With the City going broke and huge tax hikes to already stretched residents, Toronto Councillors are moving ahead with calls for a pay raise.

The matter of whether the Mayor, City councillors and their staff will get a pay raise will come up again at a Council meeting for consideration.

A report called Review of Councillor Remuneration is slated to be presented to Council at their meeting on March 26, 27 and 28.

Councillors earn more than $130,000 yearly and have been asking for an increase in pay and wages for office staff claiming they are overworked with meetings and work in the community. They claim their workload surged after the number of council seats were reduced from 44 to 25 in 2018.

Council requested the City Clerk to report later this year on options to modernize their job descriptions, salary bands, and the compensation envelope for staff in Members’ offices.

Councillors last had their staff budget increased about three years ago.

“Toronto now has perhaps the most populous wards of any major city in North America and Europe,” according to City staff.

The study said there should be a review of Councillor compensation, which should be adjusted to that of their higher-paid counterparts, in addition to regular reviews.

It said that staff is seeking advice from a third-party consultant.

Toronto city councillors currently earn an annual salary of $133,776.24, with their compensation level automatically indexed to inflation on a yearly basis. Mayor Olivia earns more than $225,300annually.

Members of Toronto City Council do not receive additional compensation for sitting on agencies, boards, commissions and corporations.

Councillors last year were allocated about $60,000 for their office budget, with a staff salary of $534,000 and with the Mayor’s Office having an operating budget of more than $3 million.

When did they build this one.

Mimico residents are stunned to see the beginnings of a nine storey condo that will include 60 units being built at 230 Royal York Road, at the north-east corner of Drummond Street.

The condo is on the site of a former rooming house that was demolished last October.

The developers said the units will be a mixture of one and two bedroom suites.

“The new condos will be perfectly situated relative to all that the Mimico area of Etobicoke has on offer, most notably a GO station and easy access to the Lake Ontario shoreline,” according to Halsa Sales promotion.

The builders said the condos will be close to Sobeys, Metro and No Frills.

The company Leader Lanes have begun building and by June they will be conducting interior finishes.

City officials said there will be traffic disruptions in the area when there is heavy lifting or cement pouring activities taking place.

At certain times the lanes will be reduced and a police officer brought to monitor traffic.

That area is busy with a No Frills and Royal York Road traffic.

Just up the street is a planned 12-storey 113-unit rental building that has been proposed and before community council.

A former Ward 3 Councillor and a lengthy list of community volunteers and social workers have been awarded with a King Charles III Coronation Medal for their outstanding service in helping others.

The Canadian commemorative medal was created to mark King Charles III coronation on May 6, 2023.

Some 30,000 of the coronation medals are being awarded to select members of the Canadian Armed Forces, public service and individuals who made ‘significant contributions to our country or achieved accomplishments that brought credit to Canada.’

“All nominees and recipients in Etobicoke-Lakeshore have made enormous contributions to our community,” according to MP James Maloney. “All have made our community and neighbourhoods better places.”

The recipients included former Ward 3 Councillor Mark Grimes who had represented the riding at City Hall for almost 20-years.

Chris Korwin Kuczynski , a former City councillor and now with the Lakeshore Village Business Improvement Association (BIA), was recognized at a March 18 function.

Also receiving the medal was realtor and community volunteer Graham Rowlands, LAMP Community Health Centre Executive Director Keddone Dias and Laura Latham, the Executive Director of Franklin Horner Community Centre.

Diane Dupuy, President  and Founder of Famous PEOPLE Players theatre, was recognized with the royal medal. So were volunteer Derek Reid and publisher Peter Foy.

Also receiving the award was Slawko Borys, a former National Secretary of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress and Chair of the Ukrainian Credit Union.  Tracy Louise Bowie was awarded for giving back through Ronald McDonald House, Habitat for Humanity, and the Canadian Cancer Society.

Peter Bulut, President of Great Lakes Brewery, isn’t just about great beer, as he was also on the medal receiving end for supporting local charities.

Susan Carbone was recognized for her work with Haven on the Queensway, organizing events like the Coldest Night of the Year to support those in need.

Other recipients included Mary Allison Christian, Timothy Aaron Crone, Julien Diciano, David Hahn, Roger Kenneth Harris, Mary Kancer, Salden Kunga, William James Law, Fraser McKee, Lobsang Mentuh, Oscar Ortolan, Dilkhush Panjwani, Ric Rangel-Bron, Jim Reekie, Donna Lynn Sampson, Ruth Schembri, Edward Stafford and Ann Szyptur.

Well-known pizzeria owner Adrian Stolaj has wrapped up a fundraiser to help a local charity from the sale of his tasty pizza.

This is the third year that Stolaj has dedicated a portion of his pizza earnings from March 18 and  19 to Concord in the City agency several doors away from his pizza shop at 3329 Lake Shore Blvd., near Twenty Seventh Street.

“I love doing this and I am doing it from the heart to help others,” said the pie maker, whose Adriano’s Pizza and Pasta restaurant has been in the same Long Branch location for 15 Years.

The restaurant is popular in the community and Stolaj can always be counted on to donate one his tasty pies to help area schools or charities.

The Concord agency is close to his heart and he goes out of his way to help them.

The charity helps with job, education and housing solutions for people with intellectual disabilities in Etobicoke and Brampton.

Concord in the City Community Ability Initiative is focused in supporting adults with intellectual disabilities to gain job skills, independence, and working towards permanent housing.

Their daily program in Etobicoke and Brampton offers a 3:1 ratio running from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Kevin Troake and Melissa Ray started Concord in the City in 2013. Kevin taught for 10 years with the Peel Board and has a specialist in Special Education. Melissa has a Masters in Child and Youth Care with a focus on disabilities

The City is working on diversity plan for making appointments to the Toronto Police Service Board (TPSB).

A March 5 report by the City Clerk recommends that City Council adopt a diversity plan to elect members of the Police Service Board.

“This is a new issue,” the Clerk wrote. “It reflects requirements in the Community Safety and Policing Act, 2019, which came into force on April 1, 2024.”

Recent changes to provincial law require Council to adopt a diversity plan for appointments to the TPSB.

A section of the new act requires every municipality with a municipal board to prepare and approve a diversity plan to ensure that its members represent the diversity of the population.

 

“City Council must approve its Municipal Diversity Plan for appointments to the Toronto Police Service Board by April 1,” according to a report. “The plan must be published on the Internet in accordance with any regulations and revised at least once every four years.”

The composition of the Toronto Police Service Board is being reviewed. The board now has seven members, who includes the Mayor or designate, two City council members, a member appointed by Council and three members appointed by the province of Ontario.

The policy would include steps for advertising vacancies, including outreach to diverse communities in Toronto. The Act promotes availability of appointments and reflects the diversity of Toronto.

The City Clerk’s Office is also working to increase representation and reduce barriers to appointment for specific groups in Toronto, in accordance with Council-approved City’s Reconciliation Action Plan, the Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism and the Access Plan for Two-Spirit, Trans & Non-Binary Youth.

The Board members, including the full-time Chair, citizen Vice-Chair, and other citizen members, are compensated through a combination of annual honorariums and per diem payments, with the Chair earning a salary of $90,963.

Councillors Lily Cheng and Ward 3’s Amber Morley are the only non-whites on the TPSB.

 

Motorists in a hurry are being warned of at least three new City of Toronto automated traffic enforcement cameras that are being installed on South Etobicoke streets.

The City is in the process of doubling the number of speed cameras on our streets from 75 to 150 cameras.

Signs have already been put up warning drivers there will be speed cameras in those places as the City is required to give a 90-day notice.

Cameras are being installed on Birmingham Street, just west of Kipling Avenue; Stanley Avenue, near Elizabeth Street; Bloor St. W., just east of Dundas Street W., and Kipling Avenue, just south of New Toronto Street.

The devices are also planned for Sixth Street, south of Lake Shore Blvd. W., and Thirty First Street, near Ash Crescent, according to the City’s website. The cameras are already in place at many major intersections.

City officials said the new cameras will include 25 in permanent pole-mounted locations and the other 50 rotating every three to six months in the wards they are installed.

The devices are installed along busy roadway, or near school zones; where pedestrian safety and speeding are an issue.

City workers are concerned that a large number of the $50,000 cameras are vandalized as one famously targeted on Parkside Drive that was cut down twice. Others like one on Horner Avenue was repeatedly shoved to the ground until it was removed by the City.

“We look at the data where we have the most challenges with speeding and other factors, collision history,” said Transportation Services General Manager Barbara Gray. “They’re put in places where speeding is traditionally an issue and where we have perhaps a higher rate of collisions historically.”

The average fine issued by the cameras is $107 with no demerit points. The City has collected more than $50 million since the money-earning program began in 2020.

Talks are also taking place with the TTC to add automatic enforcement cameras to streetcars to catch vehicles that illegally drive through when the streetcar doors are open endangering disembarking passengers.

 

An Etobicoke man is among eight suspects rounded up in an auto theft ring that was allegedly stealing high-end vehicles parked outside expensive Toronto hotels.

The group members would drive the stolen vehicles to so-called ‘cool off’ zones to avoid police detection before they were shipped overseas from the Port of Montreal, according to Halton Regional Police.

Police believe as many as 75 vehicles were stolen after their ‘Project Mulligan,’ began last fall following thefts from hotel lots near main highways in Oakville and Burlington.

Detectives alleged the thieves were “casing hotel lots” during the overnight hours and targeting Toyota and Lexus SUVs as well as Dodge and Toyota pickup trucks.

Officers have been able to identify 20 hotel lots where vehicles were stolen from. A number of the ‘cooling off areas’ were located where the vehicles were temporary stored until shipment abroad.

The suspects were a “crew of organized auto thieves,” according to police.

Halton officers alleged the crooks would smash a vehicle window, access the onboard diagnostic system and reprogram the key fob. Once stolen the vehicle’s GPS system would be disabled to evade police tracking and then parked for a while before being shipped overseas in containers.

Police recovered 18 stolen vehicles, including two that were found inside shipping containers.

“Auto thieves continue to incorporate a variety of techniques to commit these thefts while engaging in varying strategies to avoid detection and arrest,” said Superintendent Dave Stewart.

Luis Bello-Reyes, 29, of Etobicoke, and others from the GTA and three from Quebec, have been charged with about 90 offences relating to vehicle thefts and possession of stolen property.

Bello-Reyes was charged with 16 counts of possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, 14 counts of theft of motor vehicle, trafficking stolen property and other offences. He and another suspect were out of bail for other crimes.

 

Fearful area residents are asking if a body found in Len Ford Park may be that of a fugitive Alderwood double killer.

Police on March 13 removed a body from the 295 Lake Promenade lakefront park.

Officers said there were no signs of foul play and an autopsy is being conducted to determine if the death was suspicious.

The discovery brought up concerns that the body may belong to an Alderwood man sought for the brutal murders of two women last August 23.

It has been almost eight months since Joseph Ayala, 33, disappeared from sight with police on his trail for two counts of second-degree murder after an 82-year-old woman and a 60-year-old woman in a home in the Sheldon and Silvercrest Avenues area, in Alderwood.

There has been sightings of the suspect, whom police believe was still alive.

Police believed Ayala was hiding somewhere in the community and have searched ravines, ditches, bushes, parks and lakes for the accused double killer.

Some women and seniors in the area said they do not go out at night and lock their doors due to fears of the fugitive. Many leave their lights on and pay close attention to their sheds and backyards.

 

Some 470 people turned out to mourn the sudden death of well-known Alderwood musician Roger ‘Gerry’ Williams who performed across the GTA and area clubs for many years.

Gerry passed away on February 21 in a vehicle accident while on his way home from work at Canada Post, where he worked as a letter carrier for three years.

He was 59.

Long-time partner Michelle Walker said she is heartbroken by Gerry’s death.

“Gerry was returning home from a long day of work at Canada Post,” Michelle said. “No car crash, he simply drove into a snowbank and went into heavenly sleep.”

The respected guitarist was well known in the Toronto music scene and with Michelle performed in clubs across the City, including Scarborough; with some shows here in the community.

He and Michelle and their DNGOLE band played Soca, Calypso and other favourites. They had performed at What A Jerk! restaurant, at 3303 Lake Shore Blvd. W., days before his death.

She said Gerry was a beloved son, brother, uncle, nephew, cousin, and partner and will be deeply missed by all who knew him.

Gerry was born and grew up in Trinidad before emigrating to Canada in 1988.

He became interested in music at an early age and was a vocalist in his parish youth group and quickly became immersed in the Toronto music scene.

He followed his big sister’s footsteps and “learned to play acoustic guitar and later the bass guitar.”

“Music was Gerry’s true passion. He was “all in” wherever music was involved,” according to his obituary. He wrote his own music, producing, performing, arranging, playing the guitar and bass.

He has left a lasting musical legacy at his parish of Our Lady of Good Counsel Caribbean Canadian Catholic Church (OLGC) where he served in the Music Ministry, as well as in parang groups, jazz bands, and steelpan groups.

Michelle said he played and sang with several Catholic worship groups over the years.

“His undeniable talent and genuine spirit left a lasting impact on those with whom he interacted,” she said.

A packed funeral service for Gerry took place on March 8 at Our Lady of Good Counsel Caribbean Canadian Catholic Church, on College Street in Toronto.

Looks like Centennial Park may become one of the big winners in the upcoming FIFA World Cup soccer tournament next year.

Some $20 million is being spent to upgrade Centennial Park in preparation for the World Cup  tournament which will run from June 11 to July 19, 2026.

The City is upgrading its facilities and awarding the naming rights for a Soccer Hub at  Centennial, which will be used as a practice field for FIFA teams competing in the matches at modified BMO Stadium.

Council have awarded a multi-million dollar Centennial Park Soccer Facilities Refresh contract to a Gormley, Ont., company Mopal Construction Ltd.

All the updates will be left for the South Etobicoke community to enjoy after the World Cup.

The park is also slated to receive a domed full-size soccer pitch and other amenities as part of a 20-year revitalization plan.

There will also be a World Cup Training Site and fieldhouse for teams to use.

A report presented to City Council by the World Cup Toronto Secretariat said 12 mini soccer pitches will be created across the City that will be left as a legacy after World Cup is completed.

“The location of the mini-pitches will prioritize high-need, underserved neighborhoods across Toronto, ensuring equitable access to safe play spaces for youth,” according to the study which said the pitches will be maintained and accessible to disadvantaged people.

Canada will host 13 of the 104 games at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with seven in Vancouver and six in Toronto. It will cost about $380 million to host the World Cup, of which the City will cough up about $83 million and the remainder paid by the province and Ottawa.

This report said the 38-day sporting event that attract thousands from around the world will benefit local suppliers, under-represented groups and sustainable practices.

“Toronto aims to deliver a FIFA World Cup that leaves a lasting legacy of cultural enrichment and economic vitality,” according to the report.

The city is planning to spend more than $10 million to install private suites at BMO in a Host City Commercial Hospitality Program to generate revenue.

A FIFA Fan Festival is also planned that will run for the 28 days with free events and entertainment.

Fans will be able to see free live broadcasts of the matches, entertainment and other activities, including curated food experiences.

An economic impact assessment said the tournament will take place across 16 host cities in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. It said it will result in almost $4 billion in positive economic output for Canada as a host nation.

The study states the event will generate $700 million in government revenue and create more than 24,000 jobs nationwide.

It estimated the World Cup can contribute $940M to the GTA economy and create 6,600 jobs.