The South Etobicoke News

Serving Humber * Mimico * Lakeshore Village * Long Branch * Alderwood

Tom Godfrey is In The Community where most events and attractions are cancelled

by

The CNE is again cancelled with rides, fast food, games all gone. Courtesy photo.

CANCELLED again are all the Caribbean Carnival festivities and costumed dancers.

 

And just like that. With the stroke of a pen. All concerts, major events like summer blockbuster concerts and stage shows which makes Toronto famous are gone.

The high-profile events, like Toronto International Film Festival, Molson Indy, Toronto Caribbean Carnival and others that attract visitors from around the world have been cancelled for a second year as we fight COVID-19.

Our local South Etobicoke stages will remain silent again as we ride out the variants and support our local businesses.

There are also the many garden and floral displays, boat, home shows and attractions slated for the Mimico Square stage which may be scaled back, held virtually, or just disappear.

Many more residents have taken to walking or cycling in the parks with their family and loved ones as a means of getting out and enjoying fresh air.

At the same time, police anti COVID-19 teams have arrested more than 1,000 people in banned public gatherings. They were busy for the fireworks displays and traffic chaos on Victoria Day long weekend at Humber Bay Shores. Videos shows piles of garbage left in the parks and beaches.

Many parents are shell-shocked wondering what to do and how to entertain the kids with events cancelled. I am most disappointed over the loss of my favourite, the Caribbean Carnival, which takes place in late August and usually attracts a million revellers yearly.

I miss the colourful costumes, dancers, calypso singers and steel pan players. I can already taste the flavourful street food, as roti or jerk chicken dishes.  It was also a time to catch up with old friends who I hadn’t seen for years.

The festival, which has been ongoing for more than 50-years, attracted many people from the Caribbean as well as thousands more from the U.S., who travelled here yearly to enjoy themselves.

Every hotel room in the city is filled at Caribana time, with officials estimating at least $400 million spent by visitors in the local economy.

All the nightclubs, restaurants and dance halls were jammed with after-hours partiers, sucking up the Caribana experience.

Many are also concerned that after two years of cancellations, some of the events may not return. There is already petitions online with thousands of signatures to save the CNE after 142-years. There are fears the iconic festival may not return due to a lack of funding and loss of sponsors.

In our second year of COVID-19 lockdowns and with businesses and other services to reopen this month, many people cannot wait to be able to visit and gather with their loved ones.

Local bicycle shops, like Oxygen Bike Co., admit there is even a shortage of bicycles due to supply and demand as more people take up the sport. All that are available are the expensive bikes.

“Most of our bikes are sold out,” says Oxygen owner Shawn Fitzpatrick. “It’s all about supply and demand.”

Not to rub it in, but also cancelled due to the virus are the popular: Afrofest, Salsa in Toronto, 49th Annual Festival of India, Bloor West StreetFest, Beaches Jazz Festival, Taste of Danforth, Toronto Chinatown Festival, Labour Day Parade and the many other smaller community festivals in the area.

This summer will not be different than last in that we are told to remain indoors, socially distance and wear our masks. Grin and bear it, we are reminded. There are better days a’coming. I sure hope so.

 

Tom Godfrey is Publisher of The South Etobicoke News, who lives in the community. He was a reporter for the Toronto Sun for many years before deciding to use his skills in community journalism. 

From the Bench – Retired Judge Lloyd Budzinski and ‘defunding the police’

by

It’s time to define what defunding the police means. It’s a question of ‘framing.’ If it means reducing the size of the Service – no!  If it means, RE-TASKING or restructuring the Service, we answer yes.

Removing funds achieves nothing; funding new responsibilities and redirecting accountability does. Are police necessary to regulate traffic or act as first responders to non-violent health care calls? Yet, we need skilled officers with better techniques to resolve violent conflict, investigate organized crime and encourage public accountability to our diverse population. It also requires all of us, as an involved community, to work together with the police to identify criminal conduct.

Police are insular, slow to modernize, or accept outside advice. I personally tried developing courses with them and was often met with a polite but reluctant thanks. Policing originated in the 1800s in Europe, The U.S. and Canada, as an arm of the Courts before evolving into its own entity. In Canada, policing is under the Solicitor General and is responsible for laying criminal charges but the decision to prosecute belongs to the Attorney General. It’s a check and balance.

Historically, most laws were written to protect property. In the Southern U.S., it was started to oversee the slave industry. If you have no property you have few rights to enforce; therefore, policing has an historical social-economic focus. An economic Theory goes, “the more people who own property, the less crimes of self-help.”

Today, the ‘street-cop’, still a quasi-military structure has more than the original purpose of property protection on their plate. We have added: social, psychological, health (drugs, pandemics), human rights, intellectual property, hate and such — a multitask. The generalist tries to be everything for everyone. Like many large institutions the Services resist change. In the past, hiring required physically large men to reflect power.

Once a very hefty, retired Long Branch officer, confided, “If I met a belligerent drunk at the old Long Branch Hotel — a regular Friday event, he could choose to have it ‘out’ around back or he could come along peacefully, sleep it off at the jail and go home – his choice, either way, no charges.” It was a Police Force, not a Service.

The term ‘Service’ has replaced ‘Force’ trying to market a new image for its multi-tasks. The street-cop’s role has become too challenging trying to satisfy diverse cultures and modern psychology. It’s too complicated for a generalist. Force is no longer the universal answer. What we need is certified uniform training and licenses to work in a variety of specialities

RE-TASKING, requires more than just a corporate declaration of new roles. It needs the officer’s personal

accountability for the job requirements. Policing is more than a job. It is a profession. Justice Tulloch, in his ‘Independent Police Oversight Review’ recognizes this need. He suggests, a professional body for policing, like England and Wales.”

Policing is a calling in the same way many doctors are called to medicine and teachers are called to teaching. Policing should be seen as a distinguished profession …. the requirements needed to enter and continue in the profession of policing in Ontario remain largely static, ill-defined, and inconsistent.

A police officer may be promoted for various reasons. Unlike some other professions, there is no standard educational requirement …. the hallmarks of a profession are a well-developed code of ethics. It provides members of the public with a clear idea of the values and responsibilities; they also serve as a mechanism for ensuring professional accountability.

Most professions have licensing requirements. This is the case for doctors, lawyers, electricians, architects, accountants, engineers, real estate brokers, teachers, and many other regulated professionals. It should set the standards for policing including standards on police education and training for both new recruits and seasoned officers.

The net effect would redirect the individual officer’s duty to the professional standards and not his colleagues. They would have to meet evidence-based standards of the licensing authority, the ‘College’, and could not work without a revocable license. “The goal of the Licensing Authority, the College, would be to develop a culture of professionalism in policing.” Criminal Conduct would still be enforceable by agencies such as the SIU.

Higher qualifications, means higher costs. We need to re-task not defund; hoping monies are diverted to other social agency is not a political competence. We closed Psychiatric Residential Facilities, promising to divert the savings to community housing. Ask some ‘street-people’ where’s the money. We are the problem. We start thinking taxes when we speak ‘costs. We must recognize — better performance means a price for quality goods. It’s your Ontario, you decide.

Judge Lloyd Budzinski retired after 28 years and was a former Crown Attorney, Defence Counsel and Onario’s Assistant Deputy Minister of Criminal Law. He was Chief Prosecutor in the high-profile trial of ex-RCMP officer Patrick Michael Kelly, who was found guilty of murder for throwing his wife from at 17-floor balcony in 1981.

Etobicoke Reeve Shaver best known for bringing first automobile to the area

by

 

REEVE SHAVER cherished 1909 Studebaker-Flanders cost $750 brand new back in the day.

PEOPLE CAME from miles around to see the Reeve’s new Studebaker-Flanders auto.

 

Former Reeve Franklin E. Shaver loved cars and is fondly remembered for owning the first vehicle in Etobicoke some 112 years ago.

Shaver, who came from a prominent Etobicoke family, served as the 12th Reeve of the Borough of Etobicoke, which was created in 1850.

He served from 1906 to 1908, when he was defeated by prominent cattle breeder John Gardhouse, a farmer who co-founded the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair and Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame inductee.

Back then the Borough of Etobicoke was growing and the businesses were booming.

Many residents had never been close to a car before that day in 1909 when Shaver pulled up in a shiny new Studebaker-Flanders automobile.

The auto was the first in Etobicoke and sported four cyclinders, water cooled engine, 20 horse power, 100-inch wheel base, 32-inch wheels and all-metal body.

It even had a selective sliding gear two speed transmission and reverse, shaft drive.

“The greatest automotive value the world has ever seen,” screamed the advertising for the vehicle. It sold for $750, a princely sum in those days.

The high-flying Studebaker Flanders company boasted to have 75,000 of the vehicles on the road and “every owner is an enthusiastic booster.”

“The Studebaker cars are built for honest everyday service, and will give you service – not excuses,” boasts its promotional materials. “From the moment your Studebaker Flanders is delivered, you have a car that is ready to go.”

Back then, there was little bus service and personal transportation was still primarily by horse-drawn carriage, according to the Etobicoke Historical Society (EHS). “Cars did not predominate in the rural areas until after the depression.”

Dundas Street and Lakeshore Road were both paved in 1917 and “other road were gravel or even mud,” they said.

There was good access to other towns, including downtown Toronto, by train. By 1917, the Toronto Suburban Electric Railway had opened passenger service from Keele Street to Guelph, passing through central Etobicoke.

Shaver’s family had done well. Patriarch Peter Shaver had arrived from Ancaster in 1830 and acquired 200 acres on the west side of Hwy. 427, between Bloor Street and Rathburn Road, according to the EHS.

He hired prominent Weston architect, William Tyrrell to design and build his home, which was completed in 1852. The house is Georgian in style and is built of red and yellow brick with a picturesque verandah across the front.

Many people know the historic “Applewood” house as the place where they or friends were married. It has hosted more than 12,000 weddings.

The Studebaker-Flanders was named after Walter E. Flanders who had been Henry Ford’s production manager in the early 1900s. Production was by The Everitt-Metzger-Flanders Company of Detroit.

Studebaker entered the automotive business in 1902 with electric vehicles and in 1904 with gasoline vehicles. For 50 years, the company established a reputation for quality, durability and reliability.

After an unsuccessful 1954 merger the company could not solve their cash flow problems and was forced to shut. The last Studebaker rolled off a Hamilton, Ont., assembly plant in 1966.

At one time more than 15,000 employees worked for the Studebaker automaker.

 

Free things to do and keeping busy in our community

by

THE FARMERS Market starts on May 29 and runs until October 9.

JUNE 1 HUMBER CULTURAL HUB COMMUNITY INFO SESSION 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Staff will provide an update on the project and there will be a Q & A session. Open to the entire community. To take place at Humber College, Lake Shore Blvd. and Kipling Ave. area.

JUNE 1 BROOM MAKING with Amina Haskell for ages 10 to 14 from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Kits provided. At the Jean Augustine Centre for Young Women’s Empowerment, 101 Portland St. For more information contact 416-253-9797 or email info@jeanaugustinecentre.ca.

FREE CHIROPODY SERVICES for those who qualify at LAMP- Open for new patients who are prediabetic or diabetic. We treat nail concerns, ulcerations, pain and more.  Contact 416-252-6471 ext. 262

JUNE 2 WEST TORONTO DIABETES EDUCATION PROGRAM free Foot Care from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. For more information call 416-252-1928 ext. 100. You must have an email address. 

JUNE 12 J.A.C’s MENTAL HEALTH YOUTH CONFERENCE 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. for fun and informative time with presentations on mental health, journaling workshops, meditation, breathing exercise and a guest speaker at the Jean Augustine Centre, 101 Portland Rd.  Contact 416-253-9797 or email info@jeanaugustinecentre.ca. 

 TUESDAYS JUNE 8, 15, 22, 29, FROM 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. New Wellness Series: Feel better this spring by stretching and relaxation through breathing and mindfulness. To register contact jasmnd@lampchc.org or 416 252 6471.

MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY FREE emergency food takeout meals continue to be offered at 11:30 p.m. through LAMP’s adult drop-in program. Group programs are closed,

FOOD EXPLORATION WORKSHOPS ZOOM June 10 Chef’s Catering from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and June 17 same time Food Career Exploration Panel: learn from four chefs who have experience in the baking, pastry and restaurant industry. Starting June 10 registrants have 30 days to finish their online free Food Handler’s Certificate. Contact 416-253-9797 or email info@jeanaugustinecentre.ca.

FREE ADULT LEARNING PROGRAMS: Learn basic computer skills. Must meet registration criteria including 19 years and over and out of school, have a SIN number and access to a computer and an email account. Fluent in spoken English and provide proof of permanent residency. Small online group instruction on MS word, Internet, Keyboarding, e-mail and Zoom. Improve your reading and writing skills. For more information 416-252-9701 ext. 242 or 243.

EVERY THURSDAY FROM 2 P.M. to  6 P.M. the Cooper Mills-Gooch Community Food Bank provides fresh groceries and essential food items every Thursday in the Jane St. and Dundas St. W. area. Contact 416-358-0031 for more information. 

STARTING JUNE 2 NEW EIGHT WEEK free mindfulness course on ZOOM on Wednesdays from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. with Corin De Sousa, a certified mindfulness instructor with the Canadian College of Educators who  provides evidenc- based mindfulness programs. To register contact jasmind@lampchc.org

NEW TO CANADA: are you a permanent resident, convention refugee or live-in caregiver, LAMP’s Settlement Support Services offers information, orientation, referral to community services, employment assistance, English as a second language and all the skills you need to succeed. Call Tali at 416-252-9701 ext. 283 or email tali@lampchc.org.

BRIGHT HORIZONS ART SHOW RUNS UNTIL JULY 31 Enjoy works by the Humber Valley Art Club at the Cloverdale Mall Vaccination Clinic, 250 The East Mall. For more information visit www.assemblyhall.ca.

UNTIL OCTOBER 29 HUMBER BAY SHORES FARMERS MARKET runs every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Get fresh products and crafts straight from the farmers’. Masks and physically distancing required and you must be COVID free.

CANADA POST is planning to relocate its 145 West Mall post office to another location. The new outlet will be within a four kilometer radius of the West Mall station “so we can continue to provide local residents and businesses with accessible postal service.” The company said its products, services and latest information can be accessed online at canadapost.ca No date has been given for the closure of 145 West Mall or where it will be relocated.

Sex movies believed to be filmed in New Toronto home attended by police

by

POLICE investigating women found in possible large gathering in New Toronto.

OFFICERS patrolling the area in search of evidence.

 

A day in the life of a Toronto Police officer.

Officers from 22 Division are still shaking their heads after entering into a New Toronto rental home where they suspect sex movies were being filmed.

Police responded to a call in the Lake Shore Blvd. W., and Kipling Ave. area on May 15 in what appeared to be a public gathering, which is banned to avoid the spread of COVID-19.

A 22 Division officer at the scene said some people gathered outside the apartment scurried inside after police arrived.

The occupants of the unit refused to allow officers inside the apartment and a SWAT team had to be called to help breach the door, according to police.

Inside the unit officers found about 10 scantily clad women and noted that all the windows were covered up from the inside with thick curtains.

“We believe something was going on in there,” the officer said. “There were lights, cameras and women scantily dressed.”

Police had little luck obtaining information from the occupants of the apartment.

A number of people were fined for being part of a large gathering.

The house, according to a landlord, is rented by local college students and officials are investigating to determine if the women were safe.

 

Fireworks ‘aimed and shot at people, animals and officers’ in Victoria Day celebrations

by

Councillor Grimes says some residents showed no respect to animals, people or officers. File photo.

Vehicle tow away statistics from the city.

Residents are calling for a meeting with the Mayor before Labour Day, when its fireworks time again.

 

Councillor Mark Grimes says the behaviour of some area residents on Victoria Day long weekend at waterfront parks shows a lack of respect for the environment, animals and our community.

“People were cutting branches off of live trees for bonfires, shooting fireworks at animals and enforcement officers, and treating our parks like garbage dumps,” Grimes wrote in his weekly report.

He had worked with City and enforcement staff for several weeks to develop a plan to deal with the fireworks, bonfires, illegal parking and litter.

“I was optimistic that we would have a good long weekend, but clearly something went wrong,” he wrote.

He has asked city staff to determine what went wrong and what else can be done.

“Officers were in the parks throughout the weekend, but were challenged due to the high number of visitors to the parks,’ the long-time politician said. “Discussions are underway to have more paid duty officers assigned to Ward 3’s destination waterfront parks.”

“Fireworks enforcement can be challenging due to the high number of parks and public spaces located throughout the city,” he said, adding enforcement resources are limited and calls related to essential services, public health measures and provincial emergency orders are prioritized.

“In many instances the responsible parties have departed the area prior to the arrival of enforcement resources,” Grimes explained.

He said bylaw officers must witness the fireworks discharge, and then may experience challenges in obtaining identification in order to lay charges for the illegal use of fireworks in a park. In some cases they may need support from Toronto Police to ensure the safety of staff and the public.

He moved a motion last October asking City staff to look at ways to strengthen the fireworks bylaw.

“People were shooting fireworks into crowds of people, at animals and even the police,” Grimes said. He will be moving another motion to strengthen the city’s ‘COVID-19 Unpermitted Fireworks Action Plan.’

That same night five circles of grass, which are homes of nesting birds, were burnt by an errant fireworks at Colonel Samuel Smith park. Wild animals, pets and birds are also scared off by the loud bangs and flashes of intense light.

 

Residents fuming that home of nesting birds burnt by fireworks at Sam Smith park

by

Shallow grass that is home of nesting bird burnt by errant fireworks.

Nest of nesting birds seems untouched by fireworks. Photos Friends of Sam Smith Park.

Some South Etobicoke groups have banded together to try and get the City to crackdown on those who ignore rules on the use of fireworks and inflict damage to wildlife, pets and people with challenges.

The city promised action at an Economic and Community Development Committee meeting last April, the groups claim, adding they warned the committee that fireworks violations ‘were escalating at an alarming rate threatening our peace and well-being without any response from the city.’

The groups said ‘it was chaos’ last Victoria Day long weekend with more than 100 separate incidents of fireworks each night. The fire display in the Humber Bay Shores area began around 9 p.m. and continued late into the night.

Hundreds of complaints have been filed by residents outraged that pets, wildlife and people are being affected.

Fireworks discharged in Colonel Samuel Smith Park sparked fires leaving five distinct burns areas in the grasses home to nesting swallows, a designated Environmentally Significant.

The grass was set alit by those lighting fireworks; falling ashes are believed to have caused the fires.

“Boxes were found among the debris indicating that some of these fireworks were

designed to shoot 40 to 60 metres (130 – 190’) high,” they wrote. “This was absolute chaos and we are, to be blunt, furious.”

The group, which represents Friends of Sam Smith Park, Friends of Humber Bay Park, Etobicoke Fireworks Remediation Committee and Citizens Concerned about the Future of Etobicoke Waterfront (CCFEW), have been working to improve area parks for many years.

They are calling for a meeting with Mayor John Tory before Labour Day, the next long weekend for fireworks; for more police patrol parks, to shut parking lots on weekends and ban the sale of fireworks.

Bill Zufelt, Chair of the History and Cultural Committee Long Branch, said he’s ‘angry and beyond words.’

“As an avid naturalist and environmentalist the growing behavior and disregard for all living things, by the pandemic of human selfishness and stupidity is utterly appalling,” Zufelt steamed.

Sam Smith park is listed as the Number 3 Bird Hotspot in Toronto with some 268 species, according to e-bird, an online bird database. Tommy Thompson Park and the Toronto Islands are Numbers 1 and 2 for birdwatching in Toronto.

“That is a testament to diversity and quality of the habitats found at this city park,” according to a CCFEW statement.

“The diversity and quality of habitats has earned the park a reputation as one of the premier birding locations in the city,” the group said on its website.

Residents have complained about the hundreds of people who flock to area parks to drink alcohol and light bonfires without wearing masks or social distancing.

Videos show mountains of trash the visitors left behind for others to clean up.

“Wildlife trauma are being dismissed while the non-interventionist aim of the fireworks industry is covered with platitudes and impotent promises,” the groups wrote. “We need an assurance this issue will be prioritized and responded to effectively.”

Police stamp out crime duo accused of stealing cheques from Canada Post mailboxes

by

PEEL Police cracked a major theft ring targeting Canada Post mailboxes.

CHEQUES were stolen in broad daylight from Canada Post mailboxes. Staff photos.

 

The more crimes change over time, the more they remain the same.

Two Toronto men are under arrest for allegedly stealing cheques from a series of Canada Post mailboxes in Peel Region.

Police allege the duo ‘used specific means to gain entry into Canada Post mailboxes and would proceed to steal cheques from inside.’

Officers from Peel Regional Police 11 Division Criminal Investigation Bureau have been working since January 2020 to nab the theft suspects.

“Investigators were able to identify links to several damaged Canada Post mailboxes that occurred in the Region of Peel,” according to a press release. “The suspect would then allegedly deposit the stolen cheques into various banks and conduct various transactions.”

The joint investigation involved Peel cops and their partners from Canada Post, ScotiaBank, York Regional Police, Toronto Police and Halton Regional Police.

The men were charged after police issued search warrants at two Toronto residences.

Zsolt Gaspar, 29, was charged with mischief over $5000, theft from mail, possession of property obtained by crime, fraud of $5000 and two counts of failing to comply with a release order. He appeared before the Ontario Court of Justice for a bail hearing.

A young offender is also facing charges. Further charges are pending.

Anyone with any information in relation to the above parties is asked to call investigators at 905-453-2121, ext. 1133. Information may also be left anonymously by calling Peel Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or by visiting www.peelcrimestoppers.ca.

 

 Hard-working local barber and other small businesses stay afloat in Go Fund Me campaign

by

LOCAL BARBER Andy Dinner plans to help other struggling area businesses with the funds he raises. CBC photo.

ANDY DINNER (right) with exceptional intern he just couldn’t keep. Photo by Tom Godfrey.

 

A hard-working and well-liked local barber has raised more than $7,500 on Go Fund Me so he and another hard-hit New Toronto businesses can stay afloat.

Andy Dinner, of Your Neighbourhood Barbershop, at 2858 Lake Shore Blvd. W., set out on May 20 to raise $4,000 to try and cover his shop’s rent and expenses for two months.

The fundraising campaign in about four hours raised $7,300 and rising from a stream of donations made by community residents and businesses, who are supporting our small businesses.

“It (campaign) is gaining some serious traction,” Dinner said on social media. “We do not want an extra dime over that initial $4,000.”

He has raised the goal to $10,000 and said “every dollar extra over the original $4,000 will be split to other Lakeshore businesses.”

Some other local businesses which are also struggling will receive part of the donations, he said.

“We will not bite off more than we can chew. This isn’t about that,” Dinner explained. “We are using this momentum and exposure to help our struggling neighbours.”

He never expected to be shut so long in lock downs and emergency orders in the fight against the spread of COVID-19.

“Working for 88 days and then being forced to close for 180 days and counting, with no end date in sight was simply unimaginable,” he noted.

Dinner wrote that his shop is new and did not qualify for government grants or benefits.

“We did not expect the Ford government to fail so miserably at how they are dealing with the pandemic,” he stressed. “We did not expect our industry to be disrespected and neglected in such a blatantly offensive manner.”

“We feel like this is an attack and we are offended.”

He said ‘we are about to pay our seventh straight month of rent with no income.’

“I spent my entire life savings opening up this shop and then it has been months of paying rent and hydro for this shop that I can’t work out of,” Dinner said. “My savings are tapped, I have nothing left.”

Residents love the shop, which has won A LAMP Medal of Merit and Etobicoke GEM award for Best New Business.

Thomas Bates said he donated because “Andy is a remarkable young man and needs our support in these trying times. Every little bit helps. Let’s help someone that is known for helping others.”

Owen Newell dug into his wallet because Dinner is an “entrepreneur with good business savvy.”

“Small business is so important,” Erin Krausz wrote on a Go Fund Me page. “Thanks for being such a great part of the neighbourhood.”

“Andy is the most friendly and warm welcoming person on Lakeshore and doesn’t deserve to give up his dream,” said donor Ethan Cochrane.

Thomas McAuliffe donated and wrote “from your neighbours in Alderwood.”