S.A.R.A. executive Meeting Minutes – September 16, 2003

 

Present:    Ron Braun, Ritvars Bregzis, George Dubauskas, Marianne Fenner, Louis Gris, Peter Keefe, Frances Labelle, Vicki Vancas, John Meijer, Nick Singh, Bill Roberts

 

Absent:     Sybil Wilkinson, Bill Haines, Joan Oreto, Merle Hudson, Victoria Masnyk

 

Guests:    

 

Call to Order and Declaration of Conflicts of Interest:

The meeting began at 7:38 p.m. at the Swansea Town Hall.

 Joan Oreto notified SARA that she will not be attending meetings until the insurance matter is settled.

 

Approval of Agenda:

                  The agenda was approved as amended upon motion by Bill Roberts seconded by Ritvars Bregzis and unanimously carried.

 

Minutes:   The minutes of June 17th, 2003, were approved as amended upon motion by Bill Roberts, seconded by George Dubauskas and unanimously carried.

 

1.         Membership Report:

Louis Gris reported that he has not received any renewals. Membership is unchanged.

 

2.         Treasurer’s Report:

John Meijer presented the Treasurer’s Report as of September 16th, 2003:

The Treasurer reported that his review of the interest rates and investment vehicles showed that present investment strategy is satisfactory.  Upon motion made by John Meijer, seconded by Frances Labelle and unanimously carried, the Treasurer’s report was accepted.

 

Upon a motion by John Meijer, seconded by Bill Roberts, the Treasurer was authorized to reimburse Louis Gris $81.59 for membership expenses.

 

3.         Land Use Matters:

a)      1947-1997 Bloor St. W. – Context Development:  Peter Keefe provided an update on the environmental issues relating to the site. At a community meeting held in August, a course of action for the remediation of the site was outlined. The neighbourhood is actively monitoring this situation and a further update will be given to SARA next month.  

b)      Windermere by the Lake – Frances Labelle reported that the developer again plans to go to the Committee of Adjustment for more variances on the East site (adding 7 storeys to the tower, exempting the above-ground parking structure from GFA calculations, providing less amenity space than the bylaws allow).  Frances Labelle asked for instruction regarding this matter and inquired if any compromise would be acceptable from SARA’s standpoint.  The general opinion was that this was one variance too many, therefore: upon motion by Vicki Vancas, seconded by Peter Keefe, and carried, Nick Singh was authorized to write to Councillor Miller expressing SARA’s concerns and requesting that he intervene for the following reasons:  1.  this is not a matter for the Committee of Adjustment and should be treated as a rezoning matter because this is a massive change, not a minor variation; and 2. there is a concern that increasing the height of the buildings and exempting above-ground structures from the GFA and the existing restrictions contained in the site-specific bylaw will set an undesirable precedent for future developments.

 Ron Braun and Frances Labelle abstained from voting on the motion.

c)      Southport Plaza Redevelopment – Frances Labelle reported on the work being done by RARG to prepare for the hearing scheduled to start Oct. 27th.   She noted that there is now a third new site plan.  RARG is working on a proposal that is more site-friendly and is looking at preparing an updated newsletter and a flyer to inform the community of recent developments.

d)      1900 Lake Shore Blvd. W. (former Meow Club site) – Frances Labelle reported that there has been an OMB pre-hearing conference.  A hearing date has been set for Dec. 4th, 2003.  Frances is pursuing the possibility of obtaining financial assistance from other interested parties to fund a case at the OMB. 

e)      Committee of Adjustment – No concerns were expressed regarding the items going to the Committee of Adjustment on Sept. 23rd.  Nick Singh gave an update on the C of A hearing with respect to 47 Mayfield Ave., noting that the owner was requested to consult with the neighbours re. the proposal before the committee considers it.

f)        Municipal Shelters – nothing to report.

g)      Gardiner Lakeshore Task Force – Bill Roberts reported on the matters discussed by the Task Force.  In particular, he outlined the discussions that took place regarding pollution problems in the Western beaches. He also reported that discussions are continuing on the status of the Gardiner Expressway.  

h)      Toronto Official Plan and Swansea Part II Plan  –  Bill Roberts and Frances Labelle will be meeting with the City on September 17th to discuss SARA’s and RARG’s appeal of the Official Plan.

i)        Community Councils -  Frances reported that effective Dec. 1st, the Humber York and Etobicoke community councils will be officially merged.

 

 

 

j)        258 Windermere Ave. -  Bill Roberts summarized the problems with the additions/renovations to this property.  This has been communicated to Councillor Miller, and any further developments will be reported at the next meeting.

 

4.         Liquor Licenses:

a)      Billy Bob/The Fan – Nick Singh reported that an appeal of the most recent permit has been filed.

b)      Dark Horse – Louis Gris noted that Councillor Miller wrote to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission asking that, since the conditions of the patio license had not been met, the license be suspended until the soundproof wall is built. During discussion of this issue, it was suggested that a search under the Freedom of Information Act be undertaken to determine what information was given to the Commission that resulted in the determination that the condition had been met.

 

5.         Humber River:

a)      Boathouse –Frances Labelle reported that she had been advised by the City that the Boathouse would not be built because of site contamination problems. Upon a motion by Vicki Vancas, seconded by George Dubauskas and unanimously carried, Frances Labelle was requested to write to the Planning Department, requesting that the Section 37 funds allocated for the Boathouse be directed to the Swansea Town Hall Building Fund.

b)      Humber Cycling/Pedestrian Trail – Marianne Fenner reported that there are as yet no signs prohibiting cyclists from using the stairs.  Marianne was asked to write a letter requesting appropriate signage, an additional layer of blanket stones under the Gardiner bridge, and to ask the City to reconsider the placement of the handrail.

 

6.         Humber Bay Treatment Facility:

The City has issued a flyer, notifying residents that Sludge Forcemains will constructed along the Queensway beginning in September 2003, which will involve lane closures on the Queensway.

 

7.         Neighbourhood Issues:

a)      Petro Canada Station – 8 South Kingsway – Ron Braun reported that the station is continuing to abide by the  hours of operation set for the site.  There are issues that he continues to monitor.

b)      Petro Canada – Queensway and Southport – Construction is complete and the facility is now open once more. 

c)      Humber York Community Council – Frances Labelle briefly reviewed the matters of interest brought before Community Council.

d)      Traffic calming – nothing new to report.

e)      Ripley Avenue Traffic Safety Improvements – Frances Labelle noted that RARG will be following up on safety improvements to Ripley Ave. following the Municipal election.

 

8.         Other Organizations:

a)                  Community Police Liaison Committee – nothing to report.

b)      High Park Citizens Advisory Committee – nothing to report.

c)      Swansea Historical Society – nothing to report. 

Swansea Memorial Library and Friends of the Swansea Memorial Library – George Dubauskas informed the meeting that they are continuing to pursue with the Toronto Library Board Swansea’s concerns with the plans to direct patrons to the Annette Library while Runnymede Library is closed. 

d)      Swansea Public School – Marianne Fenner noted that she, Bill Roberts, and Merle Hudson attended the awards ceremony on Tuesday, June 24th.  In a future meeting, SARA will discuss providing a plaque for the school for one of the awards.

 

 

e)      Swansea Town Hall Board of Management – Louis Gris reported on the shortfall of funds for the Town Hall expansion, and that discussions are underway with the City.

 

f)        Swansea Community Recreation Centre & Rennie Park – nothing to report.

g)      World 19 – Members were directed to the website, which contains information on the Municipal election.

h)      Confederation of Resident & Ratepayer Associations (CORRA) – nothing to report.

 

9.         Other Business:

a)      Municipal All-Candidates Debate -  Marianne Fenner reported that invitations have been issued to all mayoral candidates.  The committee will meet shortly to finalize details and promote the event.

b)      Newsletter– The July newsletter has been mailed to members.

c)      Website – John Meijer to update.

d)      Marketing/Fundraising – It was agreed that a spring fundraising event would be organized by a committee (Vicki Vancas, Louis Gris, and Nick Singh).

e)      Consulate On Riverside Drive – There is some indication that a Consulate may be locating on Riverside Drive.  When information is available, it will be provided to SARA.

f)        President – Victoria Masnyk has indicated that she will resign as President of SARA.  Louis Gris has agreed to be the Acting President until a new President is appointed.

 

10.       Next Meeting:

 

The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, October 21st, at 7:30 p.m.

 

The meeting adjourned at 9:55 p.m.

LIST OF ITEMS TO BE FOLLOWED UP:

 

Letters to be Written:

 

1.         Louis – re Dark Horse – to Alcohol and Gaming Commission – advising of violation of decision of Commission and requesting revocation of patio license until such time as conditions of decision are complied with

 

2.         Victoria – to advise High Park Advisory Committee of appointment of Merle Hudson as Sara’s rep.

 

3.         Letter to Toronto Library Board requesting it reconsider decision to give Annette Library priority over the Swansea Memorial Library to serve the Bloor West community during the period the Runnymede Library is closed for renovation.

 

4.         Victoria to write to Committee of Adjustment asking to have SARA put back on the list of Community Groups receiving the Agenda

 

5.         Letter to City regarding Section 37 funds

 

6.         Marianne -  letter to City re. Humber Pedestrian trail

 

7.         Nick – to David Miller re. 3 Windermere request to Committee of Adjustment for changes to plan that are not minor

 

 

Matters Needing Attention:

 

1.         Companies Act Information update

 

 

Items to be discussed at next meeting:

1.         Development of procedure for following up on Committee of Adjustment matters.

 

2.         Election of members of SARG

 

3.         Appointment of President

 

4.         Community Police Liaison Committee - appointment of representative

 

5.         Plan for dealing with matters that occur between Executive meetings

 

 

Future Meetings:

 

1.         Fred Victor Centre – set up date for future presentation with member of Fred Victor Mission present – Frances Labelle will follow-up with Peter Zimmerman in September to set up a date when there is something concrete to discuss – will bring up at September Exec. Meeting.