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On the subject of both under-funded and improperly managed services.............

311

So I had a minute and was going to take the time put in the following work orders for my area:

1) Bus stop pole hit by vehicle, on angle, more than 1 year, fix
2) Remove Dead Tree in Park (2 locations)
3) Trim Brush/Trees obstructing sidewalk on bridge

This was my experience.

Go to 311 site.......the park area for the trees has no assigned address on TO Maps. - have to phone
Look for spot for bus stop maintenance, can't find any

@##$; fine, I'll phone...........

After an interminable, probably 2 min 30 s long spiel that one gets on them being busy due to tax/utility bills, and the by-laws under which your information is collected, and how abuse won't be tolerated and how
if this is an emergency you should call 911........

You get into queue to hear that they are too busy to talk ..........there are 17 people in the queue..............can you/they call back later...........

@#$# !! Just sayin.
 
Last edited:
Northern Light said:
On the subject of both under-funded and improperly managed services.............

311

So I had a minute and was going to take the time put in the following work orders for my area:

1) Bus stop pole hit by vehicle, on angle, more than 1 year, fix
2) Remove Dead Tree in Park (2 locations)
3) Trim Brush/Trees obstructing sidewalk on bridge

This was my experience.

Go to 311 site.......the park area for the trees has no assigned address on TO Maps. - have to phone
Look for spot for bus stop maintenance, can't find any

@##$; fine, I'll phone...........

After an interminable, probably 2 min 30 s lone spiel that one gets on them being busy due to tax/utility bills, and the by-laws under which your information is collected, and how abuse won't be tolerated and how
if this is an emergency you should call 911........

You get into queue to here that they are too busy to talk ..........there are 17 people in the queue..............can you/they call back later...........

@#$# !! Just sayin.
Click to expand...

Awhile ago, I wanted to report some issues with my neighbours property. They had a Basketball on the road blocking the storm drain for over a year, they also had a tree stump and bathtub on the curb for months expecting the city to take it (they won't). The property is also a known rooming house.

When I went on the 311 website, they made me jump through hoops to report this stuff. I ended up calling them and was asked why I did not speak with the property owner directly about the issues.

Honestly, who in their right mind knocks on someones door to whine about how they maintain their property!?
 
I wonder who appealed...

July 5, 2022

Garden suites permitted in Toronto after Ontario Land Tribunal dismisses appeal

The City of Toronto Garden Suites Bylaw is in full force after the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) dismissed an appeal yesterday. The Garden Suites Bylaw and Official Plan Amendment were adopted by Toronto City Council on February 2, but were appealed shortly after. On June 2, the OLT heard a motion from the City to dismiss the appeal.

Toronto is facing substantial housing needs across a variety of housing types, tenures, and levels of affordability. Allowing greater variety in the type and form of housing that can be built in the city’s neighbourhoods is one solution to increase housing choice and access for current and future Toronto residents.

Garden suites are a form of housing that is now permitted in Toronto. If a proposed garden suite meets various performance criteria, such as maximum building height and setbacks, as well as all applicable bylaw standards, only a building permit application is required.

Any garden suite proposal that does not meet the Zoning Bylaw requirements can seek a minor variance application at the Committee of Adjustment. Through that process, City Planning staff review the application to determine if the proposed variances are appropriate and meet the intent of the Official Plan policies and the Zoning Bylaw.

Garden suites and other forms of housing being considered as part of the City’s Expanding Housing Options in Neighbourhoods (EHON) program are a necessary adjustment to Toronto's current growth strategy. They allow for the creation of a variety of housing forms that create a better, more equitable and more resilient city for current and future residents.

The City established the EHON program to review, consult on, and advance permissions to allow additional forms of housing in Toronto's low-rise neighbourhoods. Increasing the type of housing supply provides more housing options for a range of household structures, for people at different ages, abilities, and incomes, for people to move within their current neighbourhood to support generational housing turnover, and for new residents to find a home.
 
Richard White said:
Awhile ago, I wanted to report some issues with my neighbours property. They had a Basketball on the road blocking the storm drain for over a year, they also had a tree stump and bathtub on the curb for months expecting the city to take it (they won't). The property is also a known rooming house.

When I went on the 311 website, they made me jump through hoops to report this stuff. I ended up calling them and was asked why I did not speak with the property owner directly about the issues.

Honestly, who in their right mind knocks on someones door to whine about how they maintain their property!?
Click to expand...
Why didn’t you just pick up the basketball?
 
On the "Misery Likes Company" theme, we are not alone in having a shortage of life-guards. This from BBC.

A national lifeguard shortage caused by the Covid pandemic is forcing pools across the US to limit hours, reduce programmes, or shut down entirely.
Major cities throughout US states are scrambling for the summer, as the American Lifeguard Association says one-third of pools in the country will be affected.
New York City has cancelled public swimming programmes. Houston and Chicago have not opened some of their public pools as planned.
"The shortage is real," Motti Eliyahu, a lifeguard trainer, told the BBC.
He estimated that he's trained 1,300 lifeguards over the past four months, and he's seen a higher demand for these workers than ever before.
In Long Island, New York, Mr Eliyahu said pools are so desperate for lifeguards that they are getting into bidding wars for their services. At the beginning of the summer the typical lifeguard pay was $16 per hour. Now, pools are offering $20 per hour. "It's not just a New York thing. It's literally happening across the country right now," he added.

"It is a crisis," said Bernard J. Fisher II, director of health and safety at the American Lifeguard Association. His organisation calculates that the one-third figure will rise to one-half of pools by September.
 
DSC said:
On the "Misery Likes Company" theme, we are not alone in having a shortage of life-guards. This from BBC.

A national lifeguard shortage caused by the Covid pandemic is forcing pools across the US to limit hours, reduce programmes, or shut down entirely.
Major cities throughout US states are scrambling for the summer, as the American Lifeguard Association says one-third of pools in the country will be affected.
New York City has cancelled public swimming programmes. Houston and Chicago have not opened some of their public pools as planned.
"The shortage is real," Motti Eliyahu, a lifeguard trainer, told the BBC.
He estimated that he's trained 1,300 lifeguards over the past four months, and he's seen a higher demand for these workers than ever before.
In Long Island, New York, Mr Eliyahu said pools are so desperate for lifeguards that they are getting into bidding wars for their services. At the beginning of the summer the typical lifeguard pay was $16 per hour. Now, pools are offering $20 per hour. "It's not just a New York thing. It's literally happening across the country right now," he added.

"It is a crisis," said Bernard J. Fisher II, director of health and safety at the American Lifeguard Association. His organisation calculates that the one-third figure will rise to one-half of pools by September.
Click to expand...

We're very much in a full employment economy, the boomer retirements are finally happening in earnest; and many businesses and governments who laid off workers during the pandemic are finding that they have moved on to other jobs.

There's no mystery sauce here..........a combination of bad planning, and inordinately low wages are affecting the availability of labour in general, and in low paying jobs most acutely.

I mean, really, looking at the story above, in a major U.S. City, with a comparable cost of living to Toronto, SF, Seattle, DC, NYC etc.......to expect anyone to stand around waiting for a $16 per hour job is just nuts. Even in Chicago,
where the minimum wage is now over $15USD per hour.......why is anyone with skills and choice accepting a $1 premium to minimum?

Plan better, pay more. Problem, mostly solved. (there will have to be investments in productivity as well, but that's not a simple answer, except to say, higher wages will help drive the requisite investments)
 
The report on Downtown Priority Parks was before Executive Ctte today was approved, with Amendments.

The amendments serve to add expansion of 'The Bentway' as a priority project; and also seek to advance University Park, in part, by breaking into manageable chunks.....
Curiously, though, the suggestion is to start at the north end of University Park (Queen's Park Crescent West ???)

1657655160520.png
 
Richard White said:
Oops. That should have been Basketball Net.

They had it placed on the road for the entire year. It ended up hindering the snow plows during last winters storm.
Click to expand...
Why didnt you just move the basketball net??

Are you one of those guys who complains about everything 24/7??
 
Fresco said:
Why didnt you just move the basketball net??

Are you one of those guys who complains about everything 24/7??
Click to expand...

I didn't move it for a few reasons...

-It was massive and heavy

-It is a known rooming house in the area

-This particular house is not known for common sense. They once parked a full on bus in their driveway so the view of the intersection was obstructed.

-It is not my property and I don't want to be responsible if it breaks while being moved.

Realistically, common sense isn't so common with this particular household. We can't even speak with the owners because they are absentee. The residents don't care because they rent a room for dirt cheap.

Even If I had moved the net, it would have likely been put back up. They put the net there and never used it.

I am not one to complain but at some point you have to let the city handle it. You can't fix stupid but a letter from the city helps.
 
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