City sells "the McDonald's site" on Bloor for a fairly low price. However, Adam Vaughan insists there are upsides to the deal, such as being able to limit the height of the condo development that will take its place, because who would want tall buildings in the downtown core? Patrick Swayze has pancreatic cancer. Although initial reports that he has "weeks to live" were apparently false, pancreatic cancer is still one of the deadliest......

A variety of opportunities for residents to help out the victims of the Queen West fire have been popping up all over the city. Right now, the best way you can participate is to walk into any Scotiabank location and make a cash donation to the newly-established Queen Street Fire Fund––effective today, the fund set up by the City of Toronto will assist all of the residents affected by the fire––but as Ward 20......

Selected quotes from "Toronto's Type and Tile Heritage" by Edward Keenan, from the November 14th issue of Eye Weekly: Joe Clark: "The trick is trying to prevent the destruction of the subway system as we know it. What are these [TTC] commissioners doing, exactly? Through malign neglect, they are beginning a 35-year process of destruction. Because if they make over Pape station so that it doesn’t match any of the other stations, if they......

If there is one thing Toronto is world-class in and world-renowned for, it is dance music. Toronto sees some of the world's most famous international music acts play its bars and clubs every weekend, and according to a recent article in Toronto Life, they bring with them at least $125 million in economic activity. Well, music enthusiasts, bartenders, club district employees, club owners, event promoters, and young people beware: a nightlife crackdown is coming......

From mid-September through year-end, all City Community Centres will be closed on Mondays. Skating rinks won't open until January. Fewer potholes will be repaired. Snow won't be cleared unless there is at least 15 cm of it (the current minimum is 8 cm). New materials from Public Health will only be available in English. Welcome to the new Toronto, where you get what you (and the provincial and federal governments) pay for—or won't get what......

Last night at City Hall, Councillor Adam Vaughan conceded defeat in the fight to keep the John Street Roundhouse from becoming a big box retail outlet. He withdrew his motion [PDF] calling for a temporary freeze on the redevelopment of the Roundhouse into a Leon's outlet. The news derails a movement against the proposed furniture store that had been gathering steam recently. First, a Friends of the Roundhouse group, which included former Mayor David......

First incandescent light bulbs, now toilets: at the recommendation of David Miller, the Ontario government will consider banning conventional toilets to promote low-flush toilets. Low-flushies use only 6 litres of water per flush, while regular toilets will use anywhere from 13-25 litres to flush. Not only would the ban save Toronto 26 million litres of water per day, it would eliminate the need for $60 million in water and sewage-treatment capacity. Here's a ban......

Love or loathe the spindly structure on the OCAD grounds, you'll have a chance to speak to one of the minds behind the Alsop North America creation tomorrow evening courtesy of Salon Voltaire. Bringing together interesting speakers, good food and lively discussion, Salon Voltaire reprises the days of Enlightenment and encourages intellectual curiosity through a series of events. Starting off the new season is Gregory Woods, Director of SMC Alsop North America, and Adam......

When we last tuned in, Adam Vaughan had just quit his job as CityTV's Political Reporter to run for City Council. He won and now represents Ward 20. Now he's back on television with a new monthly version of his old show, Hour Town on CP24. As the title suggests, it's an hour-long program about the goings on at City Hall. It's also a call-in show, so you can expect to hear lively debates about......

Torontonians are, to say the least, an opinionated bunch. So instead of a simple "Best Of" list to cap 2006 off, the Torontoist staffers have racked their brains about everything (books, songs, restaurants, people, places, stores, newspapers, politicians, musicians, and a lot more) to bring you their choices for the very best and the very worst of our city this past year. It's Torontoist Love/Hate 2006, and you can find a new one every......

These seats are empty now, but they won't be after today, as Mayor Miller and the 44 other city councillors take office. We found out recently that councillors are seated randomly, which explains why during the last council term loyal lefty Adam Giambrone sat right next to dogged mayoral critic Denzil Minnan-Wong. We're curious where Adam Vaughan will be sitting; we hope it's right next to tree advocate and Front Street Extension booster Joe......

The Toronto Public Space Committee's excellent new Municipal Elections website contains a veritable treasure trove of information about each candidate in the 2006 election (and a pretty sexy Google maps mashup). The site also features sometimes-hilarious quotations from and anecdotes about our to-be-elected officials in poster format. We have selected some gems from the site for your reading pleasure: Ward 20: "[Adam Vaughan] is on record as wanting to gate alleyways in the ward, including......

Yesterday, Torontoist attended a Ward 20 Trinity-Spadina candidates meeting at the University of Toronto. Present were Adam Vaughan, Desmond Cole, Chris Ouellette, and Doug Lowry. Helen Kennedy was unable to make the it due to an illness that is apparently affecting every other candidate as well, Trinfluenza. Topics covered ranged from Chris Ouellette's "blanket the city with streetcar rights-of-way" to the "...because you're a conservative, Doug Lowry!" bomb dropped by Adam Vaughan. Desmond Cole's......

A man was stabbed to death in North York at a party celebrating Ghana's victory over the USA at the World Cup. Apparently gang colours may have been a trigger for the tragic attack. A memorial to the victims of the Air India bombing has started construction in a Toronto park. Bombardier defends itself against its rivals and their claims that they can build the TTC's subway cars cheaper. Siemens acknowledges that its estimates might......

The last time a vote was this close the Supreme Court had to be called in. Last night's Downtown and East York final for City Idol went to three ballots and a run-off before Desmond Cole (shown here in between Boy Reporter and fellow finalist Karen Sun) was picked by a raucous crowd at Lula Lounge to be downtown Toronto's first City Idol. Cole will be running in Ward 20 alongside former TV broadcaster......

Is this what the Annex could've looked like? The above rendering is what the vibrant corner of Bloor and Spadina would've looked like if the Spadina Expressway had been built and just one example of how close this city came to making one of its largest planning blunders. Tomorrow night Spacing Magazine pays tribute to the people who helped stop the highway, and just how Toronto has been shaped and continues to be shaped......

The OPP report that 800 traffic tickets were given out on this province's busy highways. The worst offenders included a woman not wearing a seatbelt to be able to play with her chihuahua, and a driver in his underwear holding a bottle of vodka. Six teens attacked a woman selling fireworks out of her truck. They set her vehicle on fire nearly killing her and her son. The six teens, all between 14 and 19,......

Adam Vaughan has put down his camera and picked up his political boxing gloves. He filed his nomination papers and is now an official candidate in Trinity-Spadina, the ward vacated by Olivia Chow when she was elected to Parliament earlier in the year. Long-time community activist Tam Goosens and former Olivia Chow assistant Helen Kennedy are also slated to run in the ward. Media outlets are drooling over the fact that one of their own......

City Idol is gearing up for its first big event. This Friday at the Danforth Music Hall all 100 candidates will strut their stuff with one-minute speechlets introducing themselves to the crowd of potential Simon Cowells and Paula Abduls. To get a preview check out CP24 9pm this Wednesday night where six random candidates will be grilled by Adam Vaughan. Full confession, Boy Reporte is a candidate and very very excited but he's also hoping......

Torontoist was watching Hour Town, Adam Vaughan's local affairs show last night when the bespectacled host made an off-the-cuff remark about "the romance of the Red Rocket." He was apparently referring to a caller's comments about enjoying the lakeside view on the Harbourfront streetcar line. Which got us thinking are there any particular routes/parts of routes on the TTC that you dear Torontoist reader find especially romantic? Does your heart go aflutter when the streetcar......

While Torontoist was busy at the back of the uTOpia launch making marshmallow towers and Libeskind-inspired "crystals," great panellists were chatting about the city. The newly launched Rabble Book Lounge recorded one of the panels (Discussing Public Space with Darren O'Donnell, Dave Meslin, Heather MacLean and Adam Vaughan). You can get it here.......