Madison Project “Due Diligence” Part 3 – School Season Neighbours (14)
Eestlased Kanadas | 14 Jul 2017  | Allan MeiusiEWR
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EWR’s third installment into the proposed development of a new cultural centre at 9 and 11 Madison focuses on issues related to university fraternities and seasonal neighbours. Tartu College has made a business of servicing university students for nearly 50 years and through that history there have fortunately been very few bad actors and incidents that have impacted the residence negatively; at least in public forums. The same cannot be said of University of Toronto student populated fraternity houses that have inhabited the Annex over the decades.

Local City Councillor for Ward 20, Trinity-Spadina, Joe Cressy, and many of his predecessors, have heard the concerns and dire warnings of their constituents for years. Even though unrelated, the recent shooting in the parking lot at 9 Madison has drawn attention to the growing unease propagating throughout the neighbourhood; particularly, during the wee-hours of the night and over weekends. With a number of fraternity houses as well as a host of popular night spots and bars in the immediate area of Madison and Bloor, the frustration of Annex residents has seemed to hit another boiling point.

Councillor Cressy noted in a letter dated June 5th, 2017, the problem with controlling activities and conduct at fraternity houses is that these “entities” fall within a “grey area” that constricts their regulation. Since fraternities are not official bodies associated with the University of Toronto, discipline is essentially left to the police or other public agencies. The lack of accountability seems to embolden rather than dissuade a segment of the student body. As such, Councillor Cressy has sought support from his City Hall colleagues to change how by-laws are applied to fraternities, he asked that:
“Executive Committee direct the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards as part of the forthcoming report on multi-tenant houses to review and report back with recommendations on whether fraternity and sorority houses should be licensed as multi-tenant houses (rooming houses) and the feasibility of removing the exceptions for fraternities and sororities in Chapter 285, Rooming Houses, Section 285-8 Exceptions.”

Shortly after Cressy’s letter to the Executive Committee, Annex resident David Sterns sent Mayor John Tory a letter to underline the urgency of Cressy’s call to action. Stern’s strongly worded and detailed letter noted instances of unruly intoxication, drug trafficking, violence and sexual assault. For those unfamiliar with the impact of fraternities on neighbourhoods, outside of the comical version of university frats portrayed in John Landis’ “Animal House,” Stern’s letter to Mayor Tory is a chilling reflection of what many in the Annex have experienced.

The Madison Project may have to look at the requirement for security and the recurring cost to support those measures, particularly in regard to students and other youth programs using the proposed new centre.

Allan Meiusi
EWR Contributor

Councillor Cressy letter Re Frat Issues
Stern’s letter to Mayor Tory

Related: Toronto Eesti Maja tulevik
Madison Project “Due Diligence” Part 1
Madison Project “Due Diligence” Part 2

 
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Kommentaarid on kirjutatud EWR lugejate poolt. Nende sisu ei pruugi ühtida EWR toimetuse seisukohtadega.
Karl Otsa23 Jul 2017 16:51
Hr. Rahamees et al,

First you tell me that I am anti – Meiusi. Your are some what correct. I am not against the man, but against the material he posts.

Then you tell me that I don't “you are still completely missing the point of Meiusi article. He is simply providing valuable background information and due diligence to the EM2 process.” No I am NOT missing his point. His investigation skills may disclose materials that has yet to be brought to the public's attention. Unfortunately I view the information as useless. Please explain how YOU find his “information” to be pertinent to due diligence. Or is you real intent to only to insult the leaders of the 4Orgs.

Hr. Meiusi has NOT provided any valuable background information, unless he and you are leading the blind or ignorant, his posts have NOT added anything intelligent in my opinion.

Unless of course you too didn't know about the following items
1.) Tartu College is next to the TTC
2.) there is violence in the big city,
3.) frat houses are scenes for public displays of vulgarities,
4.) there is traffic congestion and
5.) parking problems.

In all fairness hr. Rahamees I hope I can get you to admit, all of the items above have been in existence since before Tartu College was even built. And since when is close proximity to a TTC Station been a deterrent to economic growth. And for those who don't use the TTC, the Spadina station is the intersection of THREE lines, yes 3 lines. The Young/York University line, Bloor/Danforth (the same one that services the Eesti Maja location but you need to take a bus in bad weather) and finally the Spadina line street car you know the one that intersects with both the King and Queen streetcar lines)

You have NOT answered any of my previous requests and you go directly to personally insulting the leads of the 4Orgs.

You state “Let's remember that 4Orgs came up with the half-baked proposal hatched in secrecy, without any due diligence whatsoever. Their due diligence is supposed to be completed before the end of the year. So far we have heard exactly naught about any progress whatsoever.”

So which is it Hr. Rahamees? Half baked before year-end, in secrecy, or no due-diligence??? I suggest that the 4Orgs proposal is based on Contingency plans. For your self-anointed title you seem to conveniently forget a MAJOR component in the project management process, CONTIGENY Plans.

As for splitting the community, spreading FAKE news such as Hr. Meisusi did in his last go round ended up costing Ehatare an Estonian MD and of course all the expense of defending his unfounded accusations. And Hr. Rahamees you seem to be his witless accomplice in this escapade.

In the Mid 1980s a group of individuals approached the leaders/executive of Eesti Maja with a proposal to “rebuild” 958 Broadview. This included a vision to rebuild and provide a multi-level building to help sustain the location …..

Guess what? This group was called heretics, bastards and any other name you could think of because THIS group of “noorikud” DARED to suggest that the Eesti Maja was in poor shape and should be addressed.

The condition of the facility was in question back in the mid-1980's by more than just this group of “noorikud”. Why wasn't this a wake-up call for the management AND the community.... because the executive REFUSED to even present it as an option! I am sure that those Eesti Maja executives meant no harm to Eesti Maja, but their personal emotions deterred them from making wise and prudent decisions. The same is happening today, with those who claim that Eesti Maja can be re-rehabilitated and the work could be done in stages. Unfortunately this is no longer a financially feasible option, nor has “going it alone” been an option for nearly 30 years.

As for a “PR nightmare”, I submit that along with Hr. Meiusi and YOU the anonymous naysayers that have caused the greatest amount of bad feelings within the Estonian community. You claim a witch hunt (undisclosed “information” and “proper due-diligence”) and you have yet to identify a witch.

Following Hr. Meiusi, who has become CNN, a purveyor of fake news and those that call themselves a “Rahamees” follow him like a pied-piper. All of this on-top of your unwillingness to attach your real name to your posts.

Why do you refuse to take ownership of your posts?
Rahamees22 Jul 2017 13:17
Karl, you are still completely missing the point of Meiusi article. He is simply providing valuable background information and due diligence to the EM2 process.

Let's remember that 4Orgs came up with the half-baked proposal hatched in secrecy, without any due diligence whatsoever. Their due diligence is supposed to be completed before the end of the year. So far we have heard exactly naught about any progress whatsoever. From PR perspective, the whole process has been atrociously managed, the self appointed PR experts who are supposed to know better have split the community. The results will reverberate for years to come.
Karl Otsa22 Jul 2017 11:02
The leaders of the 4Orgs as they've been referred to, are well respected professional individuals with decades of experience in their fields and will defer to experts when necessary. One graduated from UofT in Civil Engineer, is a P. Eng with nearly 40 years of experience. Is Hr. Meiusi and the rest of these anonymous posters really suggesting something that these 4Orgs and their experts haven't thought of?

Oh wait let's remind them the TTC is nearby, parking is limited, that there is crime in the streets of Toronto, or that heaven forbid that there might be some "shenanigans" near Fraternity houses!!

Finally gentle readers “Rahamees” and “lugeja” and the rest of you other anonymous posters, any chance you are willing to come out and disclose your true identities? It's perfectly understandable why you wouldn't want to, but please don't tell me what I opinions I am permitted to opine.

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