January 17, 2007
Enrollment Rates Skyrocket, Miller Denounces OMB Decision, I'll Man YOUR Hole, RV Parks Are For Lovers
Almost 80,000 high school students applied to Ontario universities this year, and the universities are using the surge as a powerful bargaining chip. If you're a student of the University of Toronto, you'll know that the current strategy for dealing with this increase in enrollment is to pack the students in tight. With their debt climbing into the $100-million range, universities are demanding financial assistance from the government or they will stop accepting so many students. What now?
Ready for a fight? David Miller denounces the Ontario Municipal Board's decision to support the buiding of 5 condo towers on Queen West. "The time has come to abolish the OMB now," says Christopher Hume. Put down your microbrewery beer and tie your Chucks on: it's time to raise a hipster army.
Winners of the Regent Park Grounds for Art manhole cover competition were announced: DeMuth Flake won for his storm sewer cover design, Xin Xu for sanitary system covers, and Rene Zamic for water valve covers. The designs will be showcased at the Toronto Free Gallery (660 Queen Street East) until January 21.
Councillor Case Ootes of Ward 29 (Toronto Danforth) proposes building an RV park downtown to encourage tourism. Currently, the nearest RV park is in Scarborough, and Ootes argues that the city would benefit by having a campground near the Ex or Downsview Park. Not a bad idea, actually: it would probably work better than all those other tourism schemes they've tried out since SARS.
Photo courtesy of noaman on Flickr.
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Re: "Put down your microbrewery beer and tie your Chucks on: it's time to raise a hipster army."
I can’t tell what this comment is supposed to mean, but I do know that the issues here should concern more than just 'hipsters', even people who never spend any time on Queen West.
Developers, backed by the OMB, are the defacto city planners in Toronto and they don’t want our input. This has to change.
I can only hope that Case devotes his life to trailer parks in the future. That would be so nice.
Let's pave over the waterfront so people can park their RVs!
Case Ootes won't ever devote his life to trailer parks! Too many poor people. Who ride bicycles.
By the way, the Bohemian Embassy website (click at your peril) resizes my browser window, and there is a special place in hell for companies that hijack browser windows.
I can just hear the boardroom joke now: "Ha ha, let's resurface that area of Queen with a big, ugly condo and call it bohemian! Hahahaha! Oh, wait -- that's not such a bad idea."
We're organizing a Community Forum on gentrification in Parkdale on Monday January 22.
The panel features Matthew Blackett (Spacing), Misha Glouberman (Trampoline Hall), Craig Peskett (Parkdale Residents Association), Victor Willis (Parkdale Activity - Recreation Centre), Margaret Zeidler (Urbanspace Property Group), and is moderated by Carl Wilson (The Globe and Mail).
More info here:
http://www.myspace.com/parkdaleliberty
Once again, I will point out that this development, unlike most others, includes 199 units of affordable housing, which the developer will build in conjunction with St. Clare's Multifaith Housing. In a city with a waiting list for housing over 67,000 names long, we cannot ignore this aspect of the issue.
Does it stink that we might have to choose between an arts district and affordable housing? You bet it does. But we can only cure the stink by finding a solution, not by talking about the problem as though it did not involve any issues of affordable housing.
Once again... the proposed development for Queen West includes 199 units of affordable housing which the developer will build in conjuntion with the well respected St. Clare's Multifaith Housing.
You do not have to like the OMB or this decision. I think it stinks that we have to choose between a lively arts district and 199 units of affordable housing. But in a city with over 67,000 names on the waiting list for housing, it simply does not do to ignore this aspect of the issue.
Only 199 units?
Only 199 units. A grossly inadequate response to the housing crisis. And before you ask, yes, I think it stinks that the city has, in effect, had to give up a massive density increase and throw in a subsidy to get those 199 units. In fact, I can only think of one thing worse than getting only 199 units: not getting any affordable housing units at all.
"I can only think of one thing worse than getting only 199 units: not getting any affordable housing units at all."
That could still happen. They can only build the affordable rental units if they win the gov't funding. If they don't get the funding, there's a good chance that one tower could become just more condos.