thebest strategy for Toronto Housing falls apartwhen you put portable subsidies against City-managed housing - you need a mix. These arecomplex issues and no one approach helpseveryone. Just as the tenants of TCHChousing are diverse, so must the solutions beto assist them. The approaches that are mosteffective consider the many contributingcauses that would result in the need forhousing assistance, and take these intoaccount. Toronto must not expand housing inonly one way, but provide a morecomprehensive multi-approach plan toassisting our residents.

3. What is apparent in the location of TCHCunits proposed for sale is that we are dealingwith a diverse area. What the map doesn'trepresent, however, is we are dealing with avery specific type of housing with the TCHCproposed sale. These properties emphasizemixed-income, and family units, which are inthe highest demand. Significantly reducingthis stock puts a significant stress onToronto's current affordable housing units,

and an even greater stress on the familiesthat need them.

4. Without question, we are dealing with amighty middle, but it's not about a new groupat Council. These Councillors are veryengaged, follow the issues closely and takeseriously the thoughts and concerns of theirconstituents. They have similar ideas, butmost importantly are ready and willing to workwith anyone interested in building a betterCity. This is and has always been aboutcollaboration rather than competition, andkeeping residents and information central tothese conversations is critical. As for oureffectiveness on the recent Budget, Transitand Housing votes, I leave that toTorontonians to decide.

5. After every election there is always a"cooling-off" period where you learn whatpeople care about and on what they areknowledgeable. It can take some time forthese to get out there, but now the skills ofdifferent Councillors are coming together. Thebig change has been the increase in dialogue.People are more comfortable approachingeach other, and that has smudged the linesbetween different camps for the better. Themiddle Councillors have always been seekinga balance, it was important to get Toronto intoa better financial situation and to do sowithout hurting the social services that makeToronto special. I think we are very close tothat now which has free us up to get into theprojects we care most about. The advantageof making your own decisions and consideringthe facts, is that you always know where youstand.

6. It's the bigger issues - like Transit and theCity's Budget that get the attention, and forgood reason - but there are a lot of veryexiting projects happening locally as well. Iplan on keeping up the street festivals andcommunity events that make Ward 18 such agreat place to live, and continue working onnew ways of getting residents engaged in ourneighbourhoods. We are managing a lot ofexciting new development for the area,planning a new park on Queen Street,and focussing on a project that would expandthe Perth/Dupont library. Something that iscoming up soon is our first Ward 18 ParksSummit, where we will be able to bring peopletogether to improve the activities and greenspaces in our area.

Good day Members of the Executive Committeeand other City Councillors,

My name is Rosemary Da Silva, and I am a tenantliving in a single dwelling home and living underthreat of my home being sold. I wonder when thequick sand under my feet will turn to a strongfoundation. In the morning, we are faced with theusual rigors of life, but in all of this inevitably weare having to tackle the uncertainties that life nowpresents. In short, to the Executive Committeeand Council Members, it is awful. A stable homeis so primal to a stable life that, if there is a threatto that stability, everything else is affected.

50 years ago, I stood on the streets in myhometown in South Africa in my school uniformand protested against the forced removal ofthousands of people from their homes, to makeway for the apartheid government to sell of theland to the highest bidder. I never thought that 50years later I would be protesting something verysimilar. A proposal to evict tenants from theirhomes and sell of the homes to the highestbidder. One by way of a national Act ofGovernment and here by a Report adopted in anhour and a half by Toronto Community HousingCorporation, with the exception of two TenantRepresentatives.

We, as tenants, in the strongest possible terms,urge you to reconsider very carefully theimplications of these recommendations adoptedby TCHC. We, as tenants, urge you to sit downwith tenants, community representatives, theAffordable Housing Committee and others to lookthe alternatives to selling. We, as tenants, urgeyou to request all three levels of government inthis country to further the work done on theFederal Bill calling for a National Housing Strategy.

Members of the Executive Committee, your arehuman beings, just like us, some of you areparents just like us, some of you are lucky enoughare grandparents just like us. And…. You all livingin homes of your choice. We would like to do thesame.

We, as tenants, will continue to campaign. We astenants, will continue to push back. We, astenants, will not give up. We will work with all thosewho are prepared to stand by our side and work fora better solution.Thank youRosie Da SilvaA TCHC Tenant

A TCHC Tenant LetterOf Concern

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