Have you seen missing teen Michelle Yu

Michelle Yu, 18, has been missing since Tuesday

Toronto police are seeking the public’s help in locating Michelle Yu, an 18-year-old who has been missing since Tuesday.

Police say she was last seen at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the TD Bank at 354 Bay St., near Temperance Street. Her image was captured on the bank’s security camera and she appeared to be alone. Members of her family say this is not the bank branch Michelle regularly uses.

She was also seen at around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday in the York Mills Road/Chipstead Road area.

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The house that garbage built in York Region – rental mayhem 101

What comment can I offer on the lack of care for rental homes in York Region? What’s sad is home owners who buy rental properties, in fairly nice neighbourhoods, are turning them into rental ghettos. It’s said to see how individuals can come into a area and treat it with no care. Now there are some basic considerations to home ownership, but one that seems to allude G.T.A residents is the basic decency to keep their neighbourhood clean. Why do you put out garbage and leave it on the curb for a week; knowing it won’t be picked up until next week? Now I know what you are thinking. Maybe they are on vacation right? Wrong! I have seen this time and time again. Homes that are rented out and garbage left on the street; including glass, paint cans, and other items. Unfortunately with an interest rate hovering at the lowest in many years this problem can only get worse; with investors trying to make a quick buck. What’s interesting is this type of issue rarely happens in an area like Leaside, Unionville, Whitby, Oakville, Woodbridge or other portions of the city. Why? Maybe it’s because residents care and want to ensure that their investment remains intact. There is little tolerance for individuals who buy a home and don’t maintain it. It’s sad because I am not sure if this problem will ever be fixed. We take the taxes, but forget the neighbourhood. In some areas people don’t care and I am not even sure why. Maybe they just like it that way?

Related articles

• Challenges await new GTA immigrants (cbc.ca)
• Housing Starts Slide In Latest “Housing Recovery” Disappointment; Permits Rise On Expectations Of Rental Surge (zerohedge.com)

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Strike! Lots of confusion in York Region (YRT and VIVA)

There seems to be a lot of confusion over what is running and what is not in York Region. Details from the YRT/VIVA site are listed below, however there is much confusion over exactly which routes are not in operation. Some TTC routes, that go into Markham are still in operation.

Southeast Division (Miller Transit)

• 51 YRT routes in the Towns of Markham, Richmond Hill and Whitchurch-Stouffville, with some routes in the City of Vaughan

North Division (First Canada)

• 29 YRT routes in the Towns of Newmarket and Aurora with some routes in the Towns of Richmond Hill, East Gwillimbury and Georgina

Viva Division (York BRT Services)

• Five Viva routes operating in the Towns of Markham, Richmond Hill, Aurora, Newmarket and the City of Vaughan

For more details click here or here. For details on the services unaffected by the strike, please review the information below.

• Traveling on other YRT routes – The strike does not affect service along more than 30 YRT routes in the Southwest Divisionthat Veolia Southwest provides. These routes mostly serve the City of Vaughan, but also parts of the Towns of Aurora, Markham, Newmarket and Richmond Hill and the Township of King. You can find out whether buses operate along your route here.
• Traveling on north / south TTC buses in York Region.
• Traveling on GO Transit buses and trains and Brampton Transit Züm buses. (Brampton Transit may add extra service on the 501 Züm Queen route to help passengers that usually use the Viva orange service between Martin Grove Road and York University’s Keele Campus.)

Note: Seems it maybe best to catch a Go Bus, Go Train or at least try the 99 bus.

What is the plan for Transit City now? GTA has worst commutes in 19-city survey

Commuters in the Greater Toronto Area suffer through longer round trips than their counterparts in 18 other major centres, including notoriously congested Los Angeles, according to a new report commissioned by the Toronto Board of Trade.

The board’s second annual “scorecard on prosperity” concluded the average GTA commute lasts a punishing 80 minutes for drivers and public-transit riders alike, putting the region an “embarrassing” last place behind not only L.A., but also the gridlocked metropolises of New York, London and Montreal.

“The report shows [commute times in the GTA] are getting worse,” said Carol Wilding, the president of the board of trade. “So there’s another clearly strong proof point and evidence that says they’re getting worse; we’ve underinvested. We’ve got to get on with it.”

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Transit City Cancelled?

Toronto’s commute times are the longest

New Voter Identification rules at the Polls

When you vote, you MUST prove your identity and address. You have three options:

Option 1

Provide one original piece of identification issued by a government or government agency containing your photo, name and address.

Examples

• Driver’s Licence
• Health Card
  • This applies only to Ontario
  • Note: Not all electors in Ontario will have cards with photo, name and address
• Provincial/Territorial Identification Card (non-drivers) for the provinces/territories of
  • Newfoundland and Labrador
  • Prince Edward Island
  • Nova Scotia
  • New Brunswick
  • Alberta
  • British Columbia
  • Northwest Territories

Note: The above pieces of identification are examples only.

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Option 2

Provide two original pieces of identification authorized by the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada. Both pieces must contain your name, and one must also contain your address. Here is the list:

Identity Cards

• Health Card
• Social Insurance Number Card
• Birth Certificate
• Driver’s Licence
• Canadian Passport
• Certificate of Indian Status
• Certificate of Canadian Citizenship or Citizenship Card
• Credit/Debit Card with elector name
• Canadian Forces Identity Card
• Veterans Affairs Canada Health Card
• Employee Card issued by employer
• Old Age Security Identification Card
• Public Transportation Card
• Student ID Card
• Library Card
• Liquor Identification Card
• Canadian Blood Services/Héma-Québec Card
• Hospital Card
• Fishing Licence
• Wildlife Identification Card
• Hunting Licence
• Firearm Acquisition Card/Firearm Possession Card
• Outdoors Card and Licences
• Provincial/Territorial Identification Card
• Local Community Service Centre Card (CLSC)

Original documents (containing name and address)

• Credit Card Statement
• Bank Statement
• Utility Bill (residential telephone, cable TV, public utilities commission, hydro, gas or water)
• Attestation of Residence issued by the responsible authority of an Indian band or reserve
• Local Property Tax Assessment
• School, College or University Report Card or Transcript
• Residential Lease, Residential Mortgage Statement or Agreement
• Canada Child Tax Benefit Statement
• Income Tax Assessment Notice
• Insurance Policy
• Government Cheque or Government Cheque Stub with elector name
• Statement of Employment Insurance Benefits Paid (T4E)
• Canada Pension Plan Statement of Contributions/Quebec Pension Plan Statement of Participation
• Statement of Old Age Security (T4A) or Statement of Canada Pension Plan Benefits (T4AP)
• Statement of Benefits from provincial workplace safety or insurance board
• Statement of Direct Deposit for provincial works or provincial disability support program
• Vehicle Ownership
• Vehicle Insurance
• Attestation of Residence issued by the responsible authorities (shelters, soup kitchens, student/senior residences, long-term care facilities)
• Letter from public curator

Note: A document bearing an address may be used as proof of the elector’s address if this address was written by the issuer of the document and is the same as or consistent with the address on the list of electors. No document other than those included on this list may be accepted to establish the name and address of an elector.

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Option 3

You can be vouched for by an elector whose name appears on the list of electors in the same polling division and who has an acceptable piece or pieces of identification. Both will be required to make a sworn statement. An elector cannot vouch for more than one person, and the person who has been vouched for cannot vouch for another elector.

http://www.elections.ca/content.asp?section=ele&dir=40ge&document=index&lang=e&textonly=false

York Region Viva bus service ends Wednesday September 25 2008 at 4am – No service in York Region

 

VIVA on strike for Wednesday

680News staff | Wednesday, September 24th, 2008 7:42 pm

 

Thirty-five-thousand commuters in York Region will have to find another way to work or school come Thursday morning.

That’s because Viva bus drivers will go on strike starting at 4 a.m.

Union members turned down a tentative settlement by 61 per cent, Wednesday, and that group represents 165 bus operators.

In a press release, Bob Kinnear, President of ATU Local 113, which represents the bus drivers said “we are a democratic union and our members have spoken.”

He added “Veolia management [the company that runs Viva Transit] knew that the strike would being tomorrow (Thursday) if their offer was turned down and I have informed them of the results of the vote.”

The major issues in negotiations are wages and sick time.

At this point no further talks have been scheduled.

All York Region Transit (YRT) buses will continue to run as usual because they are not part of Viva Transit.

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