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Newsstand: June 3, 2011
Illustration by Sasha Plotnikova/Torontoist.
It’s Friday, also known as ‘so close you can taste it.’ And apparently some folks just couldn’t wait for the weekend. Today’s news: Rob Ford won’t be flying to Halifax on wings of gravy, Torontonians oppose road tolls and Toronto girls rock it when it comes to spelling and creating video games.
It’s been at least a couple of days since the rest of Canada had a reason to hate Toronto, so here’s a twofer. Municipal leaders from across the country will be meeting in Halifax for the annual gathering of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, but there will be a noticeable absence from the room: our own mayor and crusader against all things gravy, Rob Ford. A dozen councillors, including prominent handout-loving downtowners as well as a few of Ford’s allies, will be making the trek to represent the city, discuss issues affecting Canadian municipalities, and chow down on lobster, presumably while smoking cigars and laughing raucously.
But you can forgive Ford for not attending, he’s got bigger issues to deal with. For example, writing a letter to the NHL to let the league know Toronto is open to having a second NHL team. The economic development committee voted to have the mayor write to the NHL, a request initially suggested by councillor Josh Colle (Ward 15, Eglinton-Lawrence ). Ford, who is for some reason a Leafs fan, says he would would want to make sure Toronto’s tee time hoggers original hockey team wouldn’t be harmed by a potential second team. Colle has suggested the new team could play outside the city centre to attract a different crowd than the latte-sipping urbanites that frequent Leafs games.
Good news for cyclists, good news for motorists, bad news for the six or seven people that might ride Rob Ford’s proposed Sheppard subway line extension: A recent poll finds Torontonians oppose road tolls to fund the proposed line, but overwhelmingly support Ford’s plan to install separated bike lanes on some downtown streets. We’re not actually getting sick of playing “Car Doors n’ Asphalt,” are we?
The days of fun in the sun in the playground at ArtScape Wychwood Barns may be numbered. A group of mothers in the area calling themselves the Shady Ladies (and thus having clearly never lived in the Jarvis and Gerrard area) are raising funds to get giant sails put up in the currently shadeless park to offer kids some relief from the sun. Councillor Joe Mihevc (Ward 21, St. Paul’s), who is securing city funding to help the project, hopes this might instigate similar solutions for other sweltering parks. After all, what’s good for the Middle East is good for Toronto.
And in “Aw shucks, ain’t that cute” news, a five-year-old Toronto girl has created a flash game that is taking the Internet by storm. Conceptualized by Cassie Creighton, Sissy’s Magical Ponycorn Adventure, which looks sort of like an interactive, cutesy version of Salad Fingers, has been played over 150,000 times in a week. And coupled with grade eight student Laura Newcombe’s second place finish in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, it’s a proud day for Toronto girls.