world19News #156 |
| email us to : - subscribe to our newsletter or to send us your
|
world19News This e-mail is going to people on the mailing list for world19. If you don't want to receive further notices, please reply to this e-mail with "remove" in the subject. Let us know if you prefer to receive this in "plain text" format. Please forward this to anyone you think may be interested. In this issue: 1. BLOOR WEST VILLAGE RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION: Meeting
Nov. 16 This is a great neighbourhood! Let's help keep it that way! The Bloor West Village Residents Association invites you to
its first public meeting with Guest Speaker: Tuesday, November 16, 7:30pm Plan to attend! Let's discuss how we can all work together to keep our neighbourhood livable, vibrant and healthy. * The new BWVRA will provide a forum for local residents to
voice and debate issues of importance to the Bloor West Village community Informed & Active Residents Keep Neighbourhoods Strong Note: please pass this note on to people or organizations you think may be interested. The website above has a downloadable flyer. If you would like to help distribute the flyer, please email info@bwvra.ca
2. APPEAL: HELP FOR A MOTHERS' GROUP The following note comes from one of our subscribers. If anyone has ideas, suggestions or information, you can email world19. I was wondering whether any world19 people might know of any place where our Mum's group could meet in the winter. It was started in a church by Public Health but it only runs for 6 weeks so we've been trying to keep it going as a very important support group for each other and our babies. There is also a rumour that Public Health may be discontinuing the groups for new mothers which has many of us very upset as it is such a valuable and important resource for new Mums. Does anyone know anything about this? Nobody seems very clear about this. Some have suggested that it would be discontinued only in Toronto or is it a provincial decision as Public Health is supposed to be, and therefore occurring across Ontario? Or, is it all nonsense? I Anyway, if anyone has any information on this we would be most grateful!
3. SWANSEA PUBLIC SCHOOL CRAFT SALE - Nov. 20
4. PARK NOTES b) Park Day - Nov 7 The parks closest to this area are: - Trinity Bellwoods Park. Event at Trinity Community Recreation Centre, 155 Crawford St. 2-4:00 pm - Centennial Park. Event at Etobicoke Olympium, 590 Rathburn Rd. 10-12:00 noon.
5. BLOOR WEST VILLAGE VISIONING STUDY Councillor Saundercook initiated this project in reaction to residents' concerns about the initial Humber development proposal, as well as what it might mean for future development. A similar situation in Yorkville resulted in a community "visioning study" exploring issues regarding potential development and its impact on existing residential and commercial areas. The purpose was to involve the community in considering issues such as what is appropriate development (and what is not) in the area, given the continuing pressure for redevelopment and intensfication along the main corridors of Toronto, while considering ways to strengthen and preserve the best of the existing community. The facilitators, Office for Urbanism were also hired for the Yorkville study (and co-incidentally, the architect of the development at issue there is the same firm now doing the Humber theatre site). There have been a number of meetings of the Steering Committee, and in late June, there was a workshop involving some a number of other community members. At this point, a draft document, assembled by the facilitators based on discussions and proposals to date is being finalized. A large public presentation and consultation meeting is scheduled for November 29. This date (and location) still need to be confirmed. We will post information about this as soon as we can. We also intend to post the draft document on our website prior to the meeting.
6. HUMBER THEATRE DEVELOPMENT (part 1) The Villager reported on much of the content of the meeting (see http://www.insidetoronto.ca/to/bloorw/story/2290755p-2654531c.html). The developer's representative, lawyer Adam Brown revealed a scaling-down and redesign from the initial proposal. Height has been reduced from 13 to 10 stories, and the original 92 units are now 50. The proposal still involves a health club on floors 2-3. A new architect, Harry Pontarini of Hariri Pontarini Architects has been hired, and he presented a heavily-glassed modernist design Among the Issues raised at the meeting: - Traffic problems included the expected impact of the health club business, and problems with using the narrow back service lane as the building's sole access. Others worried that the development would make worse already existing problems incuding traffic on the adjacent neighbourhood streets, and the problems of turns from Riverview Gardens either east on Bloor or south on South Kingsway. - Height/Density: The proposal will be 7x density, perhaps greater than any other development in the area except for the planned Meow Club site. Many people suggested reducing the height further (and/or removing the health club). - Design The initial design deservedly had almost no supporters (including the City's Planning department). The revised plans, using a prominent architectural firm is a great improvement, but it still had many critics at the meeting. Many suggested that the design should be more in keeping with what was felt to be the "Bloor West Village" character: brick and traditional materials. See below for comments from one of our readers who argues for such an approach. Another of our readers, an architect, told us he strongly supported the current design. Among his reasons was his thought that the narrower tower with glass created a much lighter and airier presence than a heavy brick structure, citing the infamous Huang and Danczy towers by Harbourfront as an example of the potential obtrusiveness of of brick structures. The developer will soon officially submit plans to the city for review. The city departments are expected to review them and put together their reports for a first "official" public meeting in 6-8 weeks. Some links that may be of interest:
7. VARIOUS LOCAL NOTES: One of them cornered Ward 13 Councillor Saundercook at the recent BIA Annual General Meeting to complain that DSR's are supposed to be limited to 25% of total floor space (he claimed the Fan's was over half the total space), and are not supposed to contain food or beverage preparation areas (there's a bar in the area). "I've lost every one of my smokers", he claimed, "they just walk a few doors down the street. I don't mind the new bylaw, as long as it's a level playing field". We'll watch how this develops. b) 2109 Bloor We reported in newsletter #155 (www.newsletters.world19.com) about the liquor application for 2109 Bloor that has some neighbours concerned because of the rumoured size of the establishment. A subscriber reported that the same night our newsletter went out, both front windows were smashed in. We hope we weren't a motivator. c) Raccoon hint d) Graffiti e) Hello, this is Boris the Mover Scroll down about halfway, or search for "Best Price Movers A Go-Go". Those tempted to call Best Price to have their phone number removed from their call list might reconsider after reading others stories. What puzzles me is that in the last 2 weeks, I've passed 3 of their trucks, one driving down my street. Who actually hires these guys??
8. HUMBER SITE DEVELOPMENT - Wynns Lose See http://www.goldencockroach.org
9. HUMBER SITE DEVELOPMENT - comment My objective is to get the general public involved by thinking and discussing the design of their environment. In this case, residents shouldn't feel they must resign themselves to defeat, thinking it's a done deal. They need to be encouraged to speak up and join in on the dialogue. Thanks for the great email and web service that you've been providing to residents of the west end over the past several years. (world19@world19.com) Your latest bulletin alerted me just in time to the second meeting related to the Humber Theatre site. I attended last night's meeting, which presented the developer's second crack at trying to work with this difficult site. I believe the unveiling of the latest design was a great disappointment to the majority of the attendees. That's probably understating it. I don't think the modernist design proposed, with its ugly concrete party wall on its west and east sides, is what the Bloor West Village/Swansea community really envisions for this prominent corner. Replacing the nondescript Humber Theatre with another eyesore is not a positive move for the community as a whole. Jane and Bloor is truly the gateway to the Bloor West Village. It can't be this. Many residents are still concerned with the proposal's impact on traffic patterns and parking related to the inclusion of a fitness club as part of the development. The latest proposal has been pared down from 13 to 10 storeys, but many folks are concerned that squeezing in 50 units on an 80 foot wide site is inappropriate. I support the OP's goals of intensification along recognized avenues, but this specific site raises some serious issues. I'm personally concerned that this latest design has some serious aesthetic shortcomings and won't compliment or enhance the neighbourhood overall architectural form. While the adjacent buildings may not give the architect the best clues as to what the development should be, the more traditional forms of the area's bank buildings (or former ones) on the corners of Runnymede or Windermere for example, with their brick facades and keystone features of the lintels and windows should be considered as inspiration. I completely understood what one resident said last night, that the proposal in its current form, doesn't have the feeling or "texture" that Bloor West Village exudes. Think brick, think awnings, think human scale form - not a multi-storeyed glass façade (fitness club portion), that won't access or relate to the immediate streetscape. The glass balconies proposed for the residential levels may work successfully on those lake side condos, but it may not be completely appropriate here. One could argue that, near by recently completed buildings, such as Brule (across from the Old Mill car dealer), the Kensington condo building across from Old Mill TTC station or the Montgomery further west in the Kingsway compliment and work far better in their overall design and integration with their surroundings. I think the community must rally aggressively to Councillor Saundercook about 1) continuing to reduce the height of the building so that 10 storeys doesn't set a precedent for future developments in Bloor West Village and 2) ensure the architect tips his hat to the neighbourhood's more traditional architectural forms and finishes rather than trying to impose a glass and concrete modernist box solution. Yes, the site might impose a tight fit but the current proposal is hardly a worthy solution. I look with interest as to what the Bloor West Village Design Study working group has in mind when it tables its report (I believe it's today). Toronto continues to build rather uninspiring buildings which are all too often out of context with the immediate neighbourhood's form. Don't let this become another example. Bloor West Village must remain just that - a village. Currently, its buildings work together to form and support a small town neighbourhood atmosphere. This proposal is a mistake. It must be significantly scaled down or radically altered to adhere to a more traditional form. I hope your other readers will explore what is being planned for the Humber Theatre site corner and raise their voices should they agree that the latest proposal isn't what they want to see. Thanks, Andrew Alexeichenko
|