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Newsstand: May 22, 2012
Slap some aloe on that shoulder burn (that you deserve for getting too ambitious with the tank tops so early in the season) and get back to business, it's Tuesday now. In the news: royal tour trots on, the City says no to turning Woodbine into soccer central over Canada Day, U of T's neighbours don't want a new private student residence in the 'hood, YWCA opens housing for women, and more robocalls in Etobicoke Centre.
There are royals in our midst, as Prince Charles and Camilla are in town royally visiting things and taking flowers from children. For day two of their visit, the pair took in a fireworks show at Ashbridge’s Bay. On Tuesday’s agenda for the royals: handing out medals, looking at some guns, lunch, a visit to the Yonge Street Mission, meeting with First Nations leaders, looking at more guns, and then off to Regina.
As if any other news even matters right now, we’ll move on.
According to Boardwalk Pub owner George Foulidis, nothing says “Happy Canada Day!” quite like a bunch of Brits playing soccer on AstroTurf. Foulidis holds lease rights for the entire Eastern Beaches, and he planned to use them to accommodate bleachers, TVs, and English soccer players at Woodbine Beach during the Euro Cup this summer, which overlaps with Canada Day. But the City has decided it won’t allow the soccer stuff to get in the way of the beach needs. Some of the English soccer players are upset, seeing as how they’d already booked flights and hotel rooms. But really, the City is sparing them the agony of removing sand from their cleats and shin guards. You’re welcome.
Developer David Lehberg told the Globe that the 24-storey private residence his Knightstone Capital Management hopes to build on land leased from U of T “is not going to be some privately run wild circus.” We think he meant “animal house,” but never mind. The point is, neighbours in the College/Spadina/Huron area are none too pleased with the potential development, animal house or wild circus (or private residence that only permits registered students from U of T and maybe Ryerson) or whatever it is. The rezoning proposals goes to the Ontario Municipal Board in August. The neighbours will probably be there too.
A less-contentious new housing development will be opening its doors Tuesday, as the YWCA officially welcomes residents into its new 300-unit building. The affordable housing development is geared towards low-income and at-risk women and it is right downtown on Elm Street. Almost all the units are already full.
Just hours after a judge threw out the election results in Etobicoke Centre, some residents say they were robocalled. The election results, which saw Conservative Ted Opitz take the seat with just 26 votes over Liberal Borys Wrzesnewskyj, weren’t thrown out over the whole robocalling thing exactly, but still, the optics for Opitz and the Cons aren’t great. Residents say the most recent robocalls were asking how they would vote should the next step be a by-election. No party was named in the calls.