Downsview marches for global climate strike

On September 27, people from within and beyond Toronto's borders gathered at Queens Park for the Global Climate Strike. Local residents attended to represent the Downsview community and marched to raise awareness for climate change. 

The event brought people of all ages and different political stripes together. Countless students were excused from school to picket with their classmates. Participants carried signs displaying their personal messages to political leaders, demanding a call to action.

Local resident and community activist, Ayesha Khan, said that "You could feel the frustration, fear, anger and hope in the children. I kept seeing butterflies and dragonflies hovering over the crowd as if nature was saying "Thank you for coming. We heard you. We love you too."

The series of climate strikes are especially relevant in the midst of the federal election. Voters are comparing the various environmental policies that are included in the platforms of the top contesting parties. The Liberals have been criticized for their conflicting stances, including their support of building more pipelines while unveiling a countrywide tree planting initiative that seems to fall short of necessity. While the Conservatives based their climate change plan around abolishing the carbon tax, many are concerned that they will streamline their powers to hold corporations accountable for their carbon emissions.

The NDP's strategy includes "A New Deal for Climate Action and Good Jobs," alluding to the importance of building a greener economy as part of a broader framework for legislating greater corporate responsibility. The NDP's plan is built off of the notion that social justice encompasses environmental justice, and they have committed to working with Indigenous communities to prioritize removing the toxins and pollutants that have been left behind to contaminate their homes for generations. While the Green Party has presented some parallels to the NDP, the public is left to debate whether or not the other pillars of their platform are just as progressive in nature.

Teach2Learn, a youth mentorship program that organizes academic workshops for Spanish-speaking students at Keele and Finch, had several of its young leaders on site. Juan Poveda said that, 

"Participating in the climate strike was a demonstration of coherence. It is extremely important that young people continue to voice their thoughts and take concrete action. These actions should not only include participating in a strike, but should include every-day habits that show people, corporations and governments that we care enough about our future to take care of our home."

More than 15,000 attended the Climate Strike in Toronto, and many continue to express their solidarity online. Given the political climate, this could lead to consistent waves of collective action as much of humanity struggles to realign the modern political agendas to preserving the planet's resources. The common thread that held the crowd together was the outcry for change at all levels of government in order to pave a way to a sustainable vision of prosperity that includes everyone.

Another senseless and tragic death at the Fiera Foods factory

On Wednesday September 25^th Enrico Miranda died tragically on the job at Fiera Foods. He was crushed to dead by a machine while cleaning it. This is the fifth death at Fiera Foods since 1999.  The first victim was , a 17-year old temp named Ivan Golyashov who was killed when a dough mixer was activated while he was inside cleaning it. Then in 2011 it was Aydin Kazimov who was crushed to death by one of Fiera’s trucks. Two years later, Amina Diaby a 23-year-old woman was killed at Fiera Foods when her Hijab was caught in a machine and strangled her to death. In 2016, a man in his 40s was pinned to death at Fiera Foods while getting stuck between a loading dock and tractor trailer. After five horrific deaths Fiera Foods is still operating in North York at 50 Marmora St. 

After Amina’s tragic death a writer for the Toronto Star, Sara Mojtehedzadeh, went undercover as a temporary worker at Fiera Foods to investigate. Mojtehedzadeh found that about 70% of Fiera Food’s workforce was hired through work agencies as temporary workers. This is alarming. In Canada only 14% of workers are temporary. The workers at Fiera Food’s are also not hired for seasonal work which is usually why some companies go through agencies during high-demand seasons. The investigation also showed that temporary workers receive very little training, just a 5-minute briefing, do not get paid for sick days, are discouraged from complaining, are deemed easily replaceable, work long shifts with no paid breaks, and are paid under the table in cash through payday lenders. Workers do not receive pay stubs nor a record of their employment. 

This tragedy hits close to home as both my parents have worked as temporary workers for factories before, as I am sure many people in our community have. Fiera Foods benefits from desperate workers who are just trying to survive in our country and Fiera Foods is one of many companies that prey on immigrants and workers of colour who might be too afraid to speak up because they know it might cost them their jobs. 

No one should go to work and lose their life. The Star found that “Fiera has been slapped with 191 orders for health and safety violations over the past two decades, for everything from lack of proper guarding on machines to unsafely stored gas cylinders.” Yet they still operate. When the Star arrived on the 25^th of September, they found that production had not stopped, and workers had not been sent home amidst the tragedy that caused Mr. Miranda’s life. 

On Tuesday October 1^st, organizers gathered outside the Fiera Food factory and handed workers pamphlets about unionizing. Security guards asked worked to throw away their flyers at the door. The following day more organizers and over 100 members of the community protested with banners asking for accountability. Workers were asked to not come to the day shift and were not paid for the day. No further details have been given by Fiera Foods regarding the death of Mr. Miranda. They have only stated that “As a company, we are heartbroken and have been focused foremost on supporting the family and our employees through these first few difficult days. At the same time, we are fully co-operating with Ministry of Labour inspectors as they review the accident.”

A GoFundMe Campaign has been started to help cover the costs of the funeral of Mr. Miranda. You can donate at https://www.gofundme.com/f/funeral-help-for-tay?fbclid=IwAR0RKDPR2tuP2ZKQsY3DJNo9EqpzoyAHFn__TV8suPb47_GIddDn6FY1JNs

Redevelopment of Wilson Station's parking lot - the saga continues

On August 14, 2019 York Centre Councillor James Pasternak hosted a working group meeting to discuss the proposed redevelopment of Wilson Station’s Main Commuter Parking Lot at 50 Wilson Heights Boulevard. The lot was deemed ‘surplus’ land by the City’s development agency, CreateTO, and was selected by Toronto City Council to include in the affordable housing initiative, Housing Now. 

The meeting was organized by the Councillor Pasternak’s office in response to concerns raised by community members related to the loss of parking at the June 2019 Housing Now Community Meeting.   

During the meeting, City of Toronto Planning and CreateTO staff provided an overview presentation. It included: a recap of the Housing Now proposed development; a summary of City Council direction on parking for Housing Now sites; an analysis of existing usage of the parking lot; and three potential parking scenarios being considered in any future development. 

To justify the selection of the Wilson Station lot, City staff presented some helpful data. For instance, they provided the result of a recent licence plate survey, which indicated that of the total 866 parking spaces, only 25% (219 spots) are used by York Centre residents. The remaining 75% are used by folks outside of the community, including the 41% of spots which are used daily by commuters from the Greater Toronto Area. 

CreateTO staff also indicated that rebuilding all 866 spots underground a future development would be unfeasible given their estimate that each space would cost $85,000 ($75 million to build 866 spots). Adding in financing and operational costs, the public would need to pay $35+ per day in order to break even.

City staff revealed that future redevelopments would include one of three parking scenarios for community members: 1) provide exclusive public parking (no dedicated residential parking space); 2) provide shared parking (residential and public parking space); and 3) provide no public parking.

Although only a dozen community members attended the meeting, participants asked detailed questions and provided clear feedback to the Councillor and city staff. I’ve summarized some of the community’s feedback below. 

General Feedback 

• Participants acknowledged that both affordable housing and commuter parking are very important issues and the community should not be presented with options that make them feel like they must choose one or the other. 
• Community members voiced that the TTC needs to be part of this discussion. There were participants at the meeting who would consider taking transit rather than driving to the station, however many people felt that TTC service is unreliable and infrequent.
• Some felt this is a safety concern – especially at night when some have to wait alone at a bus stop.

Process Feedback 

• Participants  expressed that low turnout at the meeting should not be taken as a sign of a lack of concern about this issue. Others in the community are interested and have concerns but were either unable to attend or were not aware of the meeting. 
• Participants urged the Councillor and CreateTO to do a better job at publicizing community meetings, including advertising in the local newspapers; posting a development sign in the parking lot (while has since been done); and handing out flyers at Wilson Station.

Parking Scenario Feedback 

• Participants suggested removing a scenario all together (i.e. “provide no public parking”) since it was considered unreasonable and unfair to the community.  
• Participants urged city staff to keep some or all of the existing surface lot by reconfiguring the development plans or moving the Housing Now site to a new location like Downsview/Sheppard West station.  
• Some community members expressed interest in expanding and improving the parking lot at Downsview/Sheppard West station to accommodate the loss of parking at Wilson Station.
• Participants also offered some creative solutions. Such as, using a permit system to preference local residents in public parking spaces built in future developments at Wilson Station and discouraging the use of the lot from people outside of the area by increasing the cost of parking at Wilson Station (by a couple dollars), possibly as a pilot project.

There was another Housing Now Community Meeting on September 16^th  from 6 P.M to 9 P.M at the Church of Resurrection (1 Tippett Road). I will continue to cover this issue over the coming months – feel free to read my previous articles to learn more.

Pensions in Canada are leaving seniors in poverty

In July most seniors on Candian Pension Plan (CPP) saw an increase of only $12 to $16 a month – not enough

It is hard for many of us to imagine that Finch Avenue was once a dirt road, lined with countless apple orchards. Back then, the City of Toronto was much smaller. The area was known for its farmland and cottage country bungalows. Those who remember those days would have been contributing to their Canadian Pension Plan for decades before retiring.

Many of our neighbours have lived in the Downsview area for over 40 years, making them the original homeowners. While they are retired now, they continue to be active leaders on their own streets and at local community centres.

The CPP was created in the 1960’s as a response to people living longer and the rising level of poverty conditions for seniors at that time. The Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement were added to ensure a base level of income for all seniors. The system was designed to protect people from destitution in their old age and to give them both dignity in life and dignity in their hard-earned retirement. 

Today, our system is not keeping up with the realities of modern life. Most young people are aware of the difficulties of buying a home in the current real estate market. What many people do not realize yet, however, is the difficulty that many seniors are facing as rents rise. To illustrate the problem, a person living off of CPP and OAS could very well make $20,000 a year. A one-bedroom apartment in our neighbourhood now costs around $1500 per month, or $18,000 per year. Many who rely on their pensions live on the knife’s edge of poverty. 

Pensions go up on July 1 of every year, but most seniors only saw a monthly increase of $12-$16 per month. With real estate prices sky-rocketing and rents following suit, many seniors can barely afford their homes anymore in addition to keeping up with other living expenses. The problem is likely to get worse, as we are the only major country without a plan to deal with the realities of an aging population. 

The beauty of Canada has been its caring disposition, tolerance and acceptance. This is what makes our country one of the best places to live, and has created some of the highest standards of living in the world. That being said, the current government has done little to change make life affordable for seniors and they have no plans of making any significant changes. Seniors have it too hard and we are not doing enough to help them.

Our MPP's year in review

It has been a year of new beginnings. A year ago, I was honoured to be elected by you to represent our community at Queen’s Park.  A little over a month later, I welcomed my first child into the world. In that time I have been working tirelessly at Queen's Park and in our community for positive change.

I am proud to stand up for you, and now my son Aleksandar, who reminds me every day of why it is important to build a better future for all of us.

This past year, we've come together often at Town Halls I've hosted on fairer auto insurance, such as my bill that would have reduced premiums by a billion dollars, and on fighting the cuts to education, autism funding and this government's bill that will now allow developers to build with little community input and benefits to neighbourhoods. We have connected at local events and meetings, parent-teachers councils, seniors’ groups and more. We've shared our ideas, voiced concerns, signed petitions, and I've brought them all to Queen's Park. I am proud of what we've done together.

It is important that our students understand how important their role in our community is.  As such, I have created an annual Youth Community Leadership Award for 'civic engagement' which I have had the pleasure of giving to many students at the 30+ graduation ceremonies in our riding. My office and I also actively participate in the Humber River-Black Creek Youth Council, which now meets regularly to discuss issues within our province and city. These are our future leaders and I am very proud of doing what I can to encourage them.

The legislature has risen for the summer, I will continue to knock on doors, attend our local events and meetings, and assisting you when you need me. You can reach my office at 416-743-7272 or email at TRakocevic-CO@ndp.on.ca, and keep up to date by following me on Twitter at @RakocevicT and on Facebook. 

I wish you all a safe and happy summer!

Significance of ravines and cycle paths in Toronto

Toronto is known for its vast network of ravines. As the population continues to soar, so does the recreational use of these natural, public spaces. With the summer season upon us, now is the best time to ride a trail or enjoy a picnic with friends in a local ravine.

The City of Toronto and the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) monitor our watershed areas and invest in the most up-to-date measures to protect parkland and floodplains. The effects of climate change are intensifying and require constant monitoring. Watershed refers to the land that catches rainfall and drains it into local bodies of water, including ravines.

All watershed areas in Toronto are considered river watersheds, with the exception of the waterfront area that drains into Lake Ontario. All activities in our parks, whether they are solo or communal in nature, should aim to preserve or improve outdoor spaces. That objective ensures that current and future generations can enjoy what our ravines have to offer, which is a connection to our past, present and future here in our city. 

Throughout history, our ravine network has carved out natural neighbourhood boundary lines. The Humber River, for example, is entrenched in our local ravine network and has inspired parks, trails, and schools to incorporate the name. Humber-River Black Creek is even the name of our electoral district at all levels of government. Black Creek Pioneer Village is named after the Black Creek because of the community that originally settled on the parkland.

Living in a city, it is important to understand the significance of our natural landscape and how it’s shaped the people who live there. Through continued effort and appreciation we can commit ourselves to sustainable, outdoor practices. Our cycle trails, for example, provide a cost-effective, healthy and highly energizing way of connecting with our ravines. 

The Toronto Bicycling Network organizes short Ravine Rides throughout the city, each lasting from 1-3 hours in duration. These routes prioritize cycling through trails in order to avoid busy roads, and they normally incorporate a loop path back to a specific location for coffee and snacks after the ride. All starting points for Ravine Rides are conveniently located near subway stations. Cycling is a great way to exercise and meet people, as well as explore our City’s natural features without causing them any harm.

Some of the most notable trails that run through our community are the Finch West Trail that runs from Antibes to Norfinch along the hydro corridor, the Black Creek Trail that runs from Pioneer Village to Northwood Park along the Black Creek Parkland, and the East Humber Trail that starts from Steeles and runs South to the West Humber Recreational Trail. The East Humber Trail leads south to two connections, both the North Humber Trail and the West Humber Trail. You can visit the City of Toronto's Cycling Map at: https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/streets-parking-transportation/cycling-in-toronto/cycling-google-map/ for further information about Toronto's cycle trails and road routes.

Everyone can benefit from spending more time in our green spaces, whether that be an open park or shaded ravine, biking a trail or photographing the local wildlife. Toronto’s ravines and cycle paths are ours to discover.

TRCA building's groundbreaking event

I was pleased to participate in the ground-breaking ceremony on June 7 for the brand new Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) head office in our community. This project is significant for many reasons.

The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority is an essential provincial body that manages our city's watershed and ravine system (such as the Humber River and Black Creek waterways). They ensure that the ongoing effects of climate change are mitigated, and they do the bulk of behind-the-scenes work in ensuring our community remains as safe as possible from flooding and pollution. The reason we have clean and reliable water sources is partially due to the good work done by the TRCA. As seasonal and flash flooding becomes more commonplace, the TRCA's efforts are becoming ever-more essential.

The building itself is to be on 5 Shoreham Drive. It will be a state-of-the-art eco-friendly structure that sets a new standard for office building development with the highest 'green' certifications and low-carbon footprint. The building is aiming for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum certification as well as "WELL Building" certification. It is the kind of building we can point to when looking to achieve the highest standards in commercial building development in our community and City. It is set to be completed in spring, 2021.

The economic impact of this new building will also be a welcome benefit to our community. The hundreds of full time jobs the office will bring, in addition to the thousands of volunteers it will attract every year, will generate new business and economic activity to our area.

The TRCA was founded in the wake of Hurricane Hazel's disastrous flooding impact on the City of Toronto. Its mission statement is to ensure our city and region's ability to weather 10, 25, and 100-year storms is maximized, and our watersheds and ravines remain protected from pollution and inappropriate development. It is essential to the quality of life in our city. 

In my roles as TRCA Chair, Toronto City Councillor, and TRCA Board Member I have overseen this project since its infancy and I was extremely proud to be alongside other dignitaries to break ground for it in Humber River—Black Creek. 

Maria Augimeri
TRCA Board Member,
Former TRCA Chair,
Former Toronto City Councillor

Summer in Downsview Park

It’s that time of year again. The sun is beaming, the birds are chirping, and the children are out of school.

If you’re looking for something to do this summer, Downsview Park is offering a number of programs to get you outside, meet members of the community, and explore Canada’s first urban national park.

And this year, there is a lot to do. Downsview Park is offering free educational programs for all ages that focus on urban sustainability — how people today can live in a way to ensure the wellbeing of our city and its people, for generations to come.

For example, Nature Connection is a family-friendly program that will get you outside exploring and learning about our local natural environment. If you’re looking for something to do with your toddler, try out the hands-on outdoor activities with the Jr. Forest Explorers program. And if you’re looking for something a little more relaxing, consider joining a guided stroll through the Walk in the Park program. Or, if you love food (and really, who doesn’t?) forage for food in park’s orchard or grow and harvest your own food in the park’s educational garden through the Food in the Park program.

These programs are an important part of our community. They help us learn new things, stay active, and foster deeper connections with one another and our natural environment. We should appreciate the hard work and effort that goes into organizing them. Downsview Park is staffed by a small group of individuals and with limited resources – but every year they find creative ways to engage our community. And the programs are largely facilitated by a group of volunteers who dedicate their time to make our community a more liveable and enjoyable place to be.

This summer lets show our support and our appreciation for the hardworking and dedicated group of staff members and volunteers who help bring our community together to experience the magic of Downsview Park.

If you want to learn more about the programs offered at Downsview Park check out their website: www.downsviewpark.ca and if you’re interested in volunteering in the park this summer, reach out to Allison Best at abest@clc.ca.

See you in the park!