2024 February 2024

Summary of Toronto Ward 2 Cllr Stephen Holyday’s Cycling Consultation meeting on Feb. 28, 2024, at Etobicoke Collegiate Institute:

Cllr Holyday hosted the meeting with 4 City of Toronto staff from the Cycling Infrastructure Planning Team.

• This meeting was held 8 months after Toronto Council voted in support of cycle tracks and a one-lane each way roadway for Bloor Street, in June 2023.
• The majority of approximately 500 attendees expressed their disapproval of this plan
  and the negative impacts of travelling on Bloor.

City presentations covered cycling infrastructure benefits and studies supporting it, but

audience members questioned the information; And the lack of response for requested data.

• Concerns were raised over delayed studies and the absence of consultation with affected
  parties (Emergency Services and Businesses)
• Only 0.3% of traffic on Bloor Street is cycling.

• In a survey taken by a Bloor Street business owner 57 of 59 businesses did not want the bike lanes and reduced roadway to which the business owner reported the negative impacts businesses are experiencing.
• Attendees strongly opposed lane reductions and new bike lanes on Bloor Street.
• A career fireman from Station 431, on Prince Edward Drive, spoke about the major
  delays of Emergency vehicles since the bike lanes were added.
• Other major concerns included safety, travel delays, business impacts, and lack of resident consultation. Few cyclists use this yet so many area residents came to show their opposition.
• Cllr Holyday facilitated discussion, suggesting logical alternatives like hydro corridor routes.
• Collaboration with Mississauga on bike infrastructure was highlighted.
• The meeting ended at 9 pm, with attendees directed to contact Cllr Holyday’s office or
  visit the city’s website for further questions.
• A request for a video recording of the meeting has been made and is pending a
  response from Cllr Holyday’s office.

For more information about the Etobicoke Residents fight which includes their online petition, visitwww.BalanceOnBloor.ca

2023 Fall

Update on Save Bloor Street Campaign

The SaveBloor Street committee continues to address this very important local community issue.  

Thank you to all residents for your ongoing support. 

Below is an update of where we are now and since the campaign began in mid-July 2023:

• Over 2500+ signatures have been made to the SaveBloor petition.  More signatures are being received daily as sent to us via email or by door-to-door petitioning.  
• 928 online surveys with feedback have been received to now.  
• 87.4% of the respondents to the online survey object to Alternative 6 of Bloor Street being changed to a 2 lane roadway with a centre turning lane. 
• Along with door to door petitioning by committee members and AHHRA members and/or other residents who have volunteered to petition on their behalf in support of this issue - 3 plaza blitzes have been held at Applewood Hills Plaza, Highpoint Mall and Iona Plaza.
• Two-hundred signs were ordered with almost all requested by local residents to place on their properties.  
• Resident donations for the lawn signs received is $441.80.
• Another sign order may be placed and residents will be informed if it is.

A meeting request was made via email to Ward 3 Cllr Fonseca and Ward 4 Cllr Kovac on Monday, August 14th, 2023.  Ward 3 Cllr Fonseca agreed to meet with only one committee member.  

This meeting was held on Mon. Sept. 18th at @8:30 am.

The committee's Win-Win-Win proposal for city staff was shown to Cllr. Fonseca. The proposal is attached for your review.

This win-win-win alternative is a doable one as city staff have presented in previous alternatives.

• The current petition numbers, survey results, feedback from community and safety concerns were stressed; and, in particular the driveways for residents who live on Bloor Street and their safety access out of their driveways were discussed with Cllr Fonseca.  
• As well the traffic congestion that would be created with the increase in residential building development of 7 more rental buildings on & off Bloor Street east of Dixie area. 
• CFonseca responded that she would speak with city staff regarding the win-win-win proposal that was presented to her and get back to the committee representative after she receives a reply from city staff to it.  Follow ups to this meeting are being made.
• Our community efforts are ongoing.  

Please continue to:

• Share what is being planned by the city to family, neighbours and friends who live in Mississauga. 
• Let us know if you would like to sign the petition so that one of our members can drop by your home for this to be done.  
• And, if you can petition more signatures from family/friends/neighbours please do so and contact us for the form to be picked up.
• The more signatures we have the more powerful our voice.

We thank everyone for your ongoing support as we continue to work together as a community to address and resolve this very important local issue.

2023 - Summer 

A TEST is happening right now on Bloor of 1 lane each way due to the watermain construction. Two residents have sent videos!  

Bloor Street is the TEST!  There are 10 other streets being considered for a "road diet"

● Central Parkway        ● Rathburn Road       ● Aquitaine Avenue      ● Argentia Road      ● Thomas Street

● Battleford Road         ● Erin Centre Blvd     ● Erindale Station Rd   ● Ridgeway Drive    ● The Collegeway 

2023-Wednesday, June 28th

On Wednesday, June 28th, 2023 – despite strong resident opposition, Mississauga's City Council approved a $27 Millon tax dollar Bloor Street redesign called “Alternative 6”. 

Alternative 6 includes the following:

• Reducing Bloor Street from current 4 lanes to 3 lanes. One car lane in each direction with centre turning lane.

• Bike lanes on both sides on the boulevards next to the curb
• The car lanes would also be narrowed (made smaller)

                                                      Below is the draft image of Alternative 6.

During the Council discussions two alternative options were discussed:

      1. The option of an Alternative 7 
      2. A pilot project to reduce Bloor Street to 2 vehicle lanes plus 1 centre turning lane for 6-8 months before any final decisions are made.

The pilot project, put forward as a ‘friendly amendment’ to the original motion for Alternative 6, was rejected by Councillor Fonseca and was therefore not voted on by the Council.

Vote was 6:4 in support of Alternative 6.

Supported:

Mayor Crombie

Ward 1 Cllr. Stephen Dasko

Ward 2 Cllr. Alvin Tedjo

Ward 3 Cllr. Christina Fonseca (Applewood Hills & Heights Ward 3 representative)

Ward 6 Cllr. Joe Horneck

Ward 8 Cllr. Matt Mahoney

Opposed:

Ward 4 Cllr. John Kovac (neighbouring Ward 4 representative)
Ward 5 Cllr. Carolyn Parrish
Ward 7 Cllr. Dipika Damerla
Ward 11 Cllr. Brad Butt

Absent:

Ward 9 Cllr Martin Reid

Ward 10 Cllr Susan McFadden

Where to find additional information?

• The City's recommendation report for Alternative #6 is viewable at REPORT

• The June 28, 2023 Council meeting's video is viewable at:

  https://pub-mississauga.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=78bd6158-dc52-4510-9a77-092229f82973&Agenda=PostAgenda&lang=English&Item=66&Tab=attachments

• Presentations begin at 25:08
• The Report is discussed from1:46:29 to 2:09:40

At the June 7, 2023 General Committee meeting, the City's Corporate Report recommending Alternative 6 was presented and is viewable at the below link with is Agenda items 7.1, 7.4 - 7.9 and 10.1.

https://pub-mississauga.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=07dec4f6-b104-4cce-acf0-8c14c368df36&Agenda=Merged&lang=English

In the News (most recent news at top) 

• In response to bike lane approval on Bloor Street (mississauga.com)

        Letter to the Editor, Mississauga News, July 12

• Mississauga Council Approves Bike Lanes on Local Road

        July 6th, 2023 print issue of Mississauga News  - Click on PDF  --> 

• "Mississauga council approves $27M road redevelopment with bike lanes on local street amid resident oppositionBloor Street project includes vehicle lane reduction, new MiWay bus stops"

         By Steve Cornwell Mississauga News Wednesday, June 28, 2023, 2 min to read

           https://tinyurl.com/255l3uy9

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2021, March 31st

City Community Meeting for the Bloor Street Integrated Project

In response to the AHHRA's request from their March 31st, 2022 in-person community meeting with Central Bloor Street residents and city staff , the City is now holding a workshop format community meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 29th from 7 pm - 8:30 pm at the Mississauga Valley Community Centre to address the cycle track proposal included in the Bloor Street Integrated Project. 

All residents are welcome to attend this important community meeting and in particular residents who live on Bloor Street and neighbouring area who are the ones who would be mostly impacted by any cycle tracks placed on the Central Bloor Street area between Dixie and Cawthra. 

Residents in the Bloor Street and neighbouring street area should be receiving the city's postcard invitation for this meeting.  

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March 3, 2022 - The AHHRA's position on the Bloor Street Integrated Project

The Bloor Street Integrated Project covers a distance of @ 4.6 km from the Etobicoke border to Central Parkway.  Within this stretch there are 3 identified areas which includes the  'central area' with a distance of just under 2 km between  Dixie & Cawthra.  It is also the only area of all the City's Integrated Projects where cycling lanes have been or are to be placed where there are residential properties that directly front onto and driveways directly access onto a two-way east-west 2-lane each way major collector roadway as is Bloor Street.

In this central area alone there are 101 single family homes along with a plaza with 19 stores, 2 medical/dental offices, 4 residential buildings, a preschool and an auto mechanic shop. The east and west identified parts of the BIP have no homes with driveways that directly front onto Bloor. It is this ‘central area’ which is under 2 km that the AHHRA are addressing both in their petition and for the proposed cycle lanes to not be included.

From the residents who live directly on this central part of Bloor Street - most have been living here for 25+ years, and are the ones who would be directly impacted daily when driving into and out of their driveways, 77 homeowners of the 101 residential homes all say adamantly 'no' to bike lanes in front of their homes.

In the BIP plans in order to maintain the 2 lanes each way, and to allow for 'cycle track' lanes on each side of the street as is being proposed, boulevard space would very likely be needed which would result in the removal of boulevard's green space, trees being removed and additional driveway-parking area which is possible on the boulevard/driveway area would no longer be possible for the residents.

There is no other city project with planned 'cycle track' lanes where any of this has happened or would be happening. This past summer 2021 alone in this central area of the BIP there were 2 cycling collisions with vehicles with serious injuries to cyclists.

And, when speaking to residents in the area about cycling on Bloor, they clearly stated that even if there are cycle lanes on Bloor Street for their safety, they would still continue to cycle on the sidewalk because they do not trust vehicle volume and speed on Bloor Street.

Do the residents who live on Bloor Street between Dixie and Cawthra have no right to object to a city plan that will clearly interfere in their daily driving onto a very busy and high vehicle volume street, where there will be an increased safety issue for cyclists/drivers/ pedestrians and will also decrease the value of their homes?

There are other cycle lane options in Ward 3 that can be looked at and ones which would not in any way directly impact homeowners. The opportunity to discuss these options with City staff is welcomed. 

As a comparison, in Ward 9 and the Glen Erin IP - on Glen Erin from Thomas Street to Brittania Road there are residential homes with driveways that directly front onto Glen Erin however, the Glen Erin IP is not included on this stretch of the project. Why not? https://www.google.com/maps/@43.5738564,-79.7374065,17z

The Glen Erin IP with cycle lanes begins after this area of homes and starts from Brittania Rd to Derry Road where there is not one single family residential home that directly faces and accesses Glen Erin. 

As a residents' association, we are here to listen to our community and work together on issues that are presented. In this case, 76% of the people on Bloor Street who are the direct and main stakeholders and who would have to face the daily impact of any such addition of cycle track lanes in front of their homes and driveways - and as has been explained above - have clearly voiced their objection to any cycle lanes in the central area of the BIP.

What is the purpose of a 3rd community meeting along with the additional costs to the City and staff of this when all of the above has been communicated to Ward Councillor Fonseca and Jeffrey Reid and the community's petition has already been submitted? .

Feb. 17th, 2022 - Bloor Street Integrated Project Update

After the submission of the AHHRA's community petition in December 2021 and the presentation made at the January 19th, 2022 Council meeting, City staff are now planning another virtual community meeting to further discuss the Bloor Street Integrated Project. 

This meeting will be held on Wed. March 9th, 2022 from 6:30 - 8:00 pm.

If you would like to attend, please go to the followng page to register: https://www.mississauga.ca/projects-and-strategies/environmental-assessments/bloor-street-integrated-project/

2022 January

City of Mississauga's Bloor Street Integrated Project/Study (BIP)

At this Wed. Jan. 19th, 2022 Council meeting the AHHRA will be presenting its position on the City's Bloor Street Integrated Project / Study.  On the agenda, it is the first deputation. The Agenda - under Petitions - includes the petition, statement of purpose as well as on the Agenda's 'Correspondence' , a letter from Applewood Hills Plaza owner Mr. Sitzer. The meeting's agenda is viewable at: https://pub-mississauga.escribemeetings.com/FileStream.ashx?DocumentId=18999

A summary to the above is noted below so that the community has a better understanding of this presentation/petition and community support with correspondence.

The Bloor Street Integrated Project (BIP) / Study was first presented to the community by City staff this past June 2021. Two virtual community meetings were held by the City in order to present the study and to get feedback from the residents. These meetings were on June 24, 2021 and October 27, 2021. The BIP includes the installation of noise walls in the needed areas and in particular on Bloor west of Cawthra with 2 possible locations in the Bloor Central (between Dixie & Cawthra) section at Queen Frederica and Bloor Street, a pedestrian crossing at the Bloor Street bridge over the Applewood Trail, bicycle lanes with recommendation to be on the the north side of Bloor Street and road resurfacing of Bloor. For all new AHHRA members who may not already be familiar with this project you can view the City's BIP informational page at https://www.mississauga.ca/projects-and-strategies/environmental-assessments/bloor-street-integrated-project/

AHHRA members expressed that this project will be a very positive one for the area however, several - and mostly those residents who live directly/front onto Bloor Street and in particular those on the north side of Bloor- are very concerned about the impact the addition of bicycle lanes would have in terms of cyclist/driver/pedestrian safety, access in/out of their driveways as well as the loss of boulevard driveway, green space and the removal of trees. With respect to the matter of safety, this past summer there were 2 accidents at Bloor & Runningbrook involving a vehicle and cyclist and one of these resulted in the death of a young girl who was riding her bike and hit by a car. As well, many residents who gave their feedback when the petition was being made stated that there are hardly any cyclists on Bloor Street and that the vehicle volume as well as vehicle speed would definitely not be favourable for the safety of cyclists.

A petition requesting - for the reasons noted - that no bike lanes be placed on Bloor Street between Dixie and Cawthra was initiated by AHHRA's secretary M. DAs who lives on Bloor Street. From the 101 single family dwellings on Bloor from Dixie to Cawthra 136 signatures were made from 77 individual residences supporting this petition. As well, Applewood Hills Plaza owner also supports this petition to which he has submitted a letter that is included in the Correspondence section of this Wednesday's meeting. The Applewood Auto Centre at the corner of Bloor & Tomken, the medical/dental building at Bloor & Ivernia and the GlenRoy day care near Cawthra & Bloor are also in support of this petition. Response is pending from the Apple Hills Medical Centre as well as the 2 condominium buildings and 2 rental buildings on Bloor street and one condominium building at Cawthra and Bloor.

Approximately 97% of all residents who were spoken to along the Bloor Street stretch from Dixie to Cawthra about the BIP stated that they did not know anything about this city project and the first they had heard of it was from the AHHRA's communication with them with this petition. If you have not already given your feedback to the city's consideration being made for including bike lanes between Dixie and Cawthra in the BIP and would like to do so, please reply to this email at this time.

Councillor Fonseca has been informed of the petition and the presentation that will be made. As well, the support of the Councillor for this petition and for more than 75% of the residents on Bloor Street who would be directly impacted has been requested. The response received from the Councillor to date is that she has requested City staff to hold a third virtual community meeting.

Bloor Street Intergrated Project, Community Meeting #2

A City of Mississauga community meeting is being held on Wednesday, October 27th from 6:30 - 8:00 pm to present and further discuss the plans for the Bloor Street Intergrated Project.  Bloor Street runs through the Applewood Hills & Heights area between Dixie and Cawthra.

To learn more about this project and/or to register please go to https://www.mississauga.ca/projects-and-strategies/environmental-assessments/bloor-street-integrated-project/#heading-community-meeting-1-

June 17, 2021

Bloor Street Integration Project & Bloor Street Bridge Updates

There are 2 City of Mississauga construction projects being planned for the Applewood Hills & Heights area.  These plans are for the:

1. Bloor Street Integration Project and

2. Little Etobicoke Creek Bloor Street Bridge

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1. A Virtual Community Meeting for the Bloor Street Integration Project is taking place on Wed. June 23, 2021 from 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm. 

All residents are welcome to join. 

For all  who would like to attend this meeting, please go to the following City online page for more information and to Register at https://www.mississauga.ca/projects-and-strategies/environmental-assessments/bloor-street-integrated-project/

2. The construction for the Little Etobicoke Creek Bloor Street Bridge Project is to take place between September 2021 to July 2022.  More information about this project will be posted when it becomes available.

To view the City of Mississauga's Construction Map, go to https://www.mississauga.ca/projects-and-strategies/current-construction-projects/