Let’s hope it’s last call for dowdy, rundown Beer Stores

One of the only good ideas I’ve heard from Ontario Conservative leader Tim (Right To Work) Hudak is to allow beer to be sold in corner stores.

As my colleague Martin Regg Cohn argued in two recent columns, it is unacceptable that a consortium of foreign-owned breweries have a monopoly over the sale of beer in Ontario.

The Beer Store’s 440-store retail distribution empire is designed to steer people to suds made by the consortium, and away from the products of smaller, Canadian-based brewers.

It is inherently unfair to the little guys, supports inflated prices and perpetuates an anachronistic, 85-year-old system created at the end of prohibition that causes snickering among people from Quebec and the U.S., where it would never be tolerated.

I’m not much of a drinker, but I like a beer or two. It would be nice to be able to pick up a dozen while I’m at the grocery store, instead of making a separate trip to a Beer Store.

But the biggest problem I have is that so many of the stores, especially in working-class parts of town, are rundown dives that are a blight on the neighbourhood.

I wrote several columns last year about skanky Beer Stores, including one on Dundas St. W. that a reader nominated as the worst in the city – until others suggested stores that were at least as bad.

They attract a clientele that hang around near the doors and panhandle for enough change to buy a king-can, or can be found at the bottle-return counter, redeeming empties that were fished out of who knows where.

While shooting photos of the Dundas St. store, a guy who overestimated my interest in him started screaming that I didn’t have permission to take his picture (I wasn’t), got in my face and wanted to fight.

I tap-danced my way out of there, real quick.

By the way, has anyone else noticed that half of all Beer Store rounders sport a black eye or a fat lip?

The Beer Store’s management resented my observations, saying they’ve built some nice new stores, but they’re in upscale areas or newly built parts of places like Mississauga or Vaughan.

With politicians threatening to end their monopoly whenever an election is nigh, it is not unreasonable to conclude that sooner or later, a government might make good on it.

The Beer Store could have got out in front of it years ago by improving all of its stores, making it easier for people to buy suds produced by smaller breweries and allowing for more price competition.

The LCBO did that long ago, when its monopoly was questioned, and transformed shopping for a bottle of wine into a not unpleasant experience.

The Beer Store opted to stay with quick and dirty, and deserves to lose it.

             

 

 

         

 

 

 

        

 

 

 

         

 

 

                  

 

    

 

 

  

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“Sludge Queen” Maureen Reilly was a relentless environmental crusader

Sad news arrived today in an email that said Maureen Reilly, who had fought for decades against the use of sewage sludge as fertilizer, had suddenly passed away at age 58.

Reilly was the face of Sludge Watch, an ongoing effort to engage and educate media, politicians and academia about the perils of spreading biosolids made from the end product of the municipal sewage treatment process on crops.

She had a deep suspicion of claims that municipal sewage makes good fertilizer, and understood that the need to get rid of enormous amounts of it is driving its application on farm fields across North America.

I first met her nearly 10 years ago, when I worked in The Star’s city hall bureau and was writing about Toronto’s new plant that was turning sludge into tiny fertilizer pellets, a facility later destroyed by fire.

Reilly educated me. For her, the bottom line was that whatever was flushed down the toilet and poured down the drain on any given day went into the pellets produced from that day’s sludge.

All kinds of toxic materials are disposed of that should never be spread on fields, where it can make its way into food and ground water, she said, which put her in the crosshairs of municipalities and fertilizer producers who peddle the stuff.

It made sense to me, and I have since had a profound mistrust of anyone who says sludge is good fertilizer.

She was a relentless emailer of studies and stories from around the world that questioned sludge as fertilizer or offered evidence that it was poisonous; those of us who were on her list were familiar with her unique style of always sending three emails at a time.

For many years she lived in a ramshackle farmhouse near Orangeville, where she waged an international computer war against biosolids that earned her the Sludge Queen title.

She had long suffered from health problems, so it wasn’t all that surprising to get an email saying she was suddenly gone.

A celebration of Reilly’s life will be held Saturday Dec. 22 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Society of Friends (Quakers) at 60 Lowther Ave.

 

 

 

 

 

 

        

 

 

 

         

 

 

                  

 

    

 

 

  

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Mayor Ford’s go-to guy was on the ball when the Gardiner was crumbling

Judging by his response to pieces of concrete falling from the Gardiner Expressway, Mark Towhey can handle a crisis and is a credit to his boss.

My colleague Robyn Doolittle reported Friday that documents obtained by The Star under freedom of information revealed Ford’s office was told the same thing by city staff as the public: That everything was under control, when it really wasn’t.

After a third chunk of concrete fell from the Gardiner onto the road below in a two-week period last May, a meeting with city staff was convened in the mayor’s office, where staff said that concrete separating from a larger mass was nothing to worry about.

Towhey, a policy advisor to Ford at the time (and his current chief of staff), was among those who was not reassured.

He asked for a series of safety measures including inspections of all sidewalks, crosswalks and areas around the expressway where pedestrians would be at risk. If they couldn’t be made safe within four days, Towhey wanted them closed.

He suggested overhead hazard signs, temporary pedestrian crossings and requested that the entire underside of the Gardiner be inspected in three weeks or less.

Before the end of the day, he demanded a full status update, a 48-hour strategy, a list of deployed resources, information on additional incidents, a contingency plan to manage traffic if the road needed to be closed, a communications plan and a process for police and city workers to report any concrete found on the road.

Towhey’s emails to staff show that Ford’s office would support any measures were needed to shore up the Gardiner, and that there was “political will” to pursue an aggressive timeline.

“We would like to stretch our capabilities to get this done ASAP,” Towhey wrote. “If it is impossible, please let us know why today. If it is merely extremely difficult – let us know anything we can do politically to help expedite the process to achieve these timings. If you can do it faster – please do.”

You couldn’t ask for a better response from the mayor’s office, in terms of offering support to staff and making it clear that public safety was the key priority.

There are legitimate concerns about the way it was handled by staff, and explanations from them that may have downplayed risks, but Towhey was on top of it, asking all the right questions and conveying a serious sense of urgency.

Now that we know a lot more about the crumbling state of the expressway, his response seems prescient.

A mayor is only as good as the people he hires to advise him. If he listens to them, chances are he won’t regret it.

It makes me think that if Ford had listened more closely to Towhey, and followed his advice, he wouldn’t be appealing an order to remove him from office.

 

 

              

 

         

 

 

                  

 

    

 

 

  

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More evidence that Gardiner Expressway should be torn down

 

The latest news about the Gardiner Expressway - which is crumbling and will soon be unsafe to drive on, if it isn't already  – should be the final nail in its coffin.

We learned this week that $40 million in repairs budgeted for back to 2008 have not been done, and that an environmental assessment into a $505 million project to rebuild three kilometres of the Gardiner was curiously halted two years ago.

City councillors on the left and right were pointing fingers at each other, with the right focused on dat' ‘ol debbil, former mayor David Miller, who they blame for the Gardiner and everything else.

Miller is the reason why the Leafs and Raptors are such bums, and for the disappearance of Maalox from drug stores, but those are beefs for another day.

The bottom line on the Gardiner is the bottom line: The investment needed to rebuild it in a way that it would be a viable for another 40 years or so would easily surpass $1 billion, and work would need to start as soon as possible.

Where are we going to get the money?

Hey, I know: Let’s ask Paul Godfrey and Rod Phillips (and their, um, uh, patron, Sheldon Adelson) for a new casino!

The Ford Bros. say a casino will pay for subways, clear up the municipal debt and save municipal programs that are on the chopping block.

Hell, at that price, let's double down and go for two.

If it’s all that, and a bag of chips, surely there would be an extra billion under the cushions of the couch that we could dig out to build the Gardiner.

Since most of us (except the casino flavored Kool-Aid drinkers) know that’s a load, we’re back to where to get the dough.

It ain’t comin’ kids. So let’s cut our losses, tear it down, and go with that great big boulevard plan that was dreamed up a few years back for Lake Shore Blvd.

It’ll be better and cheaper.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

                  

 

    

 

 

  

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10-minute grace period for parking tickets to be put to a first-hand test

I am about to find out how much trouble it is to cancel a parking ticket issued within 10 minutes of the expiry of the purchased time.

The Star recently reported that city council wants to make it better known that drivers issued a parking tag within 10 minutes of the time on the pay-and-display ticket are eligible to have it cancelled, a rule change made last July.

We questioned in our blog last week why parking enforcement officers are not instructed to hold off on a ticket until 10 minutes after the time expires, instead of making people go to one of four city offices and stand in line to get it cancelled.

It turns out that parking enforcement has been asked to observe the 10-minute mercy rule in the issuing of tickets, but won’t unless ordered to.

The fact that no such order has been made suggests the city is not nearly as interested in extending the break as it is in collecting revenue from those who are eligible to cancel a ticket, but can’t be bothered or don’t have the time.

All of this took on a bit more meaning for me today, when I returned to my car, parked on Mutual St., to find a $30 ticket for “fail to deposit fee in machine,” which was not quite true.

I put $1.50 into the machine that issues pay-and-display dashboard tickets – good for 30 minutes of parking – which expired at 4.12 p.m.

I returned about 40 minutes later and found a ticket issued at 4.20 p.m., eight minutes after the time expired, which had me thinking it would be much easier – and reflect the spirit of the grace period - if the parking cop had just kept on going.

If he’d returned five minutes later, a mere three minutes beyond the grace period, I would have no choice but to pay the fine.

But the ticket was a waste of time, since I intend to have it cancelled, which underscores why it would be better for everyone of parking enforcement was ordered not to issue tickets until 10 minutes after the time expires.

      

IKEA Monkey a wild card in mayor’s race

With Mayor Rob Ford on the ropes and likely to get the hook, it’s time we had a serious discussion about his replacement.

We all know the city councillors who aspire to the throne – Vaughan, Carroll, Holyday, Mammoliti (ha!), even Brother Doug – but none are inspiring or captivating.

On that score, a figure has suddenly appeared that has captured the public's attention and is as qualified as the current chieftain or any of the pretenders.

I’m talking about the IKEA monkey, who has already charmed people around the world and would mark a new chapter in local politics.

That monkey didn’t show up for nothing. How else to explain the timing, other than to rescue us from the divisiveness and back-biting at city hall?

I believe it is a gift from on high to the people of Toronto, if only they can see the potential.

Here are 10 reasons why I support the IKEA monkey:

-         Brings a fresh face to the race. Would be the second coming of the Tiny Perfect Mayor.

-         Was described as screaming and agitated while visiting furniture store. Sounds like a mayor to me.

-         Would provide neo-cons with a new candidate who really speaks their language.

-         Could negotiate a sponsorship deal with IKEA and maybe sweeten the pot by threatening to go to Bad Boy. Adds cash to city bankroll. Not even Ford could do that.

-         Looks kind of like Mel Lastman, and he got elected twice.

-         Could take over zoo board, order that the elephants be kept and ride them in Pride Parade. Gay community would be thrilled.

-         Ropes could be strung from council chamber ceiling, allowing mayor to swing from them while eating bananas. It would lend an air of seriousness to meetings.

-         Mayor’s office could be reduced to a cage in city hall rotunda, where visitors could watch His Worship fiddle at work. Would cut costs and free up space on second floor.

-         Less likely to get in trouble if he started a foundation and solicited money.

-         More likely to get co-operation from councillors. Would be operating with his own kind.

I’d start a committee right now to run him for mayor, but the shadowy people who operate behind the scenes at city hall and are responsible for a lot of monkey business are way likely ahead of me.

 

            

 

 

 

 

 

                  

 

    

 

 

  

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Let’s put $4 million ticket cop to work where he can really make hay

You gotta love Zulfiqar Khimani, Toronto’s top parking enforcement officer, who has written $3.922 million in tickets in the last four years.

My colleague Wendy Gillis reported today that the industrious Khimani issues an average of 59 tickets daily and made the province’s sunshine list of public employees earning more that $100,000 a year by working lots of overtime and six-day weeks.

He checked in at $101,467 last year - big coin for a guy issuing parking tickets and an outrage to some of those who posted comments to Gillis’ online story.

But I am totally okay with paying him that kind of dough, about 10 cents for every dollar of ticket revenue he generates. He earns it.

If some municipal employees were half as diligent, we’d be in much better shape around here.

Khimani’s approach borders on maniacal, but he is only enforcing local parking regulations as reflected by the signs on the street, most of which are not too hard to understand.

If you don’t want a ticket, find a legal parking spot. I don’t like it either, and I get lots of tickets for neglecting my own advice. But I always blame myself, or plain old bad luck.

He patrols the Forest Hill-Eglinton Ave. area and neighbourhoods north of it, which has me wondering how much money he’d bring in if he was in the downtown core, where fines are higher and there’s at least as much illegal parking.

I get a lot of complaints about vehicles parked in no-standing zones on busy downtown streets, such as document shredding trucks that block lanes to turn paper into little strips. I wrote last week about a shredder parked in the cycling lane right outside the Star building - a $150 fine – which already had a ticket under its wiper blade for parking on King St.

So let’s turn Khimani loose on downtown hotspots where illegal parking is rampant, and have him keep an eye on the new bike lanes on Sherbourne St., which are often blocked by delivery vehicles.

I bet he could pump his money average by a couple hundred grand a year.

 

 

 

 

    

     

  

 

 

  

 

            

 

 

 

 

 

                  

 

    

 

 

  

Stop and smell the roses. They’re still in bloom

We’ve been waiting for winter since the fall of 2011, and it is still missing in action, which may be disappointing to some people, but not me.

In the good ‘ol days, not so long ago, we could always count on at least one snow storm of 15 centimetres or so in December, even if we later had a thaw by Christmas and the snow disappeared.

In the fall of 1997, frigid weather and snow arrived at the start of November and didn’t recede until March; by the end of December, we’d had at least as much winter weather as we’d usually get over an entire season.

I was reminded again of the disappearance of winter in these parts by two things over the last few days, a weekend trip to Montreal and a surprising discovery in a garden tended by the city.

I went to Montreal on Friday morning with my son’s minor bantam AA hockey team, the mighty Toronto Penguins (15-1 so far in their regular season, with two ties), where winter has not gone missing.

We got there about 2.30 in the afternoon, where the temperature was a frosty minus 9, which only got colder after dark and was no better on Saturday.

It reassured me that climate change, if that’s what is going on, has not affected the rest of Canada as much as southern Ontario.

While hiking along Elizabeth street behind city hall on Monday, I noticed an elaborate garden that the city created a few years ago on a vacant lot at Elizabeth and tiny Foster Place.

It was wilted and mostly dormant, except for two marvelous rose bushes, one with pink flowers and the
other with yellow, which was still in flower and putting out new blooms.

I stopped to sniff the pink roses, which still had a faint fragrance.

The geraniums on my patio are also still flowering, evidence that a hard frost has yet to find us in Toronto.

The perpetually mild weather is more suited to the Virginia or Maryland than southern Ontario, but I’ll take flowers over snow any time.