Tag: Lions Park

Today in Weston: 2017-06-24

Raymore footbridge and a parked bicycle cast a shadow on the swollen Humber River. The ‘rock’ with tree trunks on it is actually the remains of the old suspension footbridge abutment that played such a terrible role during Hurricane Hazel.

Today In Weston. June 21, 2017

On a cool summer solstice, staff are getting set to open Weston Lions Outdoor Pool at noon on Saturday June 24. The water’s in place; but it looks as if a bit of weeding still needs to be done.

Next week, there will be no afternoon swims but beginning Friday, June 30, the pool’s regular hours will be 12:00 – 3:45 pm and 5:00 – 7:30 pm. The pool will close at 4:00 pm on September 4th.

Park Construction Update.

Our local parks are undergoing a variety of transformations. In Raymore Park, rehabilitation of the retaining wall staging area is well under way,  a new off-leash area has been set up while sewer re-lining along the Humber is still likely to take a few more months.

Rehabilitation work continues after the Raymore Park retaining wall construction. New trees have been planted this week.

In Lions Park, heavy vehicles undertaking sewer work have destroyed the bike path and cones have been placed to warn cyclists and pedestrians.

Heavy construction vehicles have destroyed the dedicated bike / pedestrian path near the Raymore footbridge.

In Cruickshank Park, stabilization work is taking place that will prevent further erosion of the TCHC property at 1025 Scarlett Road. At the moment a bridge is being used to access the site and the walkway through the park has been blocked in order for the work to proceed. The end date is set for next month but judging by the current state of construction, that looks extremely optimistic and unlikely.

1025 Scarlett Road from the Weston side showing the bank stabilization work.
The temporary bridge allows access to the work from the Weston side.

Needless to say, the bike / pedestrian trail (Humber Trail / Pan Am Path) needs to be re-paved. When this will happen is anyone’s guess but all work involving heavy construction vehicles will have to be finished no doubt. Construction projects seem to take longer than advertised in this part of Toronto for some reason. Anyway, probably not this year. This will mean some tough sledding for walkers and cyclists for quite some time. One good thing is that the replacement path, when it finally gets here, will be built wider to meet new city standards.

Today in Weston May 13, 2017

Today was a busy one in Weston. The Weston Farmers Market was open with a few stalls. Next week will be bigger and better. According to vendors, business was brisk. Everyone I spoke to was pleased with their sales.

Weston Farmers Market begins the second of three seasons at its UP Express location.
Sebastian Capatina from menos.ca with some artisanal olive oil and bread samples.
Emi Burnham from Pinkyz Bath Bombs with some actual bath bombs.

The Farmers Market wasn’t the only activity happening today.

At the Weston Library, Ameer Shaikh (L) and Laurent Ho from ADL Process Electronic Recycling collect old electronics for, well, recycling.
At 2125 Weston Road, (the former St. John’s Anglican) Pastor Felix Ayomike helps out at the barbecue during Victory Assembly’s open house.

Down in the Humber Valley, exercise was on the minds of many.

At the Weston Sports Complex, soccer, tennis and baseball players do their thing.

Lions Park stairway is open.

The stairway overlooks Weston’s soccer field.

Here is a panoramic view of  the new stairway in all its magnificence. The city has planted some flowering shrubs to discourage foot traffic down the left hand side and contract workers completed that component yesterday. The new stairway is wider and sturdier than the old wooden one and has decks that can be used for soccer game viewing. Galvanized grid decking, will ensure that no salt will be needed on the steps in winter.

This project was scheduled for completion by September 2015. Let’s (fondly) hope that future infrastructure work in Weston will be completed by the dates promised and that our community isn’t taken for granted any more.

Lions Park Steps are Telling

Readers may remember that the John Street Bridge was completed yet left unavailable to the public for months while Metrolinx and the City squabbled over various issues. The public was inconvenienced but no matter, it was only the people of Weston. Help was requested from several levels of government but to little avail.

In Lions Park, a set of outdoor stairs had reached the end of their life and were set for replacement. The work was scheduled for September 2015. The old stairs were demolished in June 2016 and new ones built earlier this year. They are now almost complete but are still inaccessible to the public.

This important footpath has been unavailable for almost a year.

This after calls to 311, Councillor Ford’s office and Parks Supervisor Phil Jarow, who told me in an email,

“Sorry I do not have information on a date for opening of the stairway. I was told earlier this week the stairs are completed and awaiting final inspection and sign off by an engineer. Also I was given the information I would receive more information next week. Please contact me if you have any questions.”

Well the obvious question is when will the stairs be opened?

Nobody seems willing to take responsibility for the delay. Again, the public is being inconvenienced but who cares? It’s only the people of Weston.

Can you imagine this happening in Rosedale or Forest Hill?

I rest my case.

Dear readers, if you have some time today, please add your voice by calling your councillor: Frances Nunziata (416) 392-4091, Mike Ford 416-397-9255 or 311. Let’s make our voices heard.

Postscript: This morning I received an email from Parks Forestry and Recreation Senior Project Coordinator, Ed Hanna. According to Ed,

To clarify, in our final meeting last week onsite , we requested additional planting to the stair side to prevent potential access towards underneath the staircase for safety concerns
As a construction site and for safety measures, the contractor needs to complete site restoration while the staircase is still closed, this will happen today and tomorrow
I realize that this is an important pathway for the community, and that this project took longer than expected, we apologize for that.
All above will be completed, and the staircase will be opened in a couple of more days( Wednesday May 10).

Thanks to all who called in to request some action on this project. I’m sure that made the difference.