Danforth BIA's Thrill of the Grill!

I had a wonderful time this weekend at the Danforth BIA's

Thrill of the Grill event held in the parking lot of the old Albany Clinic on the Danforth.

The event was a fundraiser to support the Toronto Kiwanis Boys and Girls Club, of which I am a board member, specifically to raise money for their $4 million renovation project in Cabbagetown.

The event was sponsored by 5 local chefs who donated their time and product, and they participated in a cookoff to see who could make the best slider. All of them wowed us with their culinary skills as there were many great tastes to choose from. Congratulations to all who participated!

The event also raised awareness of the Boys and Girls Club and what they do in our community and in many communities across Toronto. I'm honoured to be a part of such a great organization.
Thank you to the Danforth BIA for hosting this great event and hopefully it will return again next year!

Greek Summer Festival 2010!

I had the pleasure of attending the Greek Summer Festival 2010 at St. John's

Greek Orthodox Church on Saturday, July 10.
I had such an amazing time and was able to take in the amazing Greek culture a lot of which can be seen in Ward 29, especially along the Danforth. There was wonderful music, including from special guest Yiannis Katevas, who I learned came in from Greece especially for this event. There was also great food - I enjoyed some tasty souvlaki and a gyro, Greek wine and I can't forget the delicious Loukoumades!

While watching the wonderful Greek folk dancing, I had the opportunity to meet many Greek residents from the Toronto-Danforth area and from across Toronto. I also had the honour of meeting Mr. Dimitris Azemopoulos, the Consul General of Greece, and the President of the Greek Community of Toronto, Mr. Nikonas Georgakopoulos.

I was also able to speak with Mayoral Candidate Rocco Rossi, members of his team from the Greek community and Rocco's parents!

It was a great event and I hope you will have the opportunity to attend one of the many Greek events coming up this summer.

Strathmore Boulevard Block Party and the Inside Ride Fundraiser

Members of the Jennifer Wood Campaign Team participated in the Inside Ride at the First Annual Strathmore Boulevard Block Party on Saturday, July 10. I rode alongside Genevieve Kenny, Christian Isaac, Ali Abaza, Barb Lockhart, Dennis Diemert, for 10 minutes a piece full out in the heat for a respectable 3rd place finish! Team Wood also won the prize for best costume, as we rode in our bright Jennifer Wood Campaign T-shirts.

The Inside Ride is produced by the Coast to Coast Against Cancer Foundation (www.ctcacf.org), a national foundation dedicated to improving the survival rate and quality of life for kids and their families living with and beyond childhood cancer. It was a wonderful community event that included a bouncy castle donated by the firefighters from Station 332, fantastic dance music, a raffle and lots of treats.
Many people from Strathmore and the surrounding neighbourhood turned out to celebrate and socialize. Jennifer's Team raised $300 for this event.

Thanks to my wonderful volunteers for coming out to support the campaign and this wonderful cause.

Donlands and Greenwood TTC Second Exit Project‏

On Friday, July 9, in the morning, I met with TTC Chair Adam Giambrone to discuss the Second Exit plans and the Environmental Assessment process. Subsequently, I attended a meeting on Friday evening with the TTC and some members of the Donlands and Greenwood Second Exit residents groups. At the evening meeting, the TTC presented two alternative plans for the Second Exits, based on the feedback received from the previous public meeting. They will be presenting these alternatives at the public meeting scheduled for tonight, Monday July 12^th, from 7-9 at Danforth Collegiate and Technical School at 800 Greenwood Avenue. If there is broad support for the alternative sites from the public, the plans and report will be sent to the TTC Meeting scheduled for Wednesday where the TTC hopes to obtain approval for the alternative sites, or for the original sites, should the alternative sites prove unworkable.

More to come after tonight’s meeting…..

Cycling Celebration - Jennifer Wood, Ward 29 Bikes and the Toronto Cyclists Union

On Thursday, July 8, I attended the Ward 29 Bikes, Toronto Cyclists Union and the City of Toronto's, celebration of the recent improvements to the bike lanes on the Bloor Viaduct in front of Rosedale Heights School. I met with Val Dodge, Tom Flaherty and Luke Siragusa of Ward 29 Bikes and with Yvonne Bambrick of the Toronto Cyclists Union, as well as other cyclists. Aside from great conversation about all things cycling, we also enjoyed freezies to cool off in the 40 degree heat!

Congratulations to these groups for the hard work that they've done to ensure that the Bloor Viaduct is safe for the thousands of cyclists who use it every day.

Meeting with Adam Giambrone Today

Today, we are meeting with Adam Giambrone to discuss the TTC Second Exit Plan for Greenwood and Donlands Subway Stations. We hope to convince Chair Giambrone that the TTC needs to take all options for these exists into consideration before making a decision which will have a serious impact on a residential neighborhood along Strathmore and will be a precedent setting decision for the remaining exits planned along subway routes in the City. We will keep you posted on the outcome of that meeting and all other updates on this project.

Todmorden Village Meet & Greet in the Heat!

We went canvassing in Todmorden Village on Wednesday and had a great time, despite the heat. Many people offered us refreshments and were genuinely appreciative of us stopping by to chat with them about our campaign and City and Ward issues. Topics of interest to this group included City Finances, Transit and Transportation Infrastructure, Road Tolls and Bike Lanes. Most people I spoke with agreed that we need to invest long term in transit and transportation infrastructure and that this should be a top priority for the next administration. We finish our first round of canvassing in this area tonight.