CABBAGETOWN NEIGHBOURHOOD
REVIEW
FEATURED ARTIST
Victoria Hadden
Victoria’s celebration of Spring. Go to her page on Cabbagetown Artists to see the details and her contact info.
LOCAL NEWS
The 2022 Forsythia Festival
It's here - Sunday May 1. Wear something yellow. The parade will begin at 10 am in Riverdale Park (Sumach and Winchester). The Wellesley Park events will run from 11 am to 3 pm. There’ll be a bouncy castle, raffles, a beer garden with a bbq, lots of fun activities for little kids and the ever-popular mechanical bull ride. A fire truck will visit at approximately 11:30 am, barring any last-minute emergencies. Scott Dietrich will present his magic show. The photo shows the picnic area and beer garden at the 2018 Festival.
The Cabbagetown BIA and Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam are creating an exciting park project for Parliament Street for ten weeks from July 1. It’ll be located on the street between Carlton and Winchester using the parking lanes on each side. Traffic will continue in two lanes in the middle. There will be five “zones” with landscaping and event spaces in each. You can expect grass, hills, trees, landscaping and seating areas.
The project will use over 3,000 tons of natural materials - 130 truckloads of soil. There’ll be 100 new street trees and shrubs. Based on prior experiences at other projects, it’s expected that retail foot traffic to local businesses will grow by 50% with 250 new seats added for pedestrians and businesses. Traffic speeds will drop by 50%. Surface temperatures will be up to 20C cooler in summer months.
The designers are Bienenstock Natural Playgrounds. Ms Wong-Tam started the idea last year, did the fundraising and got the approvals from various city agencies. She credits former BIA executive director Rick Matthews for bringing the idea to her. She also feels that the current Board members along with Virginia Gallop have been vital to its success. The BIA is coordinating with local businesses and will organize events.
The hoardings have gone up around this corner property (365 Parliament) and construction will start soon at this site. Sales will begin in the Fall, 2022. It’s the final project for the Daniels Corporation in Regent Park. Two buildings will go up here. The northern one right at the corner will be built first. It’s a mid-rise 10-storey building with 346 residential units. The south tower will have 296 units. Both buildings will house over 23,000 square feet of ground floor retail. Amenities include co-working space, fitness centre, kids’ club and a wellness garden and there’ll be green roofs, outdoor amenity spaces, EV charging stations and plenty of bike storage.
The Hidden Gardens & Private Spaces tour takes place on Sunday June 5. Several extra events are planned. The CBC’s gardening expert Paul Zammit will be there along with master gardeners who can answer your questions. On June 5, many local merchants will offer special discounts to tour supporters. Tickets go on sale on May 1 - available through the website by credit cards and from local businesses by cash.
The 2022 garden tour is scheduled for Sunday June 5. Volunteers are needed to help in the various gardens and activities along the way. It’s a fun job and every volunteer gets a free ticket to the gardens on the tour. You can do a morning shift from 9:50 am to 1 pm or an afternoon from 12:50 to 4 pm. Send your email to Helen Coltrinari.
GTGK is again selling baskets for Mother’s Day. Funds go directly to school garden projects making food literacy and garden education available for all children. $45. Check out the page at Canada Helps for details about the baskets and about further donations. They’re also looking for volunteers to join the Board. It’s a positive group who make a difference in the lives of kids in our community - if you’re willing, send an email.
It seems that everyone got out and cleaned the neighbourhood last weekend. Big thanks to those who did the work - it really makes a difference. Here’s a list of the groups who pitched in.
Cabbagetown Residents Association. (Photo: Carolyn Murphy, the collection from Wellesley Park).
The Corner and Dixon Hall in St James Town
Friends of Allan Gardens
Regent Park & Corktown Common
Spring really is coming
Here’s a photo from late April 2017 at the site of Tony Brady’s plaque in Wellesley Park, home of the Forsythia Festival. It’s the most glorious season of the year in Cabbagetown.
Cabbagetown Regent Park Museum Historical Tidbit
By Sally Gibson. Spring! To homebody adults, spring meant the scent of lilacs and hyacinths, the blooming of blue bells and forsythia and the welcome appearance of daffodils and tulips planted last fall. But to the adventuresome 10- or 12-year-old, like humourist Robert Thomas Allen of Chester Avenue, spring meant going “up the bush” in the Don Valley in the 1910s and ‘20s. No doubt his Cabbagetown contemporaries skedaddled into the valley as soon as the sun beckoned and the temperature rose above zero or so. They slid down mud banks, Allen recorded, peered through thin sheets of ice into little cold emerald-green gardens between the roots of trees and wandered around over creaking ice and patches of snow and clay that stuck to their feet till they were the size of pie plates, just renewing acquaintance with all the familiar logs, creeks, stumps and boulders they hadn’t seen since last summer. Arrival back home, covered in mud and stinking of mud, rotten weeds and other unidentifiable objects meant meeting mothers expressing horror at the mess … but secretly knowing that “up the bush” had started the new season. (Photo: Two boys by the Don River, 1910s City of Toronto Archives 372-41-588)
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Cabbagetown BIA is hiring
A marketing and administrative coordinator is needed to handle administrative tasks plus the planning and execution of special events. $20/hour, 35 hours/week. The position is available from May 2 to September 2. Email Virginia at the BIA. The job description is online at the BIA’s website.
COMING EVENTS
Save the dates - Jane’s Walks
Jane’s Walks return on Friday May 6 to Sunday May 8. We usually see several in our neighbourhood. On Friday at 2 pm, Transforming Toronto’s East Bayfront - meet at Jarvis and Queen’s Quay E, south side. On Saturday, at 2:30 pm, explore public art in the Canary District - meet at 434 Front Street East. On Saturday, at 10:45 am, Revitalizing Toronto’s Waterfront - meet at the Jack Layton statue near the ferry dock, 9 Queen’s Quay W. On Saturday at 10 am and Sunday at 2 pm, Shared Stories of Corktown - meet at Berkeley St beside 300 King E. On Saturday and Sunday at 1 pm each day, Allan Gardens & its Eclectic Neighbours - meet at the southwest corner of Carlton and Sherbourne. On Sunday at 10 am, see three centuries in Corktown - start from the Enoch Turner Schoolhouse (106 Trinity). More walks cover other parts of Toronto. Check the website.
Nathalie Prezeau is guiding a 3 km walk through the old and new sections of Regent Park. She’s a popular local author who’s written four walking guides to sites in Toronto. It’ll start with a meet-n-greet at The Sumach (146 Sumach) followed by lunch on the Terrace and then the walk. Thursday May 12, 10 am to 2 pm. Free - please register in advance by email or call (905) 597-7000.
Opening June 14 and going to October 25, 3 to 7 pm. Volunteers are needed - if you want to join, send an email to Ellie Ruggles, the 2022 market manager. Riverdale Park West (Sumach and Winchester)
Underpass Park Farmers’ Market (29 Lower River Street) will open on Thursday May 26 and run to October 20, 4 to 7:30 pm each day. Vendors are welcome - contact the Market by email.
IN THE MEDIA
Naturescape
blogTO has picked up the announcement about the new summer park planned for Parliament Street. Amy Carlberg’s story describes the plan in detail.
THEATRE NEWS
Is God Is
Presented by Canadian Stage at the Berkeley Street Theatre (26 Berkeley). May 6 to May 22. Tickets and info are available online.
Citadel + Compagnie (304 Parliament). Choreographer, musician, dancer and jack of all trades Frédérick Gravel is joined by Brianna Lombardo. May 5 to 7, 8 pm. Tickets online, $25.
Third-year students at the School of Toronto Dance (80 Winchester) will perform works by leading choreographers. In-person performances on May 5 and 6 at 8 pm and May 7 at 2 pm and 8 pm. Program details and tickets are available here.
Students from all levels at the School of Toronto Dance (80 Winchester) will perform works by leading choreographers. In-person performances on April 28 and 29 at 8 pm and April 30 at 2 pm and 8 pm. Program details and tickets are available here.
The Canadian premiere of this story by Dominique Morisseau runs at Soulpepper (50 Tank Home Lane, Distillery) to May 8. She tells the story of a mother’s battle to give her son a better future. Ticket sales and more info are online.
IN OUR SHOPS
Welcome Andrew
Andrew Yeh is the new owner/pharmacist at Shopper’s Drug Mart (467 Parliament). He comes to Cabbagetown after 14 years experience at the Yonge and Dundas store. He’s very friendly and he’s looking forward to meeting each customer to learn what we want at Shopper’s.
Our corner stores have plenty of plants, soil and other gardening supplies. They’re already stocking up. Visit your favourite - Jay’s Garden Centre (360 Gerrard), Fairway (520 Parliament), Jamestown Milk (592 Parliament) and Parliament Smoke (609 Parliament).
RESTAURANT NEWS
Cyril’s soup
Cyril’s soup this week is bittersweet - carrot, cashew and turmeric. 3 to 9 cups at $3 each or 10 and more cups at $2.50 each. His juice is a mystery blend brought about by his disappointment with the quality of fruits currently in the market. He plans something exotic that’ll remind you of cocktails on a tropical beach at $9 for 2 cups. Email your order to him.