http://www.facebook.com/bloordaletimesAPRIL 2013 VOLUME 1 ISSUE 3

Neighbourhood news worth repeating

BY DARRYN O’MALLEYdarryn17@hotmail.com

The revitalization of the Salem and Westmoreland Parkettes in 2014 will mean new playground facilities and outdoor fitness equipment for Bloordale resi-dents.

Councillor Ana Bailão held

a meeting to discuss the recon-struction and rejuvenation pro-cess of the parkettes at the Do-vercourt Boys and Girls Club on March 26 before submitting the plan for next year’s capital bud-get.

“We have a lot of young fami-lies moving into the neighbour-hood, so creating spaces where

people can come together, and places where these families can take their kids as well, is really great,” said Bailão.

Planning began in 2012 with several community audits and design reviews with local orga-nization GreenHere and Ryerson University architecture students prior to final construction drafts

being released.Bailão said the parkette up-

grades will not only unite the community, but increase green space as well.

“We don’t have many parks in our area,” she said. “When somebody develops in our...

see STEEL GARDEN page 3

INSIDEBROADWAY CYCLE MOVES

UP AND ONWARDSMainstay bike shop finds more

space to show off their gearPage 4

GUIDE TO A BETTER, SAFER BICYLCE EXPERIENCE

The ABCs on how to give your bike a good checkup

Page 10

GIVE YOUR GARDEN A BOOST THIS SPRING

Tips from a gardening expert revealed to the community

Page 6

LOCAL ARTIST TO DIG STEEL

GARDENBloor St. will see steel flowers

imbedded into its surface

BY MICHAEL OSEIsmch0020@humbermail.ca

Dyan Marie is collecting flower drawings created by residents of the Bloordale community with plans to immortalize them in a Bloor St. sidewalk in stainless steel form.

Marie is a professional art-ist and has lived in the Bloordale neighbourhood for 21 years. The community garden was inspired by neighbourhood meetings where residents were vocal about promoting a green environment along with displays of public art.

“It involves hundreds of people; it added a public art element to the neighbourhood and it was a community art project that sym-bolized a garden,” Marie said.

The majority of the garden will be at the corner of Brock and Bloor streets, Marie said. She added it will act as a green path-way linking to Susan Tibaldi Par-kette.

PARKETTE REDESIGN DETAILS REVEALED

TIMES

THE

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see PARKETTE page 2

02

News

The Bloordale Times April 2013

BY PAOLO SERPEpaolo1044@hotmail.com

Bloordale community members gath-ered to listen and speak with the Clean Train Coalition’s lawyer, Saba Ahmad, about the continued fight against Metro-linx’s plan to run diesel trains on the Union Pearson Express line.

It wasn’t a large turnout at Indian Road Crescent Junior Public School, but every one of the 26 residents who attended the West Bend Community Association-host-ed event on March 20 was eager to ask questions and hear the latest news.

One of the main topics of discussion was the detrimental effect diesel trains would have on the Weston community. During the meeting, it was echoed by many that air and noise pollution, and vibration from the tracks, could affect the house-holds - including condos, apartments and houses - that sit very close to the tracks.

With plans to run trains 20 hours a day seven days a week, a train would pass, from either direction, once every seven and a half minutes, according to Suri Weinberg-Linksy, co-chair of the Weston Community Coalition and Weston resi-dent.

Metrolinx plans on building five-metre high sound walls, as well as welding the tracks and laying down special blanket

beds to help reduce vibration. Anyone living above the

third or fourth floor in an apartment or condo won’t have any protection what-soever from the sound, as it will rise above the walls, said Weinberg-Linksy.

Ike Zimbel, a resident whose home faces the tracks and has worked in audio for over 35 years, doesn’t think the walls will do much of any-thing to prevent noise pollu-tion.

“They took out the ambi-ent noise of the area for their noise pollution study…when the model they used specifi-cally says to include it, with a charting showing how ambi-ent noise should be factored in,” said Zimbel.

As for the air pollution, it is argued by Weinberg-Linksy, respirable particles that are emitted from diesel trains, are the greatest concern to public health.

“Think of the children under 18 years of age, who will be breathing this crap in, it will stay in their systems forever,” said Weinberg-Linksy.

Metrolinx completed a study show-ing that electric trains would be able to run more frequently and at faster speeds. However Metrolinx insists that diesel is the only method that could be implemented in time for the 2015 Pan American Games, which will be held in Toronto. After that event, the plan is to convert the line to electric trains by 2017. The cost of conversion would be $440 million.

COMMUNITY MEMBERS CONTINUE DEBATE FOR ELECTRIC TRAINS

...neighbourhood, they pay more than they do in other parts of the city.”

New developers in the Bloordale area pay roughly five per cent more than they do in other Toronto neighbourhoods, and that money is strictly allocated to investing in parks or newly acquired land.

“Unfortunately, in our neighbour-hood, it’s not very often we can acquire new land, so we make sure our parks are great,” Bailão said.

Netami Stuart, a landscape architect for the City of Toronto, said her three goals for revamping the fairly modest parkettes were to open up the views, unify the three parks and promote phys-

ical activity.Removing unwelcoming fences and

visual barriers from the parkettes will attract more people, she said.

“If you walk along a main retail street in the city, you never enter the stores you can’t see into,” Stuart said. “If the store has posters in its windows and you don’t know what’s inside, you’re unlikely to go into that place. It’s the same thing with parks.”

The renovated parkettes are projected to include outdoor fitness equipment, new lighting structures, a drinking foun-tain, a playground for children and an area available for community gardening.

“I think these [parkettes] will be the next phase in the beautification process of this neighbourhood,” Bailão said.

PARKETTE from page 1

A community residents group hosts a meeting offering the latest news and concerns about the plan to install a diesel train line through the neighborhood

We are currently selectively expanding our roster!

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Several community members sit in Indian Road Crescent Jr. Public School’s gym to voice their concerns about diesel trains. Photo by Paolo Serpe

“Think of the children under 18 years of age, who will be breathing

this crap in, it will stay in their systems forever.”

Suri Weinberg-LinksyWeston Community Coalition

There is a place for kids to be creative and have fun, and it is out of this world.

Story Planet (1165 Bloor St. W.) may not actually be that far out of this world - located just west of Dufferin subway station on Bloor St. - but it does create a unique and welcom-ing environment for kids in the Bloordale community to express their creative voices.

Liz Haines, Editor in Chief at Story Planet also known as “Alien Chieftess” in the build-

ing, said their goal is to give kids a voice through literacy and art.

“The goal of what we do is to make every-one feel welcome and to eliminate any barri-ers,” Haines said.

Everyday after school, there are different workshops offered, ranging from homework support to writing clubs and even art port-folio classes, where students interested in pursuing art further in their education are of-fered information that they may not have had access to at their school.

The newest project within Story Planet involves a group of 20 high school students

coming together to create a publication of their own written work.

“They are totally in charge right now,” Ve-ronica Fredericks, youth worker and the di-rector of the publication workshop said of the students. “There seems to be a big focus on science fiction and fantasy right now, so they are bringing in a lot of their interests in what they are writing.”

Fredericks also said students are encour-aged to write in whatever format and about whatever comes to their minds. Differing from the regular English or writing classes at school, the kids are not taught what to write

or how to write, but rather are encouraged to incorporate as much as they can in their own writing.

The publication workshop is aimed at high school students, but throughout the week there are different programs directed at kids of all ages. Although there are some drop-in opportunities, they are asked to register as a way for Story Planet to be able to connect and communicate with the young writers and their parents.

The student-run publication, which is set to be released in November of this year, is getting support from the Trillium Founda-tion, the Toronto Community Foundation and Coach House Books.

Haines says Coach House Books is very closely supporting the project, even having the students come for a publication and writ-ing workshop.

All programs at Story Planet are free for students with funding coming from different levels of municipal and provincial govern-ment. Banks such as RBC, CIBC and Sco-tiabank have provided funding as well. The Intergalactic Travel Agency is a social enter-prise where all proceeds go back to the pro-grams for kids offered through Story Planet.

Both Fredericks and Haines hope to see another publication follow the first one and to continue to expose students to the options they have as writers.

“Last week we had a spoken word work-shop,” Frederickson said. “We’re trying to encourage the students to get involved in Youth Slam that is going on in the city in a couple weeks.”

To learn more about specific programs and opportunities, visit their website at http://www.storyplanet.ca or drop by and give them a visit.

03

News

The Bloordale Times April 2013

STORY PLANET AN OUTLET FOR YOUTH TO EXPRESS CREATIVITY Located west of Dufferin St. and south on Bloor St., Story Planet has a writer’s workshop and a coffee shop storefront as a way to welcome everyone in the community

BY ASHLEY COWELLashleymcowell@gmail.com

...Marie said the garden is an in-vitation for residents to mark the experience of a time they gave, re-ceived, or appreciated a flower by drawing a picture of one. She said it can also be an opportunity for residents to create a flower that honours the memory of an im-portant person, time or event in their lives.

“We really wanted to make des-tinations for a walk in Bloordale,” Marie said.

Marie wants the community garden to give residents and visi-tors the feeling of an accidental discovery.

Marie is working with people from the Bloordale community such as students from Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton Cath-

olic Secondary School, seniors at New Horizons and residents from Savards Women’s Shelter.

Marie said that the City of To-ronto has pulled out all the stops to make it possible for her team to install these sidewalks.

“It’s really important to encour-age and involve youth into the project. That was one of the goals. There was an idea that we would do this to bring different groups together to build a certain kind of empathy.”

Sibyl Likely is the Programing Community Development Su-pervisor for Homes First. Homes First is a social service agency that provides community hous-ing and shelters for those strug-gling with poverty. Likely co-ordinates for Savards Women’s Shelter in the Bloordale neigh-

bourhood. “Dyan appreciates and under-

stands that the women, though they may have complex issues and may be struggling with poverty, they’re still members of the com-munity,” Likely said.

Likely said a few of the flower art contributions from residents of the shelter have been accepted and will be a part of the proj-ect.

Dyan Marie visited Savards and helped them celebrate the first year of their recovery program, the same time that the idea of this project came to be. Likely says the flower art the women have con-tributed are symbols of this one year celebration.

Marie will unveil the Bloordale community garden at the BIG On Bloor Festival on July 21.

Story Planet rests inside the Intergalactic Travel Authority, which is found at 1165 Bloor St. W.. Photo by Ashley Cowell

The Bloor St. and Brock Ave. intersection will be the main stage of the upcoming Bloordale Community Garden. Photo by Michael Osei

STEEL GARDEN from page 1

Broadway Cycle (1222 Bloor St. W.) has recently undergone renovations to add a second floor showroom, bringing in higher-end products and expanding its bike services for customers.

The 26-year-old Bloordale

bike shop has undergone a com-plete makeover to go along with the expansion of its services and range of products.

“About three years ago we started making the commitment of doing a full renovation to the shop. So basically we did every-thing. The only thing that’s origi-nal in the shop is the wood floor.

Everything else is new,” said co-owner Aarif Suleman. “We have a shop that really gives you an above and beyond kind of expe-rience.”

A grand opening for the sec-ond floor showroom is planned for April 12, with sales and events running through the weekend to get people to drop by and check

out the store’s new look, includ-ing raffles, door prizes and a group ride. As a part of the cele-bration Broadway Cycle will also be raising money for the Desk and Chair Foundation, an orga-nization that provides bicycles for people in Tanzania who need bikes as a means to get to work.

Suleman, who is from Tanza-nia himself, said it’s nice to give something back to that commu-nity.

The festivities will also get the public to check out the store’s

new gear. Broadway Cycle has collaborated with Specialized Bi-cycle Components Incorporated in an exclusive partnership.

“Specialized is a major supplier of bikes and they have a proj-ect called ‘The Specialized Elite Store’. They sort of pick stores that partner with them and build a super high end experience,” said Suleman. “We’re launching the first Elite Store in Ontario.”

Services are also getting an up-grade. Broadway Cycle is getting a Body Geometry Fit studio, al-lowing them to use software and cameras to accurately fit bikes to purchasers.

“It means that I can get peo-ple riding faster, harder, and with minimal risk of injury to themselves,” said Matthew Far-rell, Sales Associate and Bike Fit Technician. “What I do is actually mount you up to the trainer and I take the individual rider, I take their specific bike and I watch what they’re doing on the bike as they’re in motion on the bike and I start making adjustments and corrections based on that. Then I watch the corrections in motion so that I can see that everything is working properly at the same time.”

On top of other changes, main-tenance times will be cut down to help get people with broken-down bikes back on the road again as fast as possible. In some smaller cases bikes will be fixed on the spot.

“I think people should come and check it out. There’s lots of good stores to buy bikes from but we want to do what we can in terms of giving the best service,” said Suleman.

04

News

The Bloordale Times April 2013

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TIMESBLOORDALEB

LONGTIME NEIGHBOURHOOD BIKE SHOP EXPANDS ITS PRODUCT TO UPSTAIRS FLOOR

The recently added second floor at Broadway Cycle. Photo by Khris Reardon

BY KHRIS REARDONkhristopher.reardon@gmail.com

MPP JONAH SCHEIN416-535-3158

Recently our community received some good news about an important local service. West Toronto Community Legal Services (WTCLS) is part of the Community Legal Clinic system in Ontario. Clinics like WTCLS are uniquely positioned to understand legal is-sues facing diverse communities and to help people facing multiple barriers to access the justice system.

For many years, WTCLS has helped low-income, socially isolated and marginalized members of our community access legal sup-port and has helped people access welfare and disability benefits, secure housing and fair treatment in their workplace.

A few months ago staff and board members from the clinic approached me and asked for my support because Legal Aid Ontario had threatened to cut their funding and replace

their community-based services with a cen-tralized alternative located in downtown To-ronto.

This decision would have posed signifi-cant barriers to the very clients that legal clinics like WTCLS are designed to serve. This plan would have delivered services to fewer clients, addressed fewer issues, and created more chaos and hardship in the lives of low-income and marginalized members of our community.

My office got to work to rally our com-munity and to support our local clinic. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the 1000 of you who signed my petition, all of you that made submissions to the Board of LAO, and to my colleague MPP Jagmeet Singh who joined me in meeting with the At-torney General.

Your work made a difference, and I am thrilled to learn that West Toronto Commu-nity Legal Services was successful in their ap-

peal. Legal Aid Ontario will continue to fund our community clinic. This is great news and I know that this is a result of the advocacy of our strong west Toronto community.

Thanks to you, LAO has decided to keep the doors open at WTCLS and these services will remain in our community for those who need them. This is a victory for people in Daven-port and for the community legal clinic sys-tem in Ontario. Thank you again for your hard work and advocacy on this issue.

Let’s make sure that Legal Aid Ontario con-tinues to fund community based legal ser-vices across the province. Please join me in thanking Legal Aid Ontario and the Attorney General for their decision to keep services in our community and continue funding WT-CLS. For more information on this decision or to send an email to LAO and the Attorney General please visit my website at www.jona-hscheinmpp.ca

COUNCILLOR ANA BAILÃO 416-392-7012

Dear Neighbours,Two years ago, a great tragedy took place in

our community when Jenna Morrison – a preg-nant mother, wife, cyclist and Ward 18 commu-nity member - was killed near the intersection of Dundas and Sterling on November 7th, 2011. That day, our community’s grief was felt deeply and forever committed to our memory.

As we heal and move forward to address the issues that led to this tragedy – including up-grades to the intersection and support for the “mandatory truck sideguards” campaign – I am committed to joining with community mem-bers to help celebrate the life of Jenna Morrison. Recognizing her own dedication to healing and wellness in our neighbourhood, we are work-ing to bring a lasting piece of infrastructure to a local park, which will provide ongoing health benefits and be open to all Torontonians.

With this goal in mind, I am pleased to sup-port Jenna’s family and friends through their quest to build Canada’s first-ever reflexology footpath in Dufferin Grove Park. Having al-

ready garnered the support of the Friends of Dufferin Grove Park, the City’s Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division, and my office, we are also seeking broader community support and involvement.

Join us on April 11th at the Common Café at 1028 Bloor Street West where we will publi-cally unveil plans for the footpath. The family will also be launching the fundraising campaign for this project. Participants at this event will be able to review large-format concept plans, learn more about the inspiration and vision for this project, and test sample reflexology materials. We will celebrate Jenna Morrison’s life by bring-ing the community together and working to-gether to build this unique community amenity.

Donations to the project can be made through the family at the April 11 event or online at the Toronto Parks and Trees Foundation website: www.tiny.cc/jkmfootpath. All donations over $10.00 are eligible for a charitable tax receipt. More information can also be found in the Face-book group “Jenna Morrison memorial foot-path project.”

I sincerely hope that our paths cross on April 11th at our kickoff event and also along the Jen-na Morrison Memorial Footpath in the future.

MP ANDREW CASH 416-654-8048

Stephen Harper and Jim Flaherty presented their eighth federal budget last month, and for the eighth time they have failed to address the needs of the people of Toronto. They prom-ised that they would focus on job creation and infrastructure spending this time around, but instead Budget 2013 casts aside Toronto’s economy by ignoring both of these necessities.

Despite the Conservative’s claim that they are boosting infrastructure funding, they are in fact doing the exact opposite. Previously existing programs are being renamed and old money is simply being shifted between them. This shell game will result in a $4.7 billion cut to infrastructure programs over four years. The federal government needs to do better if we are ever going to tackle the gridlock that steals billions of dollars more from Toronto’s economy. Toronto needs real solutions now

for our packed transit and crumbling roads and bridges. The same can be said of their plan for skills training. Before Budget 2013, $300 million

in skills training funding was given to the provinces to administer skills training programs. Now that funding has been cut and replaced with a poorly thought-out plan to match skills training funding provided by employers. In these tough economic times, many businesses can’t afford to retrain their employees, so there won’t be any funds to match. And how does that help people who aren’t already employed? Who is going to help them acquire the skills they need to get good jobs in Toronto?

One of the major economic drivers in Toronto, and especially in our riding of Davenport, is the arts and culture sector. The cultural sector adds approximately $84.6 billion dollars to the Canadian economy every year. Instead of recognizing that fact, the Conservatives are slashing $80 million from arts and culture programs across the country this year alone, bringing the total cuts over the past two years to over $130 million. While other sectors have declined, the cultural sector has grown rapidly in recent years with twice as many people working in the culture sector as in forestry and over two times as many as work in Canadian banks. Many of those jobs are in Toronto and are at risk because of these cuts.

Conservatives need to wake up and pay attention to what Toronto really needs. My fellow New Democrats and I will continue to fight in Ottawa against these reckless cuts and for the funding that Toronto deserves.

For more information about the budget or any other issue, contact my office at 416-654-8048 or andrew.cash@parl.gc.ca.

05

Letters from your political representatives

The Bloordale Times April 2013

06

Feature

The Bloordale Times April 2013

BY ALEXIS MACDONALDalexis.liberty@hotmail.com

Spring is here, and it’s time to start thinking about this year’s garden. Monika Meulman, Chair of Lakeshore Environmental Gar-dening Society (LEGS) Etobicoke, has some tips for starting and maintaining a successful garden.

Ask everyone you know -Ask people at the garden center,

your neighbours and your friends about what they plant. You learn a lot just by just asking questions instead of relying on tags or write-

ups about plants.

Observe -Unless someone’s in your gar-

den they won’t be able to tell you where to plant, which means you really need to watch and record the cycle of the sun and where the shade falls. You need to do this for at least a few days, because these things are always changing. This is especially necessary when you are planting a more expensive plant.

Do your research -If you’re planting nicer flow-

ers don’t just throw them in the ground. It is important to do some research to find out more about them. When you purchase a plant always ask what the best way to plant it is. If you’re a beginner and buying an expensive plant, get it from a gardening society or a garden center instead of a big box store. The reason for this is be-cause people in gardening centres will have a greater understanding of all kinds plants.

Don’t just get your plants any-where -

As far as herbs and edibles go, Meulman would recommend that you don’t buy them from big box places because you don’t know what you’re going to get. You want a reliable source for your food, so buy certified organic plants or get them from a nursery or a gar-dening center. Also, if something goes wrong with the plant you are given a guarantee with a tag and a receipt.

When you should start - Hearty plants such as collard

greens, salads and lettuces don’t like heat. They like cooler temper-atures. The seeds can be planted in April. If you’re growing them early you can usually harvest them by June - sometimes July. More sen-sitive plants such as peppers and tomatoes can’t go out until the middle of May or June.

Don’t be afraid to start early -

Anything that can grow in a little con-tainer you can plant indoors up to 8 weeks before the last frost, which is usually the sec-

ond week of May. This means you can begin the process mid-March, but this only applies for plants that state they can be moved without damage or irritation.

What you should start with -The best plants for beginners

are tomatoes. They are really easy to grow, but they need moisture and they love water and heat. If you water your tomatoes regularly in a hot summer you’ll find they become a really rewarding plant. They’ll grow just about anywhere as long as their roots are warm and they’re watered frequently.

Perennials are good as well. Herbs such as rosemary, thyme, dill and fennel are really easy to grow and they are also beautiful. As a beginner, Meulman said to stay away from basil because it is extremely sensitive, even for great gardeners.

Check your soil -There is a large variety of soil in

cities. At St.Clair and in down-town Toronto, there are industrial lands, and in the west end and eastern parts of Toronto, there are rocks and debris from new neigh-bourhoods and construction sites. You may need to buy additives to augment the soil in or-der to make

the plants happy.You can test your soil by taking a

shovel full and, once it’s warm and thawed out, crumbling the soil be-tween your fingers. Check to see if it’s really crumbly, soft and easy to work with or if it’s hard and thick like mud. The other option is to get a soil testing kit. Pretty much ev-ery gardening store will have one and they are anywhere from $15 to $30.

Planting -There are interesting new move-

ments called square foot gardening and companion planting where you simply plant everything to-gether. People used to prefer keep-ing plants separate. However, a lot of the time wild plants are closer together. This will keep a lot of the weeds out.

Watch for weeds -Garlic mustard

grows everywhere. People don’t real-ize the threat they are to a garden if you don’t pull them out immediately. Weeds can take over an entire garden in a year. A lot of

mulching and covering the ground can also keep out weeds. You can cover the ground with materials such as wood chips, stones, land-scaping fabric, straw and hay.

Water -If you’re not sure how much to

water a plant you should use a wa-tering stick. If you have a garden plot, you need to water everyday and having the stick will remind you when it’s getting too dry.

Meulman said the important thing to remember is that once you start a garden you need to pay at-tention to it daily. For more infor-mation and gardening tips you can visit http://www.legsetobicoke.ca

ELEVEN TIPS TO GET YOUR GARDEN IN TIP-TOP SHAPE THIS SPRINGChair of Lakeshore Environmental Gardening Society (LEGS) Etobicoke Monika Meulman lends her voice to the gardening community (all tips are spoken by Meulman)

The last frost tends to be a green light for gardeners to begin their spring planting, but at the Perth-Dupont Community Garden the process began earlier.

This year, the community can ex-pect a new gardening shed, acces-sible to all people, including those in wheelchairs, and more community gardening workshops.

“We keep getting better all the time,” said community gardener Shirley Darling.

The Perth-Dupont Community Garden is going into their seventh year as a community garden, and Coordinator Susan Berman said she has seen a big change in the park since the garden was installed in 2005.

“We have brought life to this park and revitalized our neighbourhood,” said Berman. She said the installa-tion of the garden has increased the

community’s usage of the park in a positive way.

The garden was installed as part of a city mandate in 2000 to put a community garden in every ward, but Berman said the garden didn’t become a community garden until 2006.

“A community garden is supposed to start with a community group first and then a garden,“ said Berman, but she said they started with a gar-den and then became a community group.

The garden has 24 individual plots, some of which are divided in half to form more plots. It also has a number of communal plots such as the butterfly garden, the raspberry

patch, the front flowerbed and the edible landscape garden.

Darling and Berman are among approximately 30 gardeners who have plots in the garden. Darling called the garden an amazing collab-oration of individuals from the com-munity who are working together and learning from one another.

“We share ideas and gardening tips,“ said Berman. “People who don’t have a backyard have an op-portunity to garden, and those who are socially isolated can have a place where it’s safe to do some gardening and meet with the other gardeners,” said Berman. She also said it’s an inexpensive

way for families to do some garden-ing, enjoying each other’s company while engaging in something parents can pass down to their kids.

Berman describes the garden as a multicultural group of gardeners representing different pockets of the community.

The Perth-Dupont Community garden has reached out to the com-munity in previous years by donating over 300 pounds of produce to The Stop Community Food Centre at 1884 Davenport Rd. and by planting vegetables in storefronts along

Dupont St..“We are the anchor,” said Darling.

“People get to know each other and we make use of our shared space in a way that just doesn’t happen in that park unless we were there.”

Darling encourages the communi-ty to attend the garden’s public events this year and get to know each other.

All of the events are listed on the garden’s website: http://www.perth-dupont.parkcommons.ca

07

News

The Bloordale Times April 2013

PERTH-DUPONT COMMUNITY GARDEN BOASTS NEW IMPROVMENTSBY ALEXIS MACDONALDalexis.liberty@hotmail.com

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A small garden at Symington Avenue Playground Park. Photo courtesy Timothy Berman

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Wallace Espresso (188 Wallace Ave.) recently opened its doors to the neighborhood, city, and café enthusiasts.

A new café at Lansdowne and Wallace Avenues is welcoming customers by brewing espressos, cappuccinos and macchiatos, as well as serving gluten-free baked goods - to name just a few items off their menu.

Owned by partners Dan Wahlen and Alexandra Pereira, Wallace Espresso - also known as WE - opened up almost two months ago and Wahlen said business is con-tinuing to progress.

Wahlen’s business background is in real estate and Pereira’s is in the service and retail fashion in-dustry.

Wahlen had also worked in the food and service industry, which is where he obtained his expertise in making coffee.

The café located just north of

the busy Bloor St. and Lansdowne Ave. intersection, is proving to appeal to residents in Bloordale’s surrounding areas.

“North of Bloor, west of Duffer-in to Dundas, south of Davenport - that’s sort of where we’re draw-ing from,” Wahlen says. “Meeting all those people and a lot of them become regulars.”

The area is “away from the hustle and bustle” said Wahlen of their choice of location for Wal-lace Espresso.

The partners met through Pereira’s husband, Ryan Pham, who also designed several pieces of decor on display at Wallace Espresso.

“Dan was friends with one of my husband’s friends, and then he became our real estate agent and from there our relationship flourished,” Pereira said. “I always wanted to open a coffee shop and my husband found the location for us and thought it would be a good partnership.”

The café’s interior features a cof-fee bar made by Pham, a map of

Toronto that was handed down from Wahlen’s roommates and artwork from residents of the area.

Just outside the café, a patio

will be set up in the near future. Wahlen said the setting will be ideal when the warmer weather arrives.

The café is open to business from Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and weekends from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

09

New In Business ~ Health & Wellness

The Bloordale Times April 2013

BY DR. JENNIFER BAERhealth@drjenniferbaer.com

Spring Detox: Is it right for you? With spring (and post-Easter

and Passover indulgences) comes an influx of programs and ads for all sorts of “cleanse” or “detox” pro-grams. But how can you know if they are safe or a good idea for you?

As a Naturopathic Doctor, I don’t subscribe to trendy products, fast-ing (in most cases) or extreme di-ets, and put patient safety and edu-cation first. So I highly recommend consulting with a licensed health care provider ― especially impor-tant if you are on any medications or have a pre-existing condition such as diabetes, liver or kidney disease, or IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease).

I believe that “cleansing” should be integrated into our daily lives in an ongoing way. An initial pro-gram may help jump-start the pro-cess, but should be geared towards creating sustainable and healthy habits. It is also an opportunity to bring more mindfulness into your

daily life and approach to wellness. In my Spring Awakening

Cleanse™, I help patients eliminate foods and chemicals that contrib-ute to toxic load and inflamma-tion, allowing the body to focus on healing and repair. An intelligent approach doesn’t jump into pur-gative herbs or immediately try to stimulate greater detoxification via the liver. Instead, it meets each in-dividual at the stage they are cur-rently in, taking steps to encourage reduction in toxic load, while pri-oritizing healthy elimination func-tion through the key organ systems of the lungs, skin, kidneys and gut.

Individuals’ results will vary ac-cording to personal biochemistry, physiology, and previous dietary and lifestyle habits. Many people report increased energy and alert-ness, a decrease in muscle or joint pain, reduction in allergy symp-toms, improved digestion and sleep, weight loss, and an overall sense of well-being. One might experience minor and transient symptoms related to increased elimination of toxins, or withdrawal from caffeine or other substances (headaches,

change in digestion or sleep pattern, etc.), improving within several days.

A cleanse does not need to be an “all or nothing” approach. Here are some simple ideas you can safely try on your own:

· Diet: reduce or elimi-nate caffeine, sugar, flour, alco-hol, fried food and junk food. Select fresh, local, organic foods whenever possible. Eat a lot of plants.

· Elimination Func-tion:

· Lungs: practice deep abdominal breathing exercises regularly or do yoga.

· Skin: try dry skin brushing (or use a gentle exfoli-ant), and work up a sweat daily.

· Kidneys: drink at least two litres of water, herbal tea and / or unsalted broth daily.

· GI tract: ensure ad-equate water and fibre (25 - 40 grams daily), consider a probi-otic (ND recommendation)

Jennifer Baer, RHN, ND is your local Naturopathic Doc-tor, trained chef and Registered

Holistic Nutritionist. She offers ad-ditional guidance and resources on these topics on her website http://www.drjenniferbaer.com and in her local private practice. Jenni-

fer offers a two-part individual-ized Spring Cleanse Program™ for those interested in optimizing their health and taking a preventative approach.

ASK YOUR BLOORDALE NUTRITIONIST AND NATUROPATH DR. JENNIFER BAER

Dr. Jennifer Baer, licensed nutritionist and naturopath.

WALLACE ESPRESSO RECEIVED WELL BY COFFEE COMMUNITYBY KELLY KHIZAKIAkellymkhizakia@hotmail.com

Part-owner Dan Wahlen puts the finishing touch in one of many hot beverage selections available for purchase. Photo by Kelly Khizakia

Spring has finally graced its presence, and that means many more bicycles will be hitting the

streets of Toronto.With the help of Bike Pirates, a

Do-It-Yourself bicycle workplace and shop you can get your bicy-cle in tip-top shape for the warm season.

Geoffrey Bercarich, Bike Pi-rates’ volunteer coordinator, said “Bike Pirates is a space where people can learn more about their bicycles and how to maintain them, such as the ele-

ments of TLC - tender love and care.”

The space has been operating for seven years, and is 100 per cent volunteer driven. Approxi-mately 15-50 volunteers drop in

to Bike Pirates to both learn and teach the ba-sic elements of handling and maintaining bicy-cles.

Bercarich said that the “ABC quick check” is something any bike owner can do to ensure their bicycles are ready for a ride.

A- AirThe tire has to have the

proper level of air in it. If you could pinch the tire with your nail, then that is an indication that it needs air.

B- BreaksThe breaks should be

able to take the weight of the bicycle. Meaning

if you push the bike down while gripping the breaks and it doesn’t move, then you’re in the clear.

C- ChainPedal the chain backwards and

make sure it doesn’t bounce or jump and is in one piece. Ensure there is no rust that can cause it to be unsafe.

Quick check: Most bikes have little levers on both axis of the wheels, which are quick releases. Make sure they are tight and se-cure.

Bike Pirates also sells refur-bished used bicycles, new/used parts, and helmets. Bicycle dona-tions are welcome and appreci-ated.

For any more bicycle care ad-vice and help, feel free to drop into Bicycle Pirates during their working hours, located at 1292 Bloor St. W.. Sunday hours are strictly reserved for women and trans. For more details, visit Bike Pirates’ website at http://www.bikepirates.com

Feature ~ Community Contributions

10 The Bloordale Times April 2013

Mr. Warich began his demonstration by holding up a canister no larger than a fire extinguisher. He claimed, to the astonishment of those gathered, that its contents would do nothing less than solve the en-vironmental quandaries of trash disposal. But the real magic was in the machine, he said, as he gestured grandly to the blockish metal contraption behind him.

He’s lost his mind,” whispered Sam Roxton to his neighbour, Chelsey Paton, “Since his parents died he’s gone completely eccentric.”

Chelsey remembered the night of the earthquake ten years earlier. It shook the entire town but devastated only the Warich property. The family home collapsed, leaving the young man on his own. Now gathered on that tragic land, the day’s specta-tors had passed by remnants of the house, and also the ramshackle shed where Warich now lived. It was the first time that many of the townsfolk had been al-lowed to venture this far into the Warich acreage, to poke around and confirm long-told rumours.

“He’s got them buried around here some-where,” said Sam to Chelsey. “He wouldn’t let the county take the bodies.” But now a demonstration of the machine was in order. A sea of curious eyes fell upon Mr. Warich as he screwed a hose onto the canister, connecting it to the machine. The machine’s volume was astounding. A great metal box the size and shape of a wrestling ring, the machine occupied a flat, grassy expanse and seemed about as natural as a boot on a birthday cake. Its sidings were adorned with a variety of switches, lights, valves, and grates.

With four garbage bags in hand, Mr. War-ich trotted up a step ladder onto a wooden platform aligned with the machine’s top.

“Welcome all, and thank you for coming. I

have promised a revolutionary invention. I will do no more talking,” said Mr. Warich.

He reached down and threw open the ma-chine’s heavy lid.

“Watch closely here, it must be organic waste, no metals or synthetics,” he announced, tossing the bags into the machine’s hollow core.

He slammed the lid shut and twisted a locking device over it. The machine whirred to life. People glanced around, all thinking the same thing. They had come expecting to witness the spectacular ravings of a hermit. But what they were seeing was a man decidedly clear-minded and a machine that ap-peared functional. Whatever purpose it had, the ma-chine at least appeared to mark the end of a long and isolated obsession.

The crowd was silent as the machine stirred and hissed. Chelsey suddenly felt a connection to Mr. Warich, who she hardly knew. But it was that same night after all, the night of the earthquake, that she began a withdrawal from the community not unlike Mr. Warich’s. She would leave town after highschool, to do and see other things, she decided that night. Her fervent curiosities were outmatched only by her con-victions, strongest and newest among them that she would not allow herself to die in this town.

That she should have returned ten years later, on the same day of Mr. Warich’s jubilant return to the public, was doubtless coincidental.

After two minutes, the machine’s sounds and activity ceased. Mr. Warich invited one of the town’s councillors to climb onto the platform and open the lid. As he did so, Warich finally revealed the name of his contraption: “Ladies and gentlemen,” he announced proudly, “The world’s first sublimator.”

“Good Lord,” shouted the councillor, peer-ing into the machine’s cavity. “The garbage - it’s disap-peared!”

“Sublimator” - Part I Written by Brent Wells

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GUIDE TO GET YOUR BICYCLE IN TOP FORM FOR SPRING SEASON

Longtime volunteer Geoffrey Bercarich sits on one of Bike Pirates’ many work benches. Photo by Julia Grabowska

BY JULIA GRABOWSKAjuliaxgrabowska@gmail.com

11

Community Contributions

The Bloordale Times April 2013

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