SWANSEA AREA RATEPAYER’S ASSOCIATION
MINUTES OF MEETING, Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Present: Louis Gris, Nicholas Singh, John Meijer, Bill Roberts, Frances Labelle, David Fleming, Pat Reavy, Kate Lawson
Regrets: Merle Hudson, Ed Gaigalas, Chris Korda, Sybil Wilkinson, Bill Jermyn, George Dubauskas, Bonnie Shulman
1. CALL TO ORDER AND DECLARATION OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST:
The meeting was called to order at 7:32 pm, with no conflicts of interest.
2. AGENDA AMENDMENTS & APPROVAL:
The Agenda for October 18, 2005, was approved as amended upon motion by Bill Roberts, seconded by John Meijer, and carried.
3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The Minutes of September 26, 2005 were approved upon motion by Bill Roberts, seconded by Pat Reavy, and carried.
4. EXECUTIVE REPORTS
a) Membership:
Louis Gris reported that there are 11 renewals.
He will give cheques totalling $130.00 to the treasurer.
b) Fundraising:
Louis Gris reported his sales of the tickets for the fundraiser and asked members to submit any sales proceeds to him in advance of the show. He indicated that at least $500 in sales would be appreciated.
c) Treasurer’s Report:
The report was accepted upon motion by John Meijer, seconded by Frances Labelle, and carried.
Expenses:
No expenses were reported.
5. CURRENT MATTERS
a) New Members:
Louis Gris welcomed a new member: Kate Lawson, and guest Wayne Churchmuch.
All members introduced themselves.
b) Newsletter:
Bill Roberts reported that the next newsletter would be ready in December or January.
d) SARA Meeting with Councillor Saundercook:
Louis Gris had phoned Councillor Saundercook’s office, and had not had a reply back. He will follow up with another call.
e) Adopt a Block:
John Meijer indicated that he had head no new information from the Board of Trade. He will follow up next month.
f) Massage Parlours:
Bill Roberts reported that the City is going forward with its initiative regarding the issues surrounding enforcement of licences. The City will also be raising fees. A new report will be due in February.
Frances Labelle reported that she wrote and sent a letter to Councillors Saundercook and Filion. Councillor Filion responded with a phone call and indicated that he would be following up with a letter with more details. There was no response from Councillor Saundercook. Francis reported that a Class C assessment would be done and available in February. When the report is available, we will determine if we need to involve a Traffic Planning Engineer as there could be issues with the current process as it has been done.
h) Hydro Poles:
Louis Gris drafted a letter to the City Clerk, asking when this matter will come forward, and would send it tomorrow after a review by John Meijer.
Pat Reavy reported that she talked with Theresa Toombs from Councillor Filion’s office. She reported that the Planning and Transportation Department has met and reviewed a draft letter to go before City Council.
(j) Storage for SARA at the Town Hall:
Louis Gris reported that he had spoken to George Dubauskas and that we have a key, and can gain acess to the storage unit. There is still a great need to sort and either keep or archive the records. The City Archives has boxes available for delivery.
6. VISION STUDIES
a) Bloor West Urban Design Study:
Nick Singh reported that there is no news or updates. He will call Councillor Saundercook to get a report on the status of “The Urban Design Study”.
b) Humbergate Study:
Contiune to monitor.
7. LAND USE ITEMS
a) Toronto Official Plan and Swansea Part II Plan:
Bill Roberts reported that negotiations are continuing with the City and developers. The steering process should be completed by 2007.
b) Humber Cinema:
Nick Singh reported a meeting took place on October 14, 2005 with Councillor Saundercook, BWVRA, the Developer, and architect. No one from SARA was present. BWVRA presented their suggestions for changes to the sight. Nick Singh will call BWVRA to get a follow up from the meeting. If the project does not adhere to the Urban Design Study, SARA will not support the proposal.
.
Louis Gris has draft of a follow up letter for the Building Department to find out why the construction is not in accordance with the OMB decision.
d) 169 South Kingsway:
Louis Gris reported that the owner asked for a deferral at the Committee of Adjustments meeting on September 29, 2005. Subsequently Louis Gris met with the owner and neighbours opposing the variances. The owner made changes to scale back the building, and settled the issues with the opposition. It is expected that the negotiated variances will pass at the next Committee of Adjustments meeting.
e) 25 Woodland:
The main opposition is preparing a strategy for the OMB meeting on November 22, 2005.
f) 7 Armadale:
No further updates to the bay window issue as the complaining party has moved.
g) 26 Deforest Part 1:
At 8:30 pm, Sylvie Oliveira joined the meeting as a guest to speak to SARA about her proposal coming before the Committee of Adjustment on Thursday October 27, 2005. She shared her plans and drawings to the members present and asked for support. She indicated that she had support from the neighbours. Louis Gris explained how our process works, and that it would be better to come for help before the plans are submitted to the Committee of Adjustment. He informed her that we would review the plans with the sub-committee before we could take any position either for or against the proposal. At 8:40, Sylvie Oliveira left the meeting.
g) 26 Deforest Part 2:
After Sylvie Oliveira left the meeting, the members discussed the proposal and found a number of issues: It appears that the square footage does not include the third floor. Including the third floor would make the GFA more than the increased amount being asked for in the variance. There are some neighbours opposed to the project.
Louis Gris proposed a motion to write a letter to the Committee of Adjustments raising the above issues, that the variances asked for are not minor, and that SARA is supporting the neighbours opposed to the variances. The motion was moved by Frances Labelle, and seconded by Nick Singh and carried..
8. COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS
a) Community Police Liaison Committee:
Frances Labelle reported that she had passed on all available information to Bonnie Shulman.
b) High Park Community Advisory Council:
Frances Labelle reported that Merle Hudson attended a meeting dealing with improvements and changes to concessions and facilities at the playgrounds and Grenadier Restaurant. The Advisory had concerns about the changes. The Office for Urbanism is involved. It was discussed that questions may arise between licence renewal and the plan being proposed if the plan is to defer or extend renewal of licences based on money being spent from the plan. Nick Singh proposed to try and find out when the contracts expire.
c) Swansea Community Recreation Centre & Rennie Park:
Frances Labelle reported that the fundraiser would be Saturday October 22, 2005.
d) Swansea Memorial Library and Friends of the Library:
Nothing to report.
e) Swansea Public School:
Bill Roberts reported that the next meeting would be in the spring.
f) Swansea Town Hall Board of Management:
Bill Roberts reported that the Board is in negotiation with the bondholder for payment.
g) J.T. Bonham Residences:
Ed Gaigalas has yet to advise SARA who is currently on the roster as SARA’s representative.
h) CORRA:
Bill Roberts noted the OP negotiations continue, and a meeting regarding the Property Tax Redistribution Report was scheduled. A motion was proposed that Francis Labelle draft a letter to defer the meeting until the community has time to review the report. The motion was moved by Bill Roberts, seconded by Nick Singh, and carried.
9. ITEMS BEING MONITORED
a) Windermere by the Lake:
Monitor.
b) Southport Plaza:
Monitor.
d) Context Development:
Monitor.
e) Dark Horse (liquor license):
Nick Singh reported that he wrote a letter to Richard Kouliss regarding the differences between what was proposed in past meetings, and what is currently happening at the location. Further investigation is required.
f) Expose (liquor license):
Nick reported that the liquor license application was granted. Mike Gibbs forwarded illegible information regarding the decision. Nick Singh is following up with Mike.
g) Humber Cycling/Pedestrian Trail:
Monitor.
h) Humber Bay Treatment Plant:
Monitor (Ron Braun as contact).
i) Petro Canada Station – 8 South Kingsway:
Monitor (Ron Braun as contact).
10. NEW BUSINESS:
Note: Bill Roberts left the meeting at 9:30 pm.
a) Municipal Property Assessment Corporation:
Assessments notices for 2005 have been delivered, with details on how calculations and assessments were done, and how they may be reviewed or appealed. David Fleming proposed a motion to have this information added to the newsletter. John Meijer added that this information should be added to the SARA web site. The motion was moved by David Fleming, seconded by John Meijer, and carried.
b) East Side of walkway from Willard Ave to Willard Gardens:
Nick Singh reported that it appears that the property owners on Mayfield Ave, on the east side of the walkway from Willard Ave to Willard Gardens, are using the parkland. Nick Singh proposed a motion to write a letter to Councillor Saundercook regarding the use of the land on the east side of the walkway, and SARA’s concerns that the land could be appropriated by the owner. The motion was seconded by Frances Labelle and carried.
10. NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, November 15, 2005
11. ADJOURNED: 9:45 PM