Beach Metro Community News – The Beach's source for news since 1972

Residents upset with proposal to build modular housing for people exiting homelessness in East York parking lot

March 5, 2021

By ALI RAZA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Local residents are upset over the city’s modular housing proposal at Trenton Avenue and Cedarvale Avenue citing concerns of appropriateness of the area and community safety regarding the future occupants of the building. The concerns have prompted an online community meeting on the evening of Monday, March 8. […]

Find Blue Day on March 7 to intensify search for cat missing since fatal fire on Gainsborough Road

March 5, 2021

East Toronto community members are being asked to take some time on Sunday, March 7 to help find a cat that went missing after the fatal house fire on Gainsborough Road in January. Find Blue Day is being planned by Kirsten Scollie, and she said a number of local businesses and individuals have contributed to […]

Blantyre Park Dog Owners start petition calling for off-leash area

March 5, 2021

By ANSON WONG A petition to convert part of Blantyre Park in southwest Scarborough into an off-leash dog area has garnered more than 330 signatures. Located at 180 Fallingbrook Rd. the park is home to many structures including a baseball diamond, outdoor pool, gazebo, and horseshoe pit. “We are not looking to overtake the whole […]

Drive-thru Easter Parade event being organized for 2021 version of annual Beach parade

March 4, 2021

Though it won’t be a march along Queen Street East with hundreds of participants and thousands of spectators, the Toronto Beaches Lions Easter Parade will be taking place this spring. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organizers had to radically change how one of Canada’s biggest and longest-running Easter parades was going to happen in 2021. […]

Paddleboard trip along Lake Ontario shore turned into documentary film by A Greener Future

March 4, 2021

By MICHELLE McCANN When an environmental group’s shoreline cleanup was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic last year, the founder came up with an ambitious alternative plan. Less than a year later, her staff have produced a documentary film about the pandemic-inspired adventure. Rochelle Byrne, the founder of A Greener Future, recently spoke with Beach […]

Man in “position of authority” with Royal Canadian Air Cadet program in East York and Scarborough charged with sexual assault

March 3, 2021

A man who was in a position of authority as a member of a Royal Canadian Air Cadet program in the East York and Scarborough area has been charged with sexual assault in connection with an incident in November of 2019. Police allege a 16-year-old girl was the victim of a sexual assault. A man […]

In My Opinion: Prioritizing community’s mental health a key step in dealing with long-term impacts of COVID-19

March 3, 2021

By BRAD BRADFORD COUNCILLOR, WARD 19 BEACHES-EAST YORK It’s been almost a year since Toronto went into lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The last 12 months have brought unimaginable challenges. Nearly 22,000 Canadians have died as a result of this virus. Millions of Canadians lost their jobs. We’ve gone months without seeing our […]

East Toronto COVID-19 vaccination plans being fine tuned subject to eligibility and availability

March 2, 2021

By ALI RAZA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter East Toronto, it’s time to think about getting vaccinated against COVID-19. If you’re 80 and older, live or work in a retirement home, are a high-priority health care worker, a recipient of chronic home care, or an Indigenous Canadian adult, you can get the COVID-19 vaccine right now. […]

Obituary: Joe Cirone, the King of Queen Street, ran store for 50 years and loved the Beach community

March 2, 2021

Known as The King of Queen Street and the Mayor of Balmy Beach, longtime Beach resident and business owner Joe Cirone passed away on Feb. 26 at the age of 81. He ran Cirone’s Fine Foods grocery, convenience store and garden centre on Queen Street East in the community for more than 50 years, before […]

Spectacular support shown for Ethan Peters’ 111-kilometre fundraising run in the Beach

March 2, 2021

By JAYSON DIMAANO Ethan Peters’ Hills for Health fundraising run in support of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) was a huge success. Peters completed the 111-kilometre run up and down the streets between Kingston Road and Queen Street East in the Beach on Sunday, Feb. 28. Starting at 4 a.m., he did […]

Cold weather not a problem for Lake Ontario swimmer Christopher Hope

March 2, 2021

By ALEXANDROS VAROUTAS The sun had just come up and it was a balmy two degrees Celsius when Christopher Hope, 82, exited his house in a bathrobe and a swim cap and made his way down to the beach. Hope, a Beach resident for more than 12 years, discovered the activity through friends at the […]

CRUSH COVID: Ride for Mind indoor cycling event to benefit Michael Garron Hospital

March 1, 2021

By JAYSON DIMAANO For a second year in a row, Michael Garron Hospital and Toronto Hustle are teaming up to hold the CRUSH COVID event. The event will allow cyclists from around the world to help raise money to battle the mental health impacts of COVID-19. In 2020, CRUSH COVID took place shortly after COVID-19 […]