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Weekend Newsstand: July 3, 2010
Illustration by Matt Daley/Torontoist.
More than one million people will fill Yonge Street for the Pride Parade this weekend. Rainbow flags and flashy costumes will be a welcome change from the tension and ill will felt during the G20, not to say that Pride doesn’t have its own roots in political activism. Even though Pride celebrates diversity and equal rights, the mass arrests of last weekend, where some members of the gay community felt singled out, may remind some of the raid of four bathhouses resulting in the arrest of nearly three hundred men back in 1981. Still, Pride will be a party of inclusion. Said one man sure to attend: “It’s like a group hug for a million people.” And if you haven’t yet, check out our Pride Primer.
Congestion and economic woes are strengthening the voice for generating funds to avoid transit mayhem in the GTA. The average commute here is eighty minutes, which outshines Los Angeles and eighteen other major cities. The Toronto City Summit Alliance will release a report on Monday, emphasizing the benefits of tolls and taxes, which could raise one to two billion dollars for transit improvements annually. The report outlines twelve “money-making schemes,” which include a regional gas tax and a levy for commercial parking. The report will be discussed by stakeholders on July 15.
On Sunday morning, more than one hundred people will congregate at the site of the worst plane crash in the GTA’s history to lay 109 roses for the victims of Air Canada Flight 621 and discuss a memorial to be completed in 2012. Air Canada erected a memorial at Mount Pleasant Cemetery, but hasn’t found it necessary to mark the crash site itself. Forty years later, after efforts from a Brampton resident, the companies planning to build homes on the land decided to fund a memorial on the site.
Casa Loma is likely to see a renaissance in 2012, with restoration work underway for more than ten years, but it could also see a change in management. After years of squabbling, City Council will decide whether it wants to keep its partnership with Kiwanis Club, which has been managing the castle since the 1930s. Reports of mishandled funds, botched projects, and a drop in attendance are prompting the council to possibly look elsewhere for the first time in decades.
Pride isn’t the only festival kicking off this weekend. You can also get a taste of Italy at the thirteenth annual Corso Italia Fiesta on St. Clair Street. The food may be Italian, but there will be musical acts from around the world. The Taste of Lawrence is also being held at the other end of the city. With all the festivities, there are bound to be road closures. Make sure you take a look so you don’t get caught up in the celebrations if you were planning on being somewhere else. Although maybe that wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.