Although halting development at 1900 Sheppard West Ave is unlikely, SWNA hopes that the letter will draw political attention to the ongoing neglect of our community. The letter that has already been mailed to John Tory, Dalton McGuinty, Blair, Julian Fantino and Mario Sergio is reproduced below.     

The OMB message is out: we lost.  In the decision letter from the OMB, it is stated “this issue should be taken to all levels of government.”  The reception of the letter was somewhat paradoxical.  On one hand we lost the case but in the other bubbles of optimism were floating in the air.  SWNA decided to voice some of the breaches of natural law done by the OMB including:

• denial of representation by our councillor, Maria Augimeri,
• denying our request for adjournment despite our impossibility to raise $20,000 in 2 months,
• lack of proper and timely disclosure from the City,
• displaying favouritism for the proponent.

Dear John Tory, 

 On August 10, 2006, the City of Toronto posted a notice at 1900 Sheppard Ave West confirming that more than half the available public space was to be converted into transitional housing for young mothers and that new zoning bylaws will amend accordingly.  The Jane and Sheppard community was appalled by the decision made by the City and the support from most city councilors.  The area is obtrusively saturated with public housing units and there are no initiatives to adequately facilitate the area and to improve its aesthetic.  The Sheppard West Neighbourhood Association (SWNA) was formed a week later in hopes to discontinue the neglect and to prevent the development from going through as it would endanger the lives of young mothers and their children in a crime-riddled and ‘priority neighborhood’. 

SWNA filed an appeal on August 29^th and took the Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB).  On October 18, the OMB unofficially scheduled the hearing for dates 21^st through to the 23^rd of November 2006.  This gave SWNA only a month to prepare for the hearing.  An adjournment was requested but denied on November 10, 2006 without any explanations or consideration.  To make matters worse, the association did not have enough funds to acquire a professional lawyer or planner.  The only option was to attend the hearing and articulate our own arguments to the best of our capabilities.  SWNA, the opposition, was disadvantaged before the hearing even began.

Maria Augimeri, the city councilor for ward 9, held the similar views as the association and came to the hearing well equipped with documents.  Before Augimeri spoke on the podium, the chairman instantly said that she was unable to represent the association or the opposition.  The reasons were not identified but the effects were immediately felt: most of the planning arguments and experience in a courtroom setting were lost. 

The chairman seemed to be quite familiar with the proponent.  In fact at various points in the hearing the chairman called the lawyer and others represented by the proponent by their first names.  Furthermore, when our very own vice president spoke aloud to voice one of her concerns she was harshly dismissed.  The same cannot be said when Mr. O’Callaghan, a representative for TCHC, interrupted our president’s testimonial in order to investigate his concerns.

We draw on our last breathe of hope and ask for your assistance as the OMB failed to entitle us to a fair hearing and the city’s ongoing neglect continues to affect us.  If we could arrange a brief meeting with yourself or a representative to explain ourselves in finer detail this would be greatly appreciated.

All the best on your upcoming elections,

                                                Jorge Rivera

                                           Secretary of SWNA

Forward any responses to:

Sheppard West Neighbourhood Association

86 Thurrock Rd.

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

M3L 1P8