“It turns out ‘heritage’ is, in fact, a hated word in the insurance biz, and that only a tiny sliver of companies (called “markets” by brokers) will even consider extending coverage,” writes Garth Turner.
“The election’s this autumn. Betting is among senior members of the rebel NOTL residents rabble that the current monarch, Gary Zalepa, will be buried if he choses to run again,” writes Garth Turner.
“Existing tariffs are bad enough … but hiking them to 100 per cent — and maybe ripping up the existing Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement this summer? That’s war,” writes Garth Turner.
“Old Town residents — on Victoria, Prideaux, Simcoe and Queen — can expect up to 50 trucks per day during various phases of the project. Dumps, flatbeds and tractor trailers,” writes Garth Turner.
“How will heavy construction be handled during the next three summers when Queen is shoulder-to-shoulder with tourists, cars are everywhere and festival season arrives?” writes Garth Turner.
“Soon the historic buildings behind the chain-link — some dating to the 1880s — will be razed. The excavators will move in. Then the erection of a 55,000-square foot complex with a six-storey height,” writes Garth Turner.
“NOTL may attract three million visitors a year, but at its heart are caring, decent people always finding time for a pet, a smile and a stroke of my incredibly handsome fur,” writes Cody the Chow, taking over for Garth Turner this week.
“Sure, overpriced homes will continue to sit, but there are lots of properties now priced at 2022 levels, getting no action. Sellers are anxious. Many are willing to deal,” writes Garth Turner.
“People respond with anger, aggression and the need to lash out when they’re insecure and under threat. Not by an old dude with a dodgy leg, but by circumstances,” writes Garth Turner.
“People flock here (three million of them annually) because it’s authentic. It’s ancient. Historic. Quaint in a way Mississauga and Buffalo never will be. Not cute. Not fake,” writes Garth Turner.
“They’re here. They invaded November 11th. They stood among us. Being a tolerant, inclusive people, we let them. It’s what makes us Canadian,” writes Garth Turner.
“NOTL is one of the few burgs in the nation allowing (and encouraging) the conversion of residential housing into ‘unhosted’ short-term rentals,” writes Garth Turner.
“Some people believe our little lovenest of a town is lurching toward surveillance, confinement and control. Look at the official, shiny new draft official plan, they say,” writes Garth Turner.
“As I write this there are six (seriously, just six) rentals listed with realtors in the Old Town. The average rent being asked is $3,000 a month,” writes Garth Turner.
“The NOTL rebels’ plan is to have candidates identified and in place well before the race. There may be a slate. There will certainly be public engagements — forums, Q&As, debates. There will be money, as well as passion,” writes Garth Turner.
“Urbanites may not get this, but in much of Canada, the post office is Canada. The sole, identifiable, enduring and working link to the federal government. Once that is shuttered, the bond dies,” writes Garth Turner.
“The buyer of a $1.9-million house needs $400,000 in cash and an income of about $220,000 to handle the $8,400 monthly mortgage payment, plus property tax and utilities. Ouch,” writes Garth Turner.
“Now people who flock to see old, quaint, authentic and irreplaceable architecture are greeted by a fine example of the Mississauga Industrial school of design,” writes Garth Turner.
“This is the Old Town’s new signature gateway project. And some people wonder what the heck went wrong with our planning process. How did we turn into Mississauga?” writes Garth Turner.
“What’s motivating the Second Sons and the Tamaras needs to be learned. Dissing them as lowlifes and bigots doesn’t work,” writes Garth Turner.
“Some say a lot more lurks beneath what used to be a school,” writes Garth Turner about the history of the former Parliament Oak school site.
“A hole 23 feet deep is no backyard swimming pool. It will consume a good chunk of the Parliament Oak site, rising toward King Street as it transitions from parking garage to hotel foundation and car ramp,” writes Garth Turner.
“We will be questioned, if not laughed at. Who would put a cell tower on the very shore where the War of 1812 was fought?”
“NOTL ain’t TN. This is paradise. Everybody wants to be here, right?” writes Garth Turner. “But wait. We also have a weird market. And some people are being clobbered by it.”
“Unhosted short-term rentals are a bad idea. Period. Most municipalities in Canada have banned them. Having an Airbnb unit in your house is far different from buying a property and operating a ghost hotel with nobody living there full-time,” writes Garth Turner.
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