districtnews | March 2013 1

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hH Issue No. 5SpringPrinted March 2013

P u b l i s h e d b y t h e G o o d e r h a m & W o r t s N e i g h b o u r h o o d A s s o c i a t i o n

DISTRICT NEWS

ON the first day of Lowes’ Christmas Market, many residents of 39 Parl iament

were quite disturbed to f ind sound equipment located in close proximity to their windows. A quick reaction by Distillery staff resolved the issue. Here was an example of how working together can make for a better neighbourhood. This year’s market was an improvement over last year. We have better lines of communication and better pre-event discussion.

The round table (a discussion held between residents, the Distillery, and the Councillor’s office) had several meetings prior to this event. Prior to opening day the round table discussed the following issues: open fires, noise and traffic.

The open wood-burning fires had created a problem during the 2011 Christmas market. At that fair smoke entering our buildings through the ventilation systems presented a nuisance, possibly even a health risk. Some Toronto city council lors have considered following the lead of other cities by placing a ban on all wood-burning fires. These fires were also a concern to many of the merchants. A nice, cozy, romantic touch to many was annoying to others. To prevent excessive smoke, drier wood was used. I was not aware of many complaints this year regarding these fires. Noise did not receive sufficient attention at the round table. The situation described above was an example of an unforeseen situation, one we managed to resolve In future years we hope to look at sound reduction. Suitable speaker placement and volumes can ensure both a lively fair and satisfied residents. Traffic flow, while being one of the most persistent problems, was also the most difficult to solve. People

circling to find parking made it very difficult for us, as residents, to enter or leave our parking garages or to access street permit parking. It was a balancing act. We did not like the creation of new parking lots but the trade-off was drivers circling the block in search of the elusive parking spot. Solving this problem required the attention of parking enforcement, City Traffic staff, the TTC, the residents and the Distillery. At one point a parking enforcement officer attended a walkabout with members of the round table. We did manage to change some “no parking” areas to “no standing” and to get officers directing traffic at key points. Well-publicized and efficient transit would go a long way towards improving traffic flow.It is in the interests of the residents and the Distillery to ensure smooth-running events. The round table will meet soon with an eye to improvements for the next major event.If you have any comments on this or wish to have input into the round table, please contact GWNA.

RESOLVING CONFLICTING NEEDSBy Lester Brown

photo © Dan Philips

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our neighbourhood is ready to open this summer. Designed by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates Inc., it offers a range of outdoor experiences for people of all ages and interests, including bird watching, playgrounds, upland meadows, picnic areas and a solar-powered pavilion. From there Renée journeyed with us towards a work in progress - the buildings currently rising out of the ground at Cherry and Front Streets. Here Dundee /Kilmer Developments Ltd, in partnership with Waterfront Toronto and Infrastructure Ontario, have the daunting task of building a comprehensive mixed use development. This will temporarily function as the Athletes’ Village for the 2015 Pan American games, providing housing and training facilities for the athletes. After the games, most of the buildings will be remodelled as condos or affordable housing.

These buildings will include Toronto’s largest YMCA , with state-of-the-art facilities next door to George Brown College’s first student residence. Following the games, Wigwamen Community Housing Inc. and Fred Victor Mission will own and operate 253 rental units, with a move-in date of spring 2016. Along Front Street, the major east/west street linking downtown Toronto with Don River Park, a promenade will extend from Union Station to Cherry Street where it will widen to contain a linear park and apartment buildings ten to twelve stories in height. Townhouses will add a more intimate scale to the side streets. The King streetcar line will branch south down Cherry to a turning loop opposite the Distillery. As the port lands are developed, this line will be extended south and intersect with an eventual Queen’s Quay LRT line.

AROuND AND AbOuT ThE WEST DONLANDS

AN almost capacity crowd made up of residents from

39 Parliament, 33, 70 and 80 Mill Street and surrounding areas greeted guest speaker Renée Gomes, Director of Development, Waterfront Toronto, at the GWNA meeting on January 10th, 2013. Renee’s informative, illustrated presentation captured the scope of Waterfront Toronto’s ongoing development.

Initially, during the restoration of the Gooderham and Worts Distillery, residents were on high alert for issues affecting their quality of life. Currently, with Waterfront Toronto revitalization in full swing, we are once again in transition. Cranes dance overhead, street diversions, traffic issues and transit interruptions surround us. Such disruptions can make it difficult to see the bigger picture. That evening, Renée stretched our imaginations beyond our own backyard, giving shape to something larger, creating links with land east, west, north and south of us. Using a colour-coded image of Toronto Waterfront’s four areas under revitalization - the Central Waterfront, East Bayfront, West Don Lands and the Port Lands -- she took us on a journey focused mainly on West Don Lands and briefly on East Bayfront, a 55-acre site extending

from Lower Jarvis East to Parliament Street, south of the railway corridor.East Bayfront, one of the first new neighbourhoods to be developed, includes Sugar Beach, a short walk or bike-ride from Mill Street. Last summer this park, with welcoming lounging chairs and a children’s water splash area, provided a welcome respite for all age groups. A promenade links Sugar Beach to Sherbourne Common which offers a skating rink for winter fun. Between the parks, George Brown College’s innovative Health Science Campus, eight storeys high, looks out over the water. In time, when fully developed, East Bayfront will feature 6000 residential units including 1200 designated as affordable.From there Renée steered us towards the West Don Lands’ 80-acre site. The ceremony marking the start of construction of the flood protection landform, with an eye to a future Don River Park, took place back in June 25th, 2007. This spectacular 18-acre park right in

In response to questions about the sites behind 70 and 80 Mill Street, Renée told us that during the PanAm Games temporary attractive tent-like structures will be erected, serving as a media- and welcoming centre. They will be removed when the games are over. Any permanent structure on that site will be built in accordance with the precinct plan for the West Don Lands. That plan determines building height, sidewalk widths, and setback. By the end of her engaging presentation Renée had given us a lot to think about. It is almost 20 years since the provincial government took title of the West Don Lands and almost 15 years since Waterfront Toronto, funded by three levels of government, was commissioned to oversee our waterfront’s renewal. The meeting provided residents with a more meaningful context for the inconvenience of ongoing construction.

photo © Dan PhilipsLooking east toward the West Donlands development and Cherry Street reconstruction.

by Gobnait McAnoy

District News

gwna.caEDITORLester Brown

ASSISTANT EDITORS Gobnait McAnoy, Anne Hume

DESIGNERNikolas Groot

CONTRIBUTORS Lester Brown, Gobnait McAnoy, Dee Gibney, Julie Beddoes, George Hume

PHOTOGRAPHYDan Philips

DISTRICT NEWS is published four times per year by the Gooderham & Worts Neighbourhood Association and is dedicated to keeping the residents, visitors and businesses in the Distillery District informed of happenings that have or will affect their lives or livelihood.All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is prohibited without prior written permission from the publisher.

For submissions, advertising or distribution inquiries, please contact:

Lester Brown t (416)815-0893 Y districtnews@gwna.ca

Deadline for next issue is:April 15, 2013

districtnews | March 20134 districtnews | March 2013 5

AS most of we long term residents know, 39 Parl iament, along with 70

and 80 Mil l , were bui lt by a non profit organization as “no fr i l ls” condos in order to provide housing at a lower cost than market value (that story of how our community came to be next issue). I t enabled many people to enter the housing market who otherwise might not have been able to do so.

Of course , the purchase o f the un i t s was not j us t l im i ted to modest income owners . But a sp i r i t o f adventu re was p robab ly a good pre requ is i te . The o ld Gooderham and Wor ts D is t i l l e ry s i te w i th i t s charming V ic to r ian bu i ld ings a t t rac ted a d i ve rse g roup o f buyers , r i sk takers a t hear t , b e c a u s e b a c k i n t h e l a t e 1 9 9 0 ’s w h o k n e w w h a t w o u l d b e c o m e o f w h a t w a s p e rc e i v e d a s a d e s o l a t e w a s t e l a n d w h e re t h e l a n d s g l o w e d i n t h e d a r k . ( We l l t h e y d i d n ’ t re a l l y g l o w – t h a t ’s a m e t a p h o r – b u t t h e e n t i re a re a , i n c l u d i n g t h e l a r g e t r a c t n o w u n d e r d e v e l o p m e n t f o r t h e P a n A m G a m e s cons is ted o f once contamina ted land ) . Fas t fo rward 15 o r so years and we now l i ve in what has been dubbed by Toronto Magaz ine , the “h ippes t ” ne ighborhood in Toronto .S o t h a t l i t t l e b i t o f c o n t e x t u a l h i s t o r y a s i d e , b a c k t o “ n o f r i l l s ” . To e n s u re t h a t t h e o r i g i n a l t h re e c o n d o s c o u l d b e b u i l t e c o n o m i c a l l y, a l l c o s m e t i c e l e m e n t s s u c h a s f i x t u re s , t i l e s a n d a p p l i a n c e s w e re t h e l o w e s t c o s t p o s s i b l e . T h a t m e a n t d i s c o n t i n u e d f l o r a l L a u r a A s h l e y e s q u e s h o w e r t i l e s , 1 9 5 0 ’s l i n o l e u m f l o o r t i l i n g , a n d f l u o re s c e n t k i t c h e n l i g h t f i x t u re s t h a t c a s t a g re e n i s h g l o w e n s u r i n g t h a t e v e n t h e m o s t r o s y c h e e k e d a m o n g u s a p p e a r e d a g r e y - g r e e n s i c k l y p a l l o r. C a r p e t s t o c k w a s t h i n a n d h a d a l i m i t e d l i f e s p a n . F i x t u r e s w e r e b a s i c .S o n o t s u r p r i s i n g l y re n o v a t i o n s b e g a n a l m o s t a s s o o n a s t h e f i r s t re s i d e n t s m o v e d i n – a n d h a v e c o n t i n u e d f u l l f o rc e e v e r s i n c e . O u t d a t e d t i l e i s b ro k e n u p a n d n e w f l o o r i n g l a i d , n e w c a b i n e t s i n s t a l l e d , n e w f a u c e t s a n d t o i l e t s , n e w s i n k s , n e w l i g h t f i x t u re s . S o m e u n i t s a re e n t i re l y g u t t e d a n d re b u i l t . O f ten , we see the ev idence le f t downsta i rs – a to i l e t , even a ba th tub le f t by the garbage

b in , a k i tchen faucet i n the recyc l i ng room. Bes ides be ing aga ins t condo regu la t ions - and not the most ne ighbour l y th ing to do , l eav ing one ’s cas to f f s fo r someone e lse to tend to - i t ’s a waste . I t cou ld be earn ing you money.Jus t a few minutes away, a t the corner o f Car law and Lakeshore (nor th s ide ) i s the Res to re who g lad ly take in used, sa l vageab le cab ine ts , faucets , s inks , l i gh t f i x tu res , doors , bu i ld ing mate r ia l s , fu r n i tu re and home decor i tems wh ich they se l l to the pub l i c a t 50-80% o f re ta i l va lue . What ’s more they ’ l l come and p ick i t up fo r you – and you ’ l l ge t a tax rece ip t fo r the va lue o f the i tems. The p ro f i t s f rom the sa le go to Hab i ta t fo r Human i t y wh ich bu i lds homes fo r fami l i es l i v ing in subs tandard hous ing . I t ’s w in-w in a l l round.So be fo re you toss , cons ider - - the re cou ld be cash in your cupboards .

(Ed i to r ’s no te : You can read more o f Dee G ibney ’s a r t i c les in “Toronto Home” , a new “co f fee tab le” g lossy magaz ine fea tu r ing spectacu la r homes. Ava i l ab le a t most newsstands . )

Is There CAsh In Your CupboArds?By Dee Gibney

gwna membershipDiscounts available at selected Distillery merchants!

Name:

Address:

Email:

Phone:

I enclose dues of $ ($10 per annum for a resident member,$30 per annum for an associate member)

I’d like to be included on the listserv: x Yes x No

I can volunteer for community events. x Yes x No

Send completed form, with fee, to:Membership Secretary, GWNA39 Parliament St., #101, Toronto, Ontario M5A 4R2 or give to any board member.

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MORE ThAN AN ADDRESS: A COMMuNITyBy Julie Beddoes

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Cafeunotoronto416-980-21828

IT’S hard to believe that twelve years have passed since a

lively meeting of newcomers to the Distillery District decided to start a neighbourhood association.

The main impulse at the t ime was to make ourselves visible, to have our concerns recognized when City plans were made. But even more urgent was the need to have a voice in discussions of the City’s bid for the 2008 Olympics. We would have been sandwiched between the media vi l lage and the big main stadium – and nobody seemed to know we were here.They know now. GWNA, through the work of its activists over the years and the support of our growing community, has become a strong and respected voice at City Hall and in all consultations on waterfront development. The benefits are visible all around us including traffic lights at Eastern and Trinity, landscaping along Mill St., better parking regulations, West Don Lands and waterfront plans that consider our needs. In the next few months we look forward to designing improvements to Mill Street to make it safer and more attractive; to working with Distillery owners on their plans for further developments; and to getting started on a vision for the future of the First Parliament site. But looking back to spring 2001 when it all started, I think we old-timers would agree that the biggest benefits having an association has brought us are the friendships, the sense of belonging, of having a stake, that people often say isn’t possible for downtown apartment-dwellers. As more and more people move into our neighbourhood we want to make sure that it stays friendly with a strong community spirit as well as being dynamic, exciting, entertaining and increasingly beautiful. Our neighbourhood association is a proven way to make sure this happens. If you are not already a member, fil l out the membership form; if you are, persuade your neighbour to do so.By the way, membership brings more than a voice in developments and a strong, vibrant community; it pays for itself. Show your

membership card at Disti l lery businesses and restaurants and enjoy a discount.Keep an eye open for notices of GWNA events; come hear our interesting and informative speakers; make new friends at our social events; join our board or volunteer in any way that appeals to you. We’re looking forward to meeting you.

GOODERHAM & WORTS NEIGHBOURHOOD

ASSOCIATION (GWNA) INC.NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

You are hereby notified that the annual general meeting of the members of the

Gooderham & Worts Neighbourhood Association will be held at:

80 MILL STREET, 2nd FLOORon

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Registration at 6:00 P.M.Start of Meeting at 7:00 P.M.

The Purpose of the Meeting:• Elect resident members to the board of directors• Set membership fees for the following year• Receive a treasurer’s report• Receive an annual report from the President, and• Receive an annual report from the Vice President External• Constitutional Ammendments will also be discussed

(copies available from Board members)

Keynote speaker and other details to follow.

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mr. fix it By George Hume

W ater in Toronto is cheap, but it is not free. E lec t r i c i t y i s expens ive and l i ke l y to become more so . Sav ing

both i s good fo r the env i ronment , fo r the condos and u l t imate l y fo r you .When you heat water, measure it f irst. Only heat what you intend to use. I f you are making a cup of tea or coffee, don’t boi l a quart ( l i tre). I f you use an electric jug, you have to heat a minimum so the element doesn’t overheat, but don’t put in more than that i f you do not need it.You can brush your teeth wi th one cup of water. Try i t , you may l i ke i t . Compare tha t w i th how much wate r you use i f you le t the tap run wh i l e brushing.I f you use an e lectr ic toothbrush, charge i t on ly when i t starts to s low down; probably a couple of weeks or more. I t lengthens the l i fe of the battery and saves e lectr ic i ty.

These are a few ideas to get you thinking about ways to conserve. I f you send me your suggestions I’ l l include them in future columns. <george.hume@rogers.com>

SAVING ELECTRICITy AND WATER

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