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Happy New Year!

It’s a new year and a new decade! I hope you enjoyed some rest and good cheer over the holiday season, and wish you all the best in 2020.

As we head into this new year, I want to share some of the latest news from our community office & Queen’s Park. My team and I have been working hard to serve the community while also limiting the damage caused by the reckless cuts of the Ford government. I want to thank everyone who gave their time or donated to charitable causes over the holiday. It was such a pleasure to join many of you over community suppers, during food drives and also sharing in the holiday spirit at our Community Holiday Party. Thank you to everyone who came out and for all you do.

Marit Stiles, MPP

In this edition:

Community meeting on housing & tenant Issues - January 14
Report-back on December housing meeting
Safer school zones
Upcoming meeting & hearings: BWXT facility
Standing with teachers and education workers against the cuts
Menstrual products in schools
Supporting arts and culture in Davenport
Oakwood Collegiate field update
In the community

Tuesday: Community Meeting on Housing and Tenant Issues

Following our successful “Let’s Talk Housing” forum on December 5th, I will be co-hosting another community meeting on tenant issues, this time with Davenport Councillor Ana Bailão.

We will be joined by City of Toronto staff, tenant advocates and residents of 394 Dovercourt Rd. who have been challenging their recent mass evictions.

Tuesday, January 14, 2019
7-8:30 pm
St. Helen’s Catholic School, 1196 College St. (at Brock)

RSVP here: maritstiles.ca/tenants_mtg

December Housing Event Highlights Pressures Facing Davenport Tenants

Our December 5 community meeting on housing and tenant issues drew a big crowd on a very cold night to talk about the impact of rising rents and a lack of affordable housing. Tenants shared concerns about threats of evictions, rent increases, and landlord neglect and were able to hear from advocates about tools to better protect themselves.

Read more about the meeting and find links to tenant advocacy supports at:

maritstiles.ca/housing

PHOTOS: Following a panel discussion with tenant advocates, attendees broke up into groups to share ideas and share supports.

Safer School Zones

In November, my colleague Jessica Bell (MPP for University--Rosedale) and I wrote to the Minister of Transportation encouraging her to get on with facilitation of municipal use of automated speed enforcement cameras, particularly in school safety zones. This is something the City of Toronto and community members have been asking for since the law was changed in 2017.

I’m pleased to see that the government has finally developed the regulations needed to allow cities to use automated speed enforcement (ASE) cameras (or “photo radar” cameras) to ticket speeders in community safety zones. The City of Toronto is installing 50 ASE cameras across the City – two in each Ward. This means that there will be two ASE cameras in Davenport, which will be fully operational once the 90-day notice period required by Minister Mulroney has passed.

The initial locations of the ASE cameras are listed on the City’s web site: (https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/streets-parking-transportation/road-safety/vision-zero/safety-initiatives/programs-pilots/automated-speed-enforcement/). However, these locations are not permanent – the cameras will be relocated every 3 months. The City’s site has made it possible to request an automated speed enforcement camera in your area. You can do so by filling out the following form: https://s.cotsurvey.chkmkt.com/?e=178124&h=DF67D5EB744C063&l=en

Upcoming Meeting and Licensing Hearing for BWXT Canada Facility

BWXT Canada, the company that operates a uranium processing plant at Landsowne and Dupont, has applied to renew their operating license through the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, a federal regulatory agency.

I have been working with our federal MP to ensure that residents have every opportunity to participate in the hearing and to learn more about the facility’s operations. Read my letter to the CNSC here.

I am pleased to see that the Toronto hearing has been moved to a closer location. It will now be held Monday March 2 and Tuesday March 3 at Casa do Alentejo (1130 Dupont Street). The deadline to request to appear or present at the hearing is January 24.

Information Meeting

The CNSC will also host a community information meeting about the facility and the licensing application will be held Wednesday, January 22 from 5:30pm to 8:00pm at Casa de Madeira (1621 Dupont Street).

For more information please visit the CNSC website.

Standing with teachers and education workers for public education

Education workers across Ontario are conducting the first province-wide work action in more than 20 years. As Education Critic for the Official Opposition, I’ve been working to hold the government to account for their failure to negotiate in good faith, and for their unilaterally imposed cuts to classrooms.

We have asked the Ford government to reverse their increases to class size averages — which has resulted in the loss of thousands of high school courses and will mean 5-10,000 teaching positions eliminated - and to cancel their plan for mandatory online courses. Cuts are hurting our kids now and the Ford government plans will make things even worse next year.

I’ve been contacted by many community members, parents and students who are supportive of the actions education workers are taking and have urged me to stand with them. We will continue to do so.

PHOTOS: (L) With teachers and education workers at Oakwood Collegiate. (R) Teachers and parents at Bloor Collegiate.

Menstrual products in schools

On November 29, I held a press conference at Queen’s Park with TDSB Trustee Stephanie Donaldson, students and community activists asking the Ontario Government to provide free menstrual supplies to students in all Ontario schools. Lack of access to these products can lead to shame, embarrassment and missed days of schools. To learn more visit maritstiles.ca/menstrualproductsinschools

PHOTO: Participants in our November 29 press conference calling for free menstrual products in schools: Davenport TDSB Trustee Stephanie Donaldson, student Maya Larrondo and Niagara menstrual equity activist Hannah Legault.

Supporting the Arts and Culture Sector in Davenport

Davenport has long been a centre of art and cultural industries in Ontario. More recently, an amazing art corridor has emerged — extending from the Museum of Contemporary Art on Sterling Ave, through cutting edge private galleries on Dundas, College, Bloor and Dupont, and including other important arts institutions and organizations like the Inuit Art Foundation.

But while art is thriving and driving visitors to our community, artists and cultural sectors workers remain some of our most vulnerable residents. Affordable work/living spaces have been replaced by expensive condos, making life downtown unaffordable for many workers in this sector. In late November, I celebrated our community while also calling on the Ford government to restore funding for the Ontario Art Council and address the growing issues facing arts workers. You can see a video of my statement here:

My November 27, 2019 Member's Statement in the Legislature.

Oakwood Collegiate Field Update

It was brought to our attention that the Oakwood CI field was closed to the public over the holidays. This popular field is well-used by community members in an area of the city with very limited green space. Calls were made to TDSB Trustee Stephanie Donaldson who followed up with Principal Yee. Trustee Donaldson reports that the field is now re-opened and was closed inadvertently when the Head Caretaker was on vacation. The Principal and Trustee remain committed to keeping the field open but it’s important that we continue to respect the hard work of staff and ensure the field remains clean for all our kids and students.

In the Community

PHOTOS (Clockwise): (1) At the Oakwood Community Call-in event. (2) Participating in the annual Tamil Co-op Christmas Party (3) Volunteering with Toronto Firefighters at Oasis Dufferin Community Centre (4) Visiting Ubisoft to tour their brand new production studio.

Forward

Copyright © 2020 Marit Stiles Member of Provincial Parliament for Davenport, All rights reserved.

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