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Beach Triangle Residents Association

Neighbourhood News and Information

The Beach Triangle Residents Association, Toronto, Ontario

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Stories from the Spring 2009 Newsletter

Enthusiastic Residents Conduct Parking Poll
A committee of Triangle residents was brought together in April to conduct a poll on all interior streets in the Triangle to test resident interest in changing the one-hour parking limit, dating back to problems... [More]

TTC Rush Hour Extension Proposal... Your Opinion is Requested
The BTRA Board has joined with other area residents associations (RA) in meeting monthly with the Beach Business Improvement Association (BBIA). An important item at the April 21 BBIA/RA meeting was a proposal from the TTC to increase the rush hour by... [More]

Volunteers Needed for 2nd Annual Beach Triangle Funfest: September 12, 2009
Due to the success of our 2008 Triangle Funfest, we will once again be holding the event in coordination with our local Beach partners. Keep an eye open for our flyer in your mailbox... [More]

Queen Condo - Community Consultation Meeting
The Community Consultation Meeting at the Beaches Library on March 23 was specifically with regard to "Application to Demolish Rental Housing", related to the proposed condo development at 1862 to 1876 Queen East. Facilitators were... [More]

Emerald Ash Borer Still Devastating Trees in Toronto
The Emerald Ash borer is still devastating trees within the Toronto area and was recently (February 2009) detected in Hamilton, ON. The best way to keep our Ash trees safe from this insect is to limit transportation and use of Ash species from wood packaging, nursery stock, firewood and... [More]

Live Green Toronto Meeting a Great Success!
What is a Community Animator?", I wondered as I joined about 50 people representing a wide variety of community groups in registering at the Information Session sponsored by Councillors Sandra Bussin and Janet Davis at W.S. Stewart Library on May 4th. Martina Rowley, Community Animator for Live Green Toronto, took us through a review... [More]

No More Breathing Room: Speak Up or Hold Your Breath
In 2004, 250 local residents filled the auditorium at the Fire Academy for presentation of the conclusions of the Biosolids Master Plan. The six community members who had dedicated fourteen years to the Ashbridges Bay Treatment Plant Environmental Assessment couldn't believe their ears when they heard Lou Di Gironimo, Manager of Toronto Water, conclude that incineration was back on... [More]

Home History: The Hidden Twins... 1878 and 1880 Queen Street East
Two of the oldest houses on Queen Street in the Triangle, 1878 and 1880, are now almost totally hidden by urban growth. These houses show up clearly in the photo taken in about 1906 from the fire hall tower but now barely discernible. The c.1906 photo reveals only four buildings on the north side of Queen... [More]

Police Liaison Report
The 55 Division Community Police Liaison Committee is made up of community volunteers and police service representatives who work together in identifying, prioritizing, and problem-solving local policing issues. Your BTRA Executive has actively monitored committee developments for many years. Among topics reported at recent meetings... [More]

Stories from the Winter 2008 Newsletter

Beaches Triangle Funfest
The first annual Beach Triangle Funfest took place on Saturday, September 13th in the Corpus Christi Church Parking lot. The event raised funds for the ‘Children’s Make a Wish Foundation’. It was a great success thanks to the many residents who came out to show support for our wonderful neighbourhood. [More]

Queen/Rainsford Condo Forum December 8th
About a year ago an application was filed with the City to approve the development of a six-storey, mixed-use, condominium to replace existing buildings at 1864 - 1876 Queen St. East — that's the north-east corner of Queen and Rainsford Rd. At the time, the proposal asked for one level of below grade parking, commercial units... [More]

R.I.P. BTRA Annual Yard Sale 1985-2008
This memo is to say farewell to the Beach Triangle Residents Association’s Annual Community Lawn Sale. The first event was held in 1985 on the last Saturday in May and was a roaring success. So much so in fact that the... [More]

Portlands Energy Centre, Community Liaison Committee
George Smitherman, Deputy Premier and Minister of Energy & Infrastructure has said: "as Toronto continues to grow, we need to have a reliable source of energy in our own back yard. At the Portlands Energy Centre (PEC) meeting held on September 30th we discussed how the PEC is an essential piece of the plan to meet Toronto's energy requirement and secure its economic future. [More]

Home History: 1864 Queen Street East
If not derelict, definitely unloved. This is how one may view the curiously shaped, flat-roofed building on the northeast corner of Rainsford Road and Queen East in the Triangle. Now threatened with demolition to make way for a possible condo development, I decided to look into the history of this home before it is too late. [More]

Parking Progress
In the spring edition of Triangle Topics, we raised the question of whether Triangle residents support a three hour, no towing parking standard to replace the headache and great expense our visitors presently experience if they stay more than an hour, only to find that their car has been towed. [More]

Police Liaison Report
The 55 Division Community Police Liaison Committee is made up of community volunteers and police service representatives who work together in identifying, prioritizing, and problem-solving local policing issues. The BTRA Executive has actively monitored committee the most recent meeting in mid November. Extra officers have been brought on-board for the next several weeks to deal with a sudden increase in break and enter incidents in the area. [More]

"Assessment at the Top of the Market"
Statement from Bob Topp, Chairman Coalition After Property Tax Reform (CAPTR): In the midst of an economic crisis and a looming recession, Ontario property owners are now receiving their first assessment notices in three years. It is expected that the 2008 assessment will reflect major increases for most Ontario home owners. The three year period was one of buoyant... [More]

Chairperson's Report
The Beach Triangle Residents Association has had a busy year. Some of the activities we have been involved with this past year are summarized below. The BTRA has:

[More]

Stories from the Spring 2008 Newsletter

Rainsford & Queen Condominium Development
Residents in the Queen and Rainsford area are expressing concerns regarding a condominium development proposed for the North side of Queen St., just West of Woodbine. Several residents have contacted BTRA Board members to have their say. Best take note. Your area may be next. [More]

Neighbourhood Watch
We all want to live and work in safe and healthy communities. Getting involved and becoming an active member of a Neighbourhood Watch group is one way to help make and keep our community a safe place for everyone. Prevention starts with you. By working together, neighbours can make their community a safer place to live. Neighbourhood Watch provides a means of reducing the opportunity for crime to occur through the active participation of citizens in crime prevention. [More]

Landscaping this Spring? It May Cost You More than You Think
If you are planning on landscaping your property this spring/summer, there is some important information that you should know. City Council met at the end of January and there were amendments made to the existing tree bylaws that may affect your pocket book. [More]

Police Liaison
As of April, there seems to be a slight increase in Break and Enters all over 55 Division. Police advise that these B&Es typically occur during daytime. [More]

Home History: 106 Dixon Road
This story is not so much about a home in the Triangle as about someone who lived in a Triangle home, and about an obsession – mine! It begins with a previous Home History article that focused on Eight Rainsford Road, where I found that Annie May Taylor sold the home in 1911 to... [More]

My Car is Missing
Over 20 years ago, the BTRA was formed to address a common problem. Every evening, over 1000 patrons of the Greenwood racetrack would descend on our community to park for free on our local streets. With much local effort and the help of local councillors, a bylaw was passed to limit parking... [More]

Animal Licensing Takes Front Seat!
We understand the City is placing new emphasis on pet licensing this year. The municipal code requires that all dogs and cats owned in the City of Toronto must be licensed... [More]

The Emerald Ash Borer Has Been Detected in Toronto
The Emerald Ash Borer is a wood boring beetle from Asia that infests and kills all species of healthy Ash trees. It was first detected in the United States and Southwestern Ontario back in 2002 and has now reached trees in the Sheppard Ave. E. and Hwy. 404 vicinity of Toronto. The Emerald Ash Borer is capable of... [More]

Stories from the Winter 2007 Newsletter

Annual Triangle Lawn Sale - A Success
The annual spring Triangle lawn sale was again a success. We were fortunate to have had lovely weather which helped achieve a strong turnout. In total, there were approximately 60 participants. We received 24 contribution envelopes and collected a total of $268. These proceeds were used to cover the advertising costs of the sale.

More Trees For the Triangle?
The Triangle and Trees. They are synonymous. But trees do age.
You may have noticed a lot of tree damage during storm events this year. This is because many of our trees are now reaching the end of their natural lives. Not just the trees in public spaces, but the trees in our yards too.
The City's tree experts have been long prepared for this and have been following a tree replacement strategy here for several years now. But it is not always easy. [More]

A Triangle Party?
As we all know, the Triangle is a community with great spirit! Many streets and laneways within the Triangle organize yearly get-togethers and other social events. In years past, the BTRA has helped to organize large-scale events for the Triangle neighbourhood as a whole, including Halloween parties, annual pumpkin carving contests for the children and Halloween costume parties for the adults, an outdoor barbeque event and dances at the Church. [More]

Home History - Eight Rainsford Road
Eight Rainsford Road is a classic Beach Triangle home. As you walk past you note the original roofed verandah and white Doric columns, the stained glass window over the large living room window and another to the right of the front door, the brick richly aged by almost 100 years of weathering. Looking up and you see the original second storey windows and a third floor dormer (wait, no it is an attic window with pretensions). [More]

Chairperson's Report - 2007
Once again, your Beach Triangle Residents Association has had a busy year. Some of the activities we have been involved with this past year are summarized as follows: [More]

Online Bicycle Registration Program
Recently I visited a couple of the larger bicycle retail outlets in the City looking for a new bike and was amazed to see that prices currently range from $250. to $5,000. Specialty racing bikes can exceed $10,000. It is easy to see why bicycle theft and resale is such a thriving business in the City of Toronto and the Beach Community is not immune to bicycle theft. [More]

The 5th Annual Triangle Brass Christmas Carol Event
Over the previous four years a few members from various local community bands have come together to perform an old Christmas tradition in the Beach Triangle: carol singing with brass accompaniment. [More]

Stories from the Spring 2007 Newsletter

The BTRA Lawn Sale: Sat. May 26th 2007
Rather than discarding items as "junk," try selling them at the BTRA lawn sale - it can be a profitable and fun way to recycle items. [More]

Neighbourhood Watch – An Opportunity to Take Action Against Petty Crime in the Triangle
Are you concerned about graffiti vandalism and petty crime in the Beach Triangle? If so, there’s a way for you to get involved. [More]

Lake Ontario Park
Big changes are coming to our waterfront, as a capacity crowd discovered January 17 past. The event, in an overflowing ballroom at Harbourfront’s Radisson Admiral Hotel, was the official unveiling of the Lake Ontario Park concept plan, an ambitious project that encompasses all the waterfront parkland from Cherry Beach eastward to the Scarborough Bluffs – including Ashbridges’ Bay Park, Woodbine Park, Pantry Park, Kew Gardens, the Eastern Beaches and even the R. C. Harris Water Filtration Plant. [More]

BeachTriangle.com: A New Web Site for the BTRA
The old BTRA Web site has recently undergone a much-needed makeover, as well as a change of address. BeachTriangle.com is the new Web address for the BTRA. [More]

Historic Triangle Photo Worth a Second Look
The photo printed in the Winter 2006 Triangle Topics was interesting to a lot of people, so we are re-printing it here with more commentary. The photo portrays the corner of Queen and Woodbine circa 1905 (Woodbine appears to bend at Queen because of a distortion resulting from putting two photos together). [More]

Beach Triangle Panorama circa 1905
Beach Triangle Panorama circa 1905

Stories from the Winter 2006 Newsletter

Stop the Portlands Powerplant
The BTRA Board is supporting the City of Toronto and the Toronto Energy Coalition (TEC) in a campaign to stop the Portlands Energy Centre (PEC) being pushed forward by the Government of Ontario. [More]

Teletheatre Liquor License Meeting Held
On September 29th the Woodbine Entertainment Group (WEG), operators of the Greenwood Teletheatre, invited the Beach Triangle and the Woodbine Park Residents Associations, Deputy Mayor/Councillor Sandra Bussin, and Richard Kulis, legal counsel representing the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), to a meeting to discuss ongoing plans. The results of the two-hour meeting were largely unsatisfying. [More]

Front Yard Parking By-law Passed
In July the new, GTA-wide, conditions on front yard parking were approved by City Council. These may be viewed at www.toronto.ca/transportation/offstreet/res_fy.htm. Following is a summary of the conditions. [More]

Community Environmental Assessment Team (CEAT) Meeting at the Fire Academy on October 16th
The City of Toronto must carry out an Environmental Assessment (EA) to decide a plan for managing its leftover garbage (residual waste). This is the waste remaining after making the most of efforts to reduce, reuse, recycle and compost. [More]

Triangle Photo History:
How times change!

Both of the following sets of images were taken from the top of the firehall tower: the top one depicting the Triangle as it appeared circa 1902 and, at bottom, a similar view from 2005.

Beach Triangle Panorama circa 1905
Beach Triangle Panorama circa 1905

Note in the 1902 picture the Woodbine (later Greenwood) Racetrack south of Queen and the almost total absence of homes in the Triangle. Contrast this to the 2005 shot depicting the massive Woodbine Park housing development and fully developed housing in the Triangle.

Beach Triangle Panorama 2005

Beach Triangle Panorama 2005

Do you know of the history of your home? Share it – contact John Ellis at ellisjohn@rogers.com or at 416-694-3288.

Top photo courtesy of the Toronto Archives. Bottom photo courtesy of Beach-Metro News

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