Richard Silver

Getting around the City Category

Neighborhoods: Bloor West Village

Once considered staid and conservative, this thriving village now boasts a hot European-style shopping district. You can find anything and anyone walking the high street, enjoying the bakeries, restaurants, gyms, shops and community events.   Founded in the early 1900s, the housing stock is detached homes on larger lots with big gardens, similar to the Beach (and equidistant from Yonge St). Some multi-family homes exist as part of a European extended family tradition. You’d best be handy with a rake and...Continue Reading...

Attention Cabbagetown Runners….

This looks like a great event to be held on September 26th, 2010. Get out those running shoes for a great cause!! If you cannot make it, a donation would be much appreciated! Come and cheer the runners on and support the Cabbagetown Youth Centre! Continue Reading...

Toronto Neighbourhoods: Parkdale.

Years ago, when I was starting my real estate career and you were not even born (yes, that long ago) the “up-and-coming” neighbourhood talked about as the next Cabbagetown  was Parkdale . I checked Parkdale out at the time, loved the great Victorian houses, liked the reasonable prices and saw great potential as a neighbourhood. I showed those houses, sold some of them, and have been waiting for years for the area to really soar. I’m still waiting. Entry to the Parkdale market...Continue Reading...

Cabbagetown Garden Tour: June 6th, 2010

Tour the Gardens of Cabbagetown on June 6th, 2010 from 10 AM to 3 PM and enjoy some great gardens. Allow yourself to be snoopy and at the same time raise money for the Cabbagetown Preservation Association. Check out the great poster below and help get the word out. You will see some amazing gardens...I will be at one of the gardens...so try to find me! Continue Reading...

Why Toll Roads in Toronto are not such a bad idea….

Here me out on this: First....most of the great large cities in the world have excellent Subways and rail lines. Toronto slowed and almost stopped building Subways and rapid transit years ago and we became more and more dependent on highways for transportation. Second...Toronto is surrounded by bedroom communities filled with people who use the major thoroughfares to come to the City to make their incomes and head back to their suburban properties where they pay the most of their taxes. Some major cities like...Continue Reading...

Downtown Toronto: The Difference Between Cyclists and Bicycle Couriers…

Over the past few days there has been lots of sadness and anger from the Car and Bicycle community over Monday night's altercation that ended in the death of a bicycle courier. It is hard to forget the personalities involved, who they were, what they did and what would have lead to this horrible result. Yes, this City was built mostly for cars and we now have a strong movement to make the streets more bicycle friendly. I don't cycle anymore because...Continue Reading...

Should Toronto City Workers Be Residents of Toronto?

I wonder if we would be moving in to the fourth week of the Toronto City Worker's Strike if all City workers had to be residents of the City of Toronto. If they all had the same services...or lack of...and also paid the ever-rising taxes of a City in deficit, maybe they would be less likely to strike or be more willing to settle. It should be a condition of employment that any City of Toronto employee have to reside within...Continue Reading...

Toronto Moves Towards a Strike.

       As we march towards a CUPE strike of City workers, here are my thoughts. It will be interesting to see what transpires as the days pass: I think that what the City workers are asking for and have been getting is unrealistic. Banked sick days, whether the economy is good or bad, is an exceptional BENEFIT, that does not appear in the private sector without bankrupting the Corporation. It is time to let that one go. It is not a RIGHT, it is...Continue Reading...

Common Sense is missed at City Council

Mayor Miller keeps trying to re-invent Toronto as a Bike Friendly City...he forgets that 4 or 5 months of the year it is not prudent to drive a Bicycle. It is called WINTER! Let's have Bike month in January or February and see what support he gets. Until then we need to focus attention in rapid transit that is available 12 months a year. Last night the City voted to close one lane of Jarvis Street to Cars and make Jarvis...Continue Reading...

Toronto’s Second Season

For years I have jokingly said that Toronto has two seasons: Winter and Construction... As my car sat in traffic yesterday, I had lots of time to think about what could be done to alleviate the gridlock in the City. First, I have never understood why Toronto stopped building Subways. Weeks ago I was in Chicago, was thrilled to be able to take a subway from Downtown to the Airport (avoiding Traffic jams),  happy to view a labryinth of Subways in a...Continue Reading...