Citizen politics, unlike party politics, does not seek to change government, but to improve it by watchfulness, oversight and advice
- Ursula Franklin

HSRO Newsletter – Spring 2013

Hello to all Huron-Sussex residents.  Your new HSRO board of directors is very pleased to bring you an update on our activities.

We had a very successful Annual General Meeting on January 29. In addition to an excellent neighbourhood planning discussion, the membership elected the following residents to our 2013 board:

President: Julie Mathien, 10 Glen Morris St               416-979-2393   mathetj@ca.inter.net
Vice-President: Andy Vice, 11 Washington Ave        416-598-2591   andyandjanvice@gmail.com
Secretary: Jerri Jones, 7 Washington Ave                  416-979-5453   jerrimerrittjones@sympatico.ca
Treasurer: Dharma     8 Washington Ave                   416-593-1960
Members at Large:
Christine Chattin,  14 Glen Morris St                            416-979-5503
David Worts, 1 Washington Ave                                   416-979-9921   dworts@jama.ca
Grace de Souza, 699 Spadina Ave                              416-616-0995   Grace.DeSouza@dentistry.utoronto.ca
Leigh Chestnut Halls, 8 Glen Morris St                         416-979-2570
Ron Kentner,  379 Huron St                                          416-506-1298   ron.kentner@gmail.com

The board represents the interests of Huron-Sussex.  Please don’t hesitate to contact members if you have something to bring to the board’s attention.

Don’t forget to check our website www.huronsussex.org for updates.

HSRO Membership:
Many thanks to those of you who attended the AGM and joined or re-joined HSRO.  Our membership campaign will continue.  Watch for street reps who will visit residents who have not yet become HSRO members to ask if they would like to join.  An HSRO membership gives you a voice in our organization and helps fund our activities.

Community Planning:
The University of Toronto and HSRO selected the planning firm Brook McIlroy Inc to lead the joint community planning project that has been in development for the last two years.  The university generously agreed to fund the project.  Thanks to everyone who completed the online survey in December.  We had a fantastic response rate and the survey results are critical to our planning.  We will be in touch with you soon regarding next steps, which will include community sessions.  If you have questions, please feel free to contact Julie, Andy, Ron or Grace (co-ordinates on front page). We will post information on www.huronsussex.org

245 College St.
You may recall that, approximately two years ago, the University of Toronto signed an agreement to lease a parcel of land on the south side of College St just east of Spadina to Knightstone, a local developer.  In return, Knightstone proposed to build a student residence that would be operated by Scion, a US private company that manages these types of facilities.  The proposed development is too large and too tall for the site and will have serious negative impacts on Glasgow Ave., a small street on the south side of the site. The development is opposed by the City and all four west-central residents’ groups.

The developer took the proposal to the Ontario Municipal Board for permission to build and the hearing was scheduled for mid-March.  The good news is that, at the last minute, the developer’s lawyer requested mediation.  We will participate and hope that we can avoid a full OMB hearing.

Casino:
After some deliberation, the HSRO board decided to oppose the proposal to build a casino in downtown Toronto.  The letter that HSRO is sending to Mayor Rob Ford will be posted on www.huronsussex.org.  We urge you to join the anti-casino campaign and write or e-mail the Mayor.  Our local City councilor, Adam Vaughan, has been a strong opponent of the casino.

 

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