Courtesy of yongeeglinton.com

After a two year battle, fought with passion and conviction, the Eglinton Park Residents’ Association has thwarted the attempt of Top of the Tree Developments from rezoning two city blocks in their neighbourhood - Yonge Street to Edith Drive, from Eglinton Avenue West to Roselawn Avenue. Top of the Tree Developments applied to build a 25 storey condo building on the northeast corner of Montgomery and Duplex Aves., northwest of Eglinton Avenue and Yonge Street. There are 100 members in this association which worked tirelessly for two years compiling written submissions and creating a presentation. After a 5 week hearing last March the Ontario Municipal Board finally denied their application.

Many neighbourhoods are facing similar problems, referred to as the “condofication” of Toronto. Putting up massive high rises in residential neighbourhoods causes many problems including increased traffic and overtaxing the existing infrastructure, not to mention changing the entire feel of the neighbourhood. However, Toronto is experience a massive condo boom, with no signs of letting up. Just look up at the skyline and count the cranes. According to developer Alan Vihant, Toronto is the top condo market in North America and one of the top five in the world.

According to Mayor Miller Toronto currently has about 105 buildings over 12 storeys going up in the city. This includes residential and commercial buildings. Phase one of the Bay Adelaide Centre - 51 storeys distributed over 1.2 million square feet – just opened. Cadillac Fairview will be opening the 43-storey RBC Centre complex near University Ave. and Wellington St. and Menkes’ 780,000-square-foot Telus Tower near the Air Canada Centre will be opening in November. Toronto keeps growing skyward, but every once in a while a residential neighbourhood says NO.

Courtesy of chrisdavies.ca

Are you a tenant in Toronto who has just had it with taxes? According to the Federation of Metro Tenants, Toronto’s high property tax rates are pushing apartment renters past the poverty line. Toronto home owners are always complaining about their property taxes but the truth is that Toronto tenants are taxed at almost three times as much as residential homeowners. The reason for this is that apartment landlords are taxed as businesses and they in turn recoup the money from their tenants. This becomes a double whammy for tenants because they can’t deduct their rent from their income in spite of the fact that the rent that they pay in turn pays for the services – transit, fire, police - that their landlords are deducting. The Federation of Metro Tenants reports that tenants occupy approximately 9% of Toronto and pay 19% of the taxes. Where is the justice in that?

To add insult to injury as of July 1, 2010 people across Ontario will have to pay the 8% provincial sales tax (PST) when the province applies a harmonized sales tax on utilities among other things. This means that landlords will be paying 8% tax on electrical, plumbing, painting, landscaping, snow removal, etc. in addition to electricity and heating oil. Currently 20% of tenants pay their own utilities however in the buildings where landlords are paying the utilities you can be sure that they will be going after the tenants seeking increases in compensation.

What can you do? Contact your Ontario Member of Provincial Parliament.

According to the C.D. Howe Institute, the answer is a resounding YES. A December 2008 C.D. Howe report compared sales in the 416 with surrounding 905 municipalities and found that the Toronto Land Transfer Tax (LTT) has seriously impacted Toronto’s housing market by reducing sales and lowering the prices of homes. In fact the LTT caused a 16% decline in the number of single-family homes sold after January 2008 while lowering house values by 1.5% or approximately $6,400 per house. The report also shows that because of the Land Transfer Tax people who would have moved are opting to stay instead, causing a significant slowdown in the market.

The report clearly states that the LTT has no advantage over an ordinary property tax. However it does create distinct economic disadvantages. Ordinary property taxes do not discourage mobility therefore it would have made more sense to raise property taxes to 10% in order to achieve the same additional revenue and not hurt the housing industry. Condos were not included in the study but it is has been approximated that if they were, 5,000 or more condo and home owners would opt not to move because of the LTT, and Toronto’s economy is suffering as a result. It’s not just the loss of the sale of the house that affects the economy. It creates a giant ripple effect. Every time someone moves house or condo it is estimated that they spend $33,000 on new purchases, renovations, and fees associated with the move.

Now that the C.D. Howe report is public knowledge, do you think that Mayor Miller is going to get rid of this tax or justify it?

There is something seriously wrong with the Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC), the second largest public landlord in North America with 58,000 units. Although it is estimated that 70,000 low income individuals and families are on the waiting list for affordable housing in Toronto, the TCHC is sitting with 1,422 vacant units, an increase of 14% from last year. This in itself is shocking. But, what is even worse is that the units are vacant because they are uninhabitable and are suffering from a variety of infestations including rats, mice, mould, and pigeons.

Of course this begs the question, “Why isn’t anyone cleaning up these properties and making them inhabitable again?” According to the chairman of the city’s affordable housing committee and a board member of the TCHC, they simply can’t afford to bring them up to standard without a $300 million contribution from the city of Toronto, the province, and the feds. In the meantime no one is doing anything and the situation is just getting worse.

Quite frankly I find this all amazing. Toronto is a city with very high property values and we are letting these valuable assets go to seed. In fact Councillor Case Ootes has recommended that the TCHC board sell off some of their lucrative properties and use that money to finance the repairs on the others. The estimates are that there are 300 apartments and houses that are empty and uninhabitable. It is totally absurd for the TCHC to be sitting on properties worth a fortune and just let them sit vacant, uninhabitable, and decaying. This sounds like gross mismanagement by the TCHC board. Why isn’t anyone investigating?

There are very few things that Torontonians agree upon. However we all agree that we have a serious problem with homelessness and we agree that something must be done about it. The city has largely ignored the problem as it continues to escalate. It seems that a little financial motivation goes a long way and that has come in the form of lost tourist dollars. According to recent reports one of the reasons that Toronto is losing its appeal to tourists is that they don’t like being bothered by the homeless asking for money right outside their hotels.

The New Edwin Hotel at 650 Queen St. E., just west of Broadview is being renovated and converted into a 30 room residence for the homeless. It is expected to be open for business sometime in 2009. This is not permanent housing. It is meant to be a transitional and support house designed to help street people transition into permanent housing. Each resident will get the help and training that they need to hopefully be able to lead a better life off the street. Some will be able to move on relatively quickly and others will need much longer. They have a maximum of 3 years that they can remain at the New Edwin Hotel.

WoodGreen Community Services will operate the facility. They bought the building a month ago in a private sale with taxpayers’ money. Funding so far has come via several levels of government. The total cost is estimated at $5 million. Make no mistake, this is not a quasi-shelter. These are transitional residences with each unit having its own bathroom, kitchen, and sleeping area. The residents will have access to addiction counselors, therapists, and medical professionals in preparation for independent living.

The New Edwin Hotel project is one of three transitional and support housing projects being created in part with $8 million from the Federal Homelessness Partnership Initiative. The others are Alternative Living Solutions at 1908 Gerrard St. East and the Parkdale United Church Foundation at 1355 King St. West. These projects may not be the answer, but they are a great first step. The measure of a society is how we treat those less fortunate than ourselves. How do we measure up?

If you’ve been downsized, or perhaps looking to make a career change, you may want to consider being a Butler, or Household Manager, as they are also called. Although we tend to have a stereotypical vision of a butler from how they are portrayed in movies and television, butlers can actually be men or women and fall into 3 categories – Residential, Hotel, and Apartment.

Residential Butler: The Residential Butler acts as the CEO of the household and may manage a very large staff, multiple residences, a fleet of luxury vehicles, and budgets. An excellent butler in this type of environment can expect to earn up to $200,000 per year.

Hotel Butler: Many luxury hotel and spa properties employ butlers to act as the interface between the guest and the property. In the highly competitive luxury market it is imperative that the guests are treated like royalty in order to build a loyal client base. The butler will also sell or up-sell services to the guests.

Apartment Butler: Apartment Butlers are popular in Asia and provide the services or a concierge.

The demand for butlers is on the rise and as a result butler schools are springing up like mushrooms – 2 of them right here in Canada. The Charles MacPherson Academy is a school for Butlers and Household Managers with the first eight-week course beginning in May in Toronto. To view the Charles MacPherson Academy online brochure, follow the link below.
http://www.charlesmacpherson.com/CM_Brochure.pdf

In April, Butlers of Canada will begin its first six-week training course for butlers at the Galiano Oceanfront Inn and Spa on Galiano Island in British Columbia. To apply to the Butlers of Canada program follow the link below.
http://www.butlersofcanada.com/

For everything you ever wanted to know about butlers but were afraid to ask, follow the link below.
http://butlerbureau.com/

What a great way to get free advertising and publicity. The $1.00 house is now the most talked about property in Toronto. Omar Ibrahim, the owner of the 2-storey house located at 93 Badgerow Avenue, came up with this publicity stunt to get his house noticed. And that he did. The story has appeared everywhere. Obviously he has no intentions of selling the house for $1.00. In a market that is not as hot as it was (Toronto’s residential unit sales dropped 13.4 % and new listings dropped 7 %) Mr. Ibrahim felt that an extra edge was needed to create interest in his property – a semi in Riverdale with three bedrooms, new flooring, appliances, fresh paint, and a finished basement.

I was actually disappointed to hear that this marketing strategy is not new. According to real estate broker Tony Bassels, in 2004 a house in Willowdale was listed for $1.00. In 16 days it sold for approximately $960,000. The interest generated by the $1.00 listing was believed to have contributed to the high sale price. Mr. Ibrahim has done his homework well. He buys, renovates, and sells houses. In January 2008 he purchased the property at 93 Badgerow Ave. for $342,000. Clearly he will not be selling the house for bargain basement prices. Quite the contrary, he is hoping that the interest generated by the $1.00 listing will drive up the interest in the property and the selling price. It will be interesting to see if lightning strikes twice and if this marketing strategy works again.

A frightening 6-alarm blaze that was called in early Wednesday morning furiously tore through a strip of heritage buildings on Queen St. West between Bathurst Street and Ryerson Avenue. Four buildings were totally destroyed. The damage is estimated at $10 million dollars but to the residents and business that had inhabited those buildings, their losses are immeasurable. What price can anyone place on family heirlooms that no amount of money can ever replace?

It took more than 150 firefighters and 40 pumper and ladder trucks to subdue the fire. The cause of the blaze remains unknown and the investigation is expected to take 10 days to complete. Although there had been rumours that the fire was caused by a drug lab, there is no evidence to support that allegation. It is estimated that 60 people lost their homes and businesses, including landmark bike shop, Duke’s Cycle, but miraculously no lives were lost. In fact, no one was injured. A trust fund for those who lost their possessions has been established and some hotels have put up residents for free. Cash donations to the Queen Street Fire Fund can be made at Scotiabank locations throughout the city. Businesses in the area are pitching in and collecting new toiletries as well as used clothing and toys for the displaced residents. A fundraising concert is already in the works for one musician who lost all his equipment in the fire.

If anyone has any information regarding the fire, please contact the police at 416-808-1400 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-8477.

Many Torontonians are embracing the spirit of recycling gently used clothing, furniture, and household goods. But do you donate your used shoes or just throw them out? Would you donate your old shoes if you knew where to bring them? Nike used to have a program for recycling old sneakers that disappeared about a year ago. If you have been looking for a place to donate your old shoes in Toronto, your search is over.

Ron White, of Ron White Shoes wants you to donate the shoes that you would have otherwise tossed away with the trash. Many years ago he noticed a homeless man with his feet hanging out of his shoes. Instead of turning away and pretending that he didn’t see, Mr. White decided to take action. He began by asking his customers to donate the old shoes that were going to throw away. In the last 11 years Mr. White has collected and distributed over 14,000 pairs of shoes. All of the shoes and boots that are donated are cleaned, sorted, packaged and sent to charities so that they can be appropriately distributed. Your simple act of kindness can make a huge difference in the life of someone in need. Bravo Mr. Ron White! Let this be a call to action to all of the other shoe retailers in Toronto. And for all of you shoppers, the next time that you are buying a pair of shoes or boots, ask the store manager if they have a similar program. If they say no, ask why not.

The 12th Annual Shoe Drive for the Homeless is now taking place at all Ron White shoe stores. Mr. White’s goal is to collect 2,000 pairs of shoes this year. Let’s make sure that he meets or exceeds his goal this year.

Follow the link below for the location of all Ron White stores.
Ron White Stores

I don’t know about you, but I find it scary that pieces of our buildings are falling down. And, no nefarious forces are at work. The Toronto weather is being blamed. It is no comfort at all to know that the sign on the CIBC building passed the City of Toronto building standards when it was installed in 2002. In spite of the fact that the acrylic plastic sign received a passing grade, a 2-foot part of it fell 58 stories to the ground. The truly astonishing thing in all of this is that no one was injured. It seems that the worst effect was the gross inconvenience of having 3 major intersections and 2 stretches of road closed by the police for 12 hours while emergency technicians made sure the rest of the sign was secure.

Tests are now being conducted on the structural stability of the signs to determine whether or not they are safe. Why wasn’t this done prior to their installation? Everyone seems willing to blame this near disaster on the Toronto weather conditions. The extremely high winds were clocked as high as 107 kilometres per hour at Pearson International Airport. They could have been even stronger at the top of a tall building downtown. What no one is talking about is the degree of force that the building code allows for. And how many signs are there on other buildings that could be affected in similar conditions? We seem to be in a rush to reach the sky. But are we paying enough attention to safety issues when we build these skyscrapers?