The
purpose of the meeting was not to promote
or discourage any particular outcome, but
to ensure that as a community we are fully
informed and that our interests and concerns
are being addressed. Community groups were
asked to answer the following questions:
- What is your organization and it's purpose?
- What do you know about the St Clair streetcar
issue?
- What is your organization's position and
plans, if any, regarding this issue?
Each group stepped forward at the time of
their choosing, as there was no set order.
Following are the comments made by each
group in the order they were made:
1.
Deer Park Ratepayers Association
2.
Holy Rosary Church
3.
North Hill District Home
Owners Association
4.
Timothy Eaton Memorial Church
5.
Wychwood Park Ratepayers
Association
6.
St. Clair Gardens BIA
7.
St. Clair West Residents
Association (SCWRA)
8.
Rocket Riders
9.
Regal Heights Residents
Association (RHRA)
10.
St Clair West Revitalization
Committee (SWRC)
11.
Corso Italia BIA
12.
Save Our St Clair (SOS)
13.
St Clair West BIA
1. Deer Park
Ratepayers Association (DPRA)
John
McGuiness - President
Position:
Pro
public transit, east of Bathurst is almost
a right-of-way situation already. TTC should
take an incremental approach to establishing
a r-o-w
Comments:
- All left turns should have an advanced
green
- If there is a r-o-w, the City should public
more ‘Green P’ parking lots
- understands that the TTC has budgeted
$25M to tear up the tracks in order to increase
the reliability of the streetcar service
- Would like to see proposed option describe
real term improvements
2. Holy Rosary
Church
Roger
Halfacre
Position:
No
position at this time because the church
has a very diverse congregation of drivers
and transit users, etc.
Comments:
- TTC helps the church because the congregation
members can get there more easily
- The average age of daily church attendees
is over 80
- There are two lanes of traffic in each
direction on St. Clair
3. North Hill
District Home Owners Association (NHDHOA)
Brian
McGuire - President
Position:
Homeowners
represented by the ratepayers association
have multiple cars, and they feel that there
is a faction at City Hall that wants to
reduce car use, but they are sympathetic
to public transit.
Comments:
- concerned about St. Clair being reduced
to one lane of traffic in each direction
- perhaps the solution is in using narrower
tracks that won’t use so much of the street
- budgetary pressures at City Hall. TTC
needs to look carefully at the cost/benefit
of any solution
4. Timothy Eaton
Memorial Church
Anne
Levy-Ward
Position:
No
official position
Comments:
- concerned about access to the church
- staff think that a r-o-w is a bad idea
because it will cut off the church from
the south of St. Clair
- staff have ideas for safety improvements
along St Clair eg painting lines
5. Wychwood Park
Ratepayers Association
Sandra
Reford
Position:
Comments:
- called Councillor Chow to get information
on how the r-o-w has impacted Spadina, but
did not receive any answer
- understand that the r-o-w is decided from
reading Councillor Moscoe comments in the
newspaper
6. St Clair Gardens
BIA (Business Improvement Area)
Don Panos
- Vice Chair
Position:
Opposed
to a dedicated right-of-way
Comments:
- represents businesses from Caledonia to
Old Weston Road
Position:
- the City should be ashamed if they have
already made the decision to put in a r-o-w
- there has been no growth in businesses
on Spadina since the installation of a r-o-w
7. St Clair
West Residents Association (SCWRA)
Paulette Francescan
Position:
No
position but monitoring the issue
Comments:
- residents west of Keele/Gunn’s road representing
325 homes, 75 of which face directly on
to St. Clair
- concerned about the extension of the streetcar
to Jane because homes are very close to
the road at this end of St. Clair. The road
is much narrower.
Next
Steps:
- They are monitoring the situation very
closely
8. Rocket Riders
+ Toronto Environmental Alliance (TEA)
Roger
Brooke
Position:
Rocket
Riders - No position at this time
TEA - Supports the new Toronto Official
Plan which advocates increased population
density and public transit
Comments:
- There are many examples of r-o-w in Europe
- R-o-w should not be used as an excuse
to remove the streetcars from the road
- Community must be involved in the decision
9. Regal Heights
Residents Association (RHRA)
Dick
Watts - President
Position:
Public
should have more input in to the decision
making process. The Environmental Assessment
(EA) process must be extended to give the
public time to input. Input must be considered
and discussed in a dialogue between the
public and the City.
Comments:
- the EA process has started and it is long
and complex
- TTC is the driver behind the EA. The outcome
of the EA is not decided and public input
is solicited at this time. The options have
not been determined yet.
- EA Planning Team is not giving satisfactory
answers to public questions
Next
Steps:
-
meeting with Mayor David Miller on December
17th to discuss the extension of the process
10. St Clair
West Revitalization Committee (SWRC)
Branko
Samsa - Committee Chair
Position:
Neutral
to the outcome, supportive of an open, thorough
public process
Comments
- representing a variety of people concerned
about the area including homeowners, business
owners, etc.
- r-o-w could have a tremendous impact on
S. Clair, impact will be different in different
neighbourhoods along St Clair
- people walking on the street and businesses
shouldn’t suffer from the outcome
- concerned about public input to EA process
- people should ask questions and get involved
11. Corso Italia
BIA (Business Improvement Area)
Connie
Lamanna - Vice Chair
Position:
Against
the right-of-way, but support increased
TTC service, cycle routes, and wider sidewalks
Comments:
- want to improve transportation along St
Clair for all users
- concerned that the r-o-w is a "done deal"
- r-o-w will split the street in two, discourage
out of town shoppers arriving by car
- Concerned that people don’t know what’s
going on and are not being informed of EA
meetings
Next
Steps:
-
BIA is coming up with their own proposal
12.
Save Our St Clair (SOS)
Margaret
Smith - Chair
Position:
Against
a dedicated streetcar right-of-way
Comments:
- EA Study Design on website for more information
about EA process
- All perspectives must be incorporated
in to the design solution for St. Clair
-
sustainability should be the guiding principles
e.g. incorporating economic, social and
environmental concerns
- R-o-w option should be taken off the table
at the EA process
- Traffic on St. Clair is an intermittent
problem that needs targeted solutions that
do not sacrifice the fabric of the neighbourhood.
- Focus should be on cost effective remedies
that work with the City timelines
13. St Clair West
BIA (Business Improvement Area)
Tony
Bolla
Position
In
the process of learning about the issue
Next
Steps:
- meeting with the EA study team
- meeting with their Councillor
- they will be helping to more widely distribute
the business survey along St. Clair
-
will be conducting survey to determine position
