Stay in-the-know on all things Toronto with these highlights from the TorontoToday reporting team this week.
After years-long wait for son’s SickKids surgery, family raises $50K for U.S. care
Frustrated with a years-long wait for her son to receive a necessary surgery at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), one local mother told TorontoToday reporter Gabe Oatley she resorted to fundraising for treatment outside the country.
As of last summer, the boy was one of more than about 700 children on a waiting list at SickKids Hospital to receive surgery for hypospadias, a condition where a child is born with the opening of the urethra on the underside of the penis, rather than the tip.
St. Stephen encampment will remain despite city's ‘intimidating’ violation notices
Two “final” notices of violation from the City of Toronto posted outside St. Stephen-in-the-Fields Church have been a source of frustration and uncertainty for staff as they continue to support the small encampment of unhoused people around the church.
TorontoToday's Kathryn Mannie reported the city said it intends to “work with the individuals in those encampments and representatives from the church to clean up debris" this month. But to Maggie Helwig, rector of St. Stephen, one person’s debris is another person’s insulation against Toronto’s frigid winter winds.
Yorkville residents furious over proposed 11-storey long-term care home expansion
A proposed 11-storey addition to the Belmont House long-term care facility in Yorkville is one step closer to city approval after councillors voted in favour of the controversial development. Reporter Alex Flood covered the drama that ensued at the Toronto and East York Community Council meeting this week when nearby residents took the floor to lodge complaints about the proposed development.
The project would add 168 long-term care beds and 30 assisted living units to the existing property. However, the expansion has faced opposition from locals due to concerns about potential traffic increases, shadow impact and the required removal of existing greenspace.
2025 Toronto budget proposes 6.9% property tax increase
Toronto taxpayers could see a 6.9 per cent property tax hike as part of the city’s newly announced 2025 budget.
On Monday, TorontoToday's Aidan Chamandy reported about Mayor Olivia Chow and budget chief Coun. Shelley Carroll's unveiling of this year's proposed city budget. The mayor said the tax increase is necessary to fund critical city functions including TTC services, hiring more police officers and traffic agents and a switch to longer library hours.
TDSB trustees vote to support mandatory DEI certification for Ontario teachers
A committee of Toronto District School Board (TDSB) trustees voted on Wednesday night to advance a motion to ask the provincial government to create a mandatory equity, diversity and anti-racism certification for all Ontario teachers.
The motion — passed unanimously at the program and school services committee meeting — called on TDSB board chair Neethan Shan to send a letter to the Ministry of Education and the Ontario College of Teachers advocating for the mandatory certification. TorontoToday's Gabe Oatley was there to report about the motion, put forward by TDSB student trustee Angelika Bell, who is one of three student trustees elected by the board’s 240,000 students.
