Category: Toronto (a.k.a. Accordion City)

One of the first results of a Google image search for “gentrification”.

Gideon Strauss points to an article in ByFaith Online (“The Web Magazine of the Presbyterian Church in America”) titled Gentrification with Justice. An excerpt (with one bit of emphasis on my part):

I have now seen first hand (yes, inadvertently participated in) the devastating impact that gentrification can have on the poor of an urban community. I have faced panicking families at my front door who had just been evicted from their homes, their meager belongings set out on the curb. I have helped them in their frantic search to find scarce affordable apartments and have collected donations to assist with rent and utility deposits.

But I have also seen what happens to the poor when the “gentry” do not return to the city. The effects of isolation are equally severe. A pathology creeps into a community when achieving neighbors depart – a disease born of isolation that depletes a work ethic, lowers aspirations and saps human initiative. I have seen courageous welfare mothers struggle in vain to save their children from the powerful undertow of the streets. I have witnessed the sinister forces of a drug culture as it ravages unchecked the lives of those who have few options for escape. Without the presence of strong, connected neighbor-leaders who have the best interests of the community at heart, a neglected neighborhood becomes a desperate dead-end place.

The romantic notion that the culture of a dependent, poverty community must somehow be protected from the imposition of outside values is as naive as it is destructive. Neighborhoods that have hemorrhaged for decades from the “up and out” migration of their best and brightest need far more than government grants, human services and urban ministries to restore their health. More than anything else, they need the return of the very kinds of home-owning, goal-driven, faith-motivated neighbors that once gave their community vitality. In a word, they need the gentry.

This leaves us in a bit of a quandary. The poor need the gentry in order to revive their deteriorated neighborhoods. But the gentry will inevitably displace the poor from these neighborhoods. The poor seem to get the short end of the stick either way.

If you’re interested in the ongoing evolution of Accordion City (or hey, your own city) and you want to do it without trampling over people in the process, this article is a worthwhile read.

Don’t forget, Toronto’s monthly show-and-tell event for techies, DemoCamp, takes place tomorrow night! It takes place at No Regrets (42 Mowat Avenue, not far from King and Dufferin) with the first presentation taking place at 6:30 p.m.. There’s be a follow-up social at the same location once presentations end, which should be about 8-ish.

The scheduled presentations are:

1. WildApricot: Web-based software that automates daily administrative routines for associations and non-profits.
2. JobLoft.com: Google maps-powered job board
3. Filemobile: Power tools for bloggers, letting users videoblog and moblog with ease.
4. Languify: A not-yet-released tool from the Nuvvo team & Nicolaas Handojo to manage translating your user interface to new languages.
5. Mike McDerment from FreshBooks.com: How to Measure the Success of Your Web Service

If you’ve got more disposable income than I do, like good ol’ rock and roll, parties and charity events, here’s an interesting thing to do this Saturday: Bridle Bash II, featuring Burton Cummings.

Bridle Bash II is a charity event/pool party held in someone’s back yard. This isn’t just any old back yard, but one in Accordion City’s most exclusive neighbourhood, the Bridle Path. It’s full of big mansions on big lots and home to media moguls like Moses Znaimer and Conrad Black, the artist formerly and once again known as Prince, my old upstairs neighbour Jesse who sold a good chunk of his company WebHosting.com for a hundred million or so dollars, and my dentist.

Because this isn’t just any old back yard party, there will be entertainment, and it will be provided by none other than Burton Cummings. Yes, the “Guess Who” guy. If his excellent performance at “SARStock” is any indication, this should be a real treat. Better still, Burton has a reputation to not just simply play a set and leave, but for playing as long as the party’s going. Even better, the best view of the stage will be from the pool, since the stage will be right beside it. How many rock concerts have you seen from inside a pool?

Finally, the cause: Camp Oochigeas (pronounced “OO-chi-GAY-us”). It’s a camp for kids with cancer, where they can receive the care and attention they need but still enjoy the quintessentially Canadian experience of camping. “Ooch” as the camp is often called, provides a high degree of support by assigning one camp counselor per camper and medical facilities to support people with cancer, including a chemotherapy unit. As you might expect, running such a camp is a very expensive proposition. The idea behind Bridle Bash II is to help out “Ooch” by raising $300,000 for them — in a single night. As of this writing, they’ve managed to raise two-thirds of that money.

The party will also feature as DJ, go-go dancers, a barbecue and bonfires, and the bar will be an open bar (with booze provided by attendees — it’s a BYOB event writ large). There will be about 1000 people in attendance, most of whom will be Accordion City citizens of high standing.

Tickets for this event are hard to come by, but if you’ve got the cash to spare, there’s a pair up for auction on eBay. The starting bid for these two tickets is CDN$1000 and the auction will end on Thursday, July 27th at 8:52:50 p.m.. If you’re interested in attending this event, go and place your bid!

We apologize for the short notice, but we’d like to announce the next DemoCamp, which will happen next Tuesday, June 25th at No Regrets (42 Mowat Avenue, not far from King and Dufferin).

As of this writing, the scheduled presentations are:

1. WildApricot – Web-based software that automates daily administrative routines for associations and non-profits.
2. Slot Available – Got a demo? We’ve got one spot available!
3. Filemobile – Power tools for bloggers, letting users videoblog and moblog with ease.
4. Languify A not-yet-released tool from the Nuvvo team & Nicolaas Handojo to manage translating your user interface to new languages.
5. Pursudo – A project by the people at Unspace that helps you meet cool people to do interesting things.

Presentations will start at 6:30 and run until about 8:30, after which the social part of the evening will commence. No Regrets has got some great food, drink and free WiFi, so plan to make an evening of it!

For more information, see the DemoCamp 8 page.