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Mayor's secret powers

How Miller's new clandestine club will threaten Toronto
 

Toronto Sun - Joe Warmington
 

The question you must ask yourself is: "Do you really want Mayor David Miller having the ability to control the city's future in secret?"

Do you want him, or any future mayor, to have that power?

There are some who think it has to go this way.

Councilor Case Ootes sure doesn't want to see it -- and yesterday started putting out feelers to others on council for them to start thinking about how to stop this drive for a clandestine club at City Hall for the personally selected and the few.  [ More ]

 

 

Councilor Mammoliti sets sights on scrawl
 

Toronto Sun

 

A week after ordering a convicted drug offender out of his neighborhood, controversial city Councilor Giorgio Mammoliti is back on the warpath.

This time, it's "shocking" graffiti on a public housing block once home to the notorious Ardwick Blood Crew gang that has raised his ire.

The graffiti -- "shoot da police" and "kill cop" -- is scrawled on a small public housing block on Ardwick Blvd., near Finch Ave. W. and Islington Ave.

As chairman of the city's affordable housing committee and a board member of Toronto Community Housing, Mammoliti said he'll personally hand the culprit an eviction notice if he or she is living in public housing.

At the very least, he'll be turning the vandal over to the cops.

"I for one do not categorize this as merely someone defacing a building with graffiti," Mammoliti said yesterday.  [ More ]

 

 

Suspension threatened over T-shirt protest
 

Toronto Sun

 

After tolerating paramedic's yellow protest T-shirts for most of the summer, Toronto EMS management is now seeing red.

Paramedics who show up for four shifts wearing their union's yellow protest shirts will be suspended, according to a management memo obtained by the Toronto Sun.

Supervisors are instructed to follow a four-stage protocol to deal with paramedics wearing the T-shirts every Tuesday and Friday.

Each shirt still identifies the wearer as a paramedic, but they also carry a message calling for more ambulances.

Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 416 officials say paramedics were allowed to wear the shirt, discipline-free, in June and July but now management is cracking down on the campaign.

Paramedics wearing the T-shirts for the fourth time will be suspended for not carrying a spare uniform and instead wearing an inappropriate T-shirt.

The union argues there are only 90 ambulances available during the day, when the city's population surges to 3.5 million, and only 45 at night. [ More ]

 

 

Filming of Flashpoint in Nathan Phillips Square contradicts city's anti-firearms stance
 

Toronto Star - Don Peat
 

In a peace-loving city that officially hates handguns, it was hard to keep track of all the weapons being waved in Nathan Phillips Square last Friday morning as the workday began.

The two cops sheltering just outside the front door of City Hall each brandished a gun; they were easy to spot. But it seemed pretty certain the police were trying to locate an armed bad guy across the square, somewhere beyond the Toronto police cruiser parked beside the Archer.

The activity, of course, was a television shoot for the new CTV program Flashpoint, which follows the activities of a special-tactics police squad modeled on the Toronto Police Service's Emergency Task Force.

The best place to view the action might have been from the window of the mayor's office, right above where the officers were standing.

As startling as the presence of unholstered weapons might have been to ordinary citizens walking through the square on the way to work, at least in Friday's filming there were no bodies on the ground.

Earlier in the week, when the same crew shot another segment of the same scene, passersby were treated to the sight of an apparent gunshot victim, lying clutching his leg in mock agony in mid-square.

Flashpoint is "set proudly in Toronto" and features weapons such as sniper rifles, "flash-bangs" and Tasers, according to the show's publicity material.

Toronto residents are long familiar with TV and movie shoots on the streets. It's an industry the city has wooed for years, with great success.

What was striking about this particular episode was the presence of so many naked firearms in the signature square of a city where the leaders explicitly abhor guns.

It was only in June that city council pronounced a tough new stand against firearms.

New gun manufacturers or wholesalers are not welcome to set up business in Toronto, councilors declared. In a largely symbolic act, the city also terminated the leases of two target-shooting clubs that use city property. Councilors declared that having gun clubs on city property sends a bad message.

But a depiction of gunplay in Nathan Phillips Square, under the windows of the councilors who passed the anti-firearms policy?

Well, that's different. Come on down. We'll give you the square in broad daylight. We'll even supply Toronto police cruisers – complete with city crest on the doors – to be used as props. Please go ahead and film your shoot-'em-up.

Now, of course, it's fiction. Of course, the bad guys with guns are portrayed as negative characters, or at the very least, misguided ones. And no doubt the good guys win – partly, perhaps, because they have even better firearms than the bad guys.

City policies probably would have forbidden the use of exotic animals or helium balloons in the film shoot. They're banned from Nathan Phillips Square at all times, along with beauty pageants.

But the square's guidelines are silent about firearms, real or pretend. The city's firearms policy is sincere. The problem of guns on the street is real. But Friday it did seem odd that a city so resolutely opposed to the presence

 

 

Black-school numbers in doubt
 

Toronto Sun - Don Peat
 

An enrolment drive for the city's first black-focused school will start this fall but one trustee is already questioning whether it will draw enough students.

Parents will be canvassed this fall and given the opportunity to sign up their children for the new controversial Africentric school set to open in September, 2009, Toronto District School Board officials said.

Trustees approved the school after an emotionally charged meeting in January.

Months later they selected an empty wing of Sheppard Public School as a site.

Trustee Josh Matlow said he's hearing enrolment interest for the school, justified as a way to combat high dropout rates among black youth, is flailing.

"My understanding is that they are struggling to find the enrolment that they would like," he said. "They're going to need to know by the new year whether or not they can go ahead.

"If they don't get the enrolment that they'll need to merit the funding for the school then the program won't happen."

Board superintendent Christopher Usih said an enrolment drive will start in earnest this fall, earlier than previous alternative schools.

 

 

Peel student project to be shown across GTA
School film chronicles brutality of gang life
 

Toronto Star - Dan Robson
 

Three weeks, three murders – three young lives lost.

On Friday evening, a 15-year-old police identified yesterday as Evan Popoola, of Mississauga, was gunned down in a sports field behind St. Jude Separate School, in the Eglinton Ave. E. and Hurontario St. area. A week earlier, Farhan Ali Omar, 22, was stabbed in a Mississauga park near his Rathburn Rd. W. home, and died a day later. Alex Masih, 16, of Brampton, was shot to death Aug. 9 just after midnight, next to his townhouse complex near Kennedy Rd. and Williams Parkway in Brampton.

Peel's 2008 homicide total now sits at 19 — a record likely to rise.

Despite the grim headlines, some high school thespians from Malton are trying to make their community gang- and violence-free.

Fed up with the increasing youth violence near Ascension of Our Lord Catholic High School in Malton, where he has taught for 14 years, James Flaherty decided to use his background in film production do something about it.

Last year, the film teacher asked a group of students to work on a short film chronicling a boy's spiral into the deadly grip of a street gang.

Most in the all-volunteer group had never considered drama before, preferring to use their natural improv talents in other traditional teenage pursuits.

But, months of hard work later, the result is a short film, Mouse, to be screened in schools across the GTA this fall that's endorsed by Peel Regional Police.

Much of the script was improvised by the student actors, lending authenticity to the dialogue.

"You won't be able to tell that these kids aren't professional," says Flaherty at his Oakville home. "I'm so proud of these guys. They really came through,"

Mouse centers on a single-parent home, where a mom is struggling to make ends meet while raising her son. He slips from her grip, as he's drawn toward the male influence and acceptance of a group of older boys in a local street gang.

It's an all too common narrative, says Flaherty. Some parents have to work endlessly just to put food on the table, making it hard to be a constant presence in an adolescent's life.

"These kids are fighting through a lot of personal challenges," Flaherty says. "They're looking for affirmation, and finding it in the wrong places."

Ten-year-old Eddie Croft, a local public school student, plays the young son in the film. Endearing and, with a cherubic grin, he captivates the viewer.

But it's this kind of kid, Flaherty says, who is a particular target for gangs looking for innocent faces to do their bidding – slipping under the unsuspecting eyes of store clerks and through the basement windows of family homes.

Croft, who wants to be either a mechanic or an actor, says the movie shows how easy it is for someone his age to get pulled into gang life.

"The movie taught me not to get involved in gangs because they won't let you leave. It's dangerous," he says.

Darren Watts, 18, plays Clutch, the lead gang member who recruits Croft.

He says he has a personal connection to the movie because growing up in Malton he has lost childhood friends, killed in gang violence.

"I've seen a lot of people hurt and a lot of lives taken," he says. "I hope people see that in the movie. Kids should outlive their parents."

Flaherty says Watts' experience is not unique in the Malton neighborhood, where the movie was filmed. He recalls how one player he coached on Ascension of Our Lord's basketball team was shot to death by a group of young men some years back.

"Every time you hear about a murder in Malton, you worry that it may have been one of your kids," Flaherty says. "It has enough of a presence now that I'd say a lot of teachers have had that experience."

Violent murders even framed production of the film. Nine months ago, as the Mouse project got underway, David Latchana, 23, was murdered in the area.

Police believe it was a gang-related hit. As summer vacation began, after the production wrap, Orrin Marlon Earle, 28, was gunned down in the same Darcel Ave. apartment complex where part of Mouse was filmed.

 

 

Keeping the waterfront dream alive
 

Toronto Sun - Michelle Mandel
 

It seems rather ironic that the first neighborhood finally being developed by Waterfront Toronto isn't actually on the waterfront at all.

Instead, it's West Don Lands, being built on the derelict west bank of the Don River at the base of the Bayview extension. But like the tale of the waterfront itself, it has a long history of hopes and dreams that came to naught -- until now.

This forgotten area bordering Corktown was once the future home of the utopian Ataratiri low-income housing project. But five years after the 32 hectares of industrial land were expropriated, the province abandoned Ataratiri when the land proved too toxic and too vulnerable to flooding. [ More ]

 

 

From beaches to bluffs
 

Toronto Star
 

Toronto's eastern waterfront is best defined as a series of stunning contrasts of highs and lows, public and private, and beauty and blight.

The highs are the Scarborough Bluffs, which overhang nearly half of the city's lakeshore east of Yonge St.

Reaching as high as 200 feet, the bluffs can be as tall as eight two-storey homes stacked on top of each other. On clear days, the New York state shoreline is clearly visible from the top.

Directly below, however, the low-lying beach is often washed away by rising water levels and is completely inaccessible at times in certain places.

Atop the bluffs and near the city, factories, homes and a private golf course can all prevent even the most avid explorers from finding a decent view of the lake. Following the same basic path as the lakeshore, even the Martin Goodman Trail is forced out of sight from the lake in several downtown locations as private enterprises steer the public away from the waterfront.  [ More ]

 

 

Toronto considers ban on sale of bottled water
 

CTV.ca
 

Toronto mayor David Miller says the city is joining the ranks of Canadian municipalities considering a ban on the sale of bottled water.

Miller says city council will examine how the city can curb bottled water waste as part of a larger effort to reduce the amount of garbage that ends up in landfills.

A report outlining the city's options will come before council in November.

Miller says Toronto's tap water is more pure than the leading brand of bottled water.

His comments come after the city of London, Ont., banned the sale of water bottles in their municipal buildings on Monday.

Other Canadian cities, such as Kitchener, Ottawa,

 

 

Six propane distribution sites shut by regulator
 

National Post
 

A total of six propane distribution sites have been shut down by Ontario's propane regulator, which launched an audit in the aftermath of the Sunrise Propane blast this month.

Two Toronto facilities have stopped dispensing propane-- a U-Haul refill site and 660 Evan Road Ltd.

Lone operations were closed in Kitchener, Kitchener Frame; in Waterloo, Toko gas bar; in Ottawa, Francis Fuels; and in Cornwall, Fifth Wheel.

"We're looking at a similar scenario at each site," said Dave Lisle, a spokesman for the Technical Standards and Safety Authority, the agency that licenses and regulates propane facilities in Ontario.  [ More ]

 

 

Claims against propane firm total $900-million
 

Globe and Mail
 

Residents who ran "in fear for their lives" after last week's explosion at Sunrise Propane "will continue to have their enjoyment of life permanently lessened and impaired," say court documents filed in class-action lawsuits.

Two full statements of claim have been filed. They are joined by half a dozen other notices of action, said Harvin Pitch, a lawyer leading one claim. So far, four separate suits claim a total of $900-million in damages.

But that's a number picked by plaintiffs. It could be years before they see any money, if they ever do, lawyers said yesterday.

"You start the class action, and people see dollar signs before their eyes," said Toronto class-action lawyer Bonnie Tough. "It takes a long time and, in fact, the payments for people who were merely disrupted... are probably not going to be that high."  [ More ]

 

 

Transit Safety Tips

 

CityNews.ca

You're on the TTC and you run into a problem - someone is either threatening you or presenting a danger to others. You can sit there reading and hope they go away. Or you can take action that doesn't put your own life in peril.

Here's a primer on what the TTC suggests you do if it happens to you:

Subway

Here's where you're the most vulnerable, because there's no way to get off until the next stop and the nearest TTC employee may not be in the car. You can get out when the train stops and try to evade your harasser but if that's not possible, reach up and hit the yellow strip located at every section of every car. They can be used to report crime or illness, and while the TTC doesn't want you to use it frivolously, they do say it's OK if you're feeling uncomfortable, sick or in danger.

What happens when it's pressed? The train goes on to the next station and stops there with the doors open, allowing you to get out if necessary. Crews come immediately and check out the nature of the problem and take steps to fix it.

There are also 96 special constables who patrol the underground. Some wear uniforms, while others are undercover. The TTC won't say much about them except that they keep records about when the most problems occur and that's when the bulk of them are riding the rails with you. They can detain troublemakers and get police involved if necessary.

Buses

This is a lot simpler. If you have any problems, report them immediately to the driver. They have two different kinds of emergency devices to contact transit control, and they can dispatch police, fire trucks, an ambulance or whatever is needed to the scene right away. Despite privacy concerns, cameras are coming to buses, although it may be a while before they're all deployed and they obviously won't stop an attack.

Platforms

You're waiting at a bus terminal or a TTC stop and you see someone suspicious hanging around or acting odd. Move to the Designated Waiting Area, where you'll be in camera range of the collector. A push of a button puts you in contact with the man or woman in the booth and they can not only see what's wrong but immediately summon help. And it's a good place to sit even if you just want to read while waiting for that bus or train because the areas feature brighter lights than other spots on the platform. There's almost always a pay phone in these places so if your cell doesn't work underground, remember that 911 is a free call from any of them.

On The Street

The TTC can't take responsibility for what happens on a city street - that's a police matter. But if you're a woman and you're traveling on a bus between the hours of 9pm and 5pm, you can ask the driver to let you off between stops, so you can exit close to your home without walking. The policy only applies to women and the TTC won't let a man get off in the same mid-point stop to ensure safety. But being male doesn't mean you're not entitled to use the program. Drivers are given wide latitude about the issue and will let you off if they feel it's in your best interest.