April 2022 Meeting Minutes

MRA Board Meeting (April 5th, 2022, at 8pm)

In Attendance: Rozhen, Tim, Emma, Lauren, David, Neil, Mike, John

Regrets: Phillip, Jim

1. Quick introductions (5  min)
2. Approve previous meeting minutes (2 min)
   • Emma shared previous meetings minutes (from Feb)
   • Neil moved to approve, John seconded, APPROVED
3. Ongoing projects updates (10 min)
   • Cleanup in the park
     • Earth Day weekend  (Apri 22-24)
     • Approved by city
     • Next steps?
     • John offered to help lead on this
     • Mike noted that Royal LaPaige (Angela and Laura Giardi (sp?) used to help sponsor tihs
     • Tim to send round an email to John and Mike
   • Mimico Pet Mayor
     • Nominations open May 2nd, close in August
     • Next steps: post nomination form on website and spread the word
   • Wednesday Wisdom
     • Collaboration with Mimico By The Lake BIA
     • Permit tentatively approved – more paperwork (so much paperwork)
     • First event – Wednesday June 29th
4. New projects discussion  (20 min)
   • Halloween Dance – proceed to keep options open
     • Tim to look for old logistics documents 
     • Rozhen offered to take on leading on this effort
   • Community events tabling?
     • Team to monitor for any events and discuss via email
   • Summer GLB event?
     • Tim to lead on creating
   • Provincial Election town hall?
     • David, Neil and Tim to connect to plan
   • Municipal Election town hall?
     • Revisit as we get closer
   • Work with Mimico BIA on a local business safari or a similar way to spotlight the local businesses
     • Rozhen is interested in exploring the idea and connecting with Mimico by the Lake BIA
     • Tim to email and connect
5. Selection of officers and ongoing roles (15 min)
   • President – Rozhen
   • VP – Mike
   • Secretary – Lauren
   • Treasurer – Emma
   • Membership – Neil
   • Newsletter – Jim & Neil
   • Email (inbox) – John offered to handle the inbox
     • Emma to pass on the login information 
   • Website – Jim & David
   • Social media – Lauren
     • Tim to make Lauren an admin
     • Emma to reach out to Adam to resolve 2FA
6. Presentation from MLCN (10 min)
   • Developments in Mimico
     • 2405-2417 Lakeshore development proposal
       • 2415 is Birds and Beans
       • The proposal is 33 stories between trail and lakeshore, ten stories on Lake Shore itself, plus a 9-story podium.
       • It’s unclear what the plans mean for Amos Waites park and Mimico Square – this looks likely to deny easy access to the park (a previous priority for MRA)
       • The proposed land transfer between the developer and the city may directly affect the park.
       • Includes a permanent wraparound road running from the lake up to superior and will bulldoze 2 & 4 Superior and the Valu Mart grocery store. Will also impact the waterfront trail.
       • Includes 476 parking spaces
       • Councillor Grimes indicated he was “shocked” to see the application come in.
       • There are allowances for development in Mimico By The Lake Secondary Plan, but this exceeds them.
       • There was no mention of affordable housing.
     • Royal York road widening plan has also been mentioned in several development applications – MLCN is looking to find out more, and it’s important that it happens prior to Mimico Triangle being developed.
     • Mimico GO station rail safety concerns also factor in – we’re unsure if they will meet the goal of being accessible by 2023
     • MLCN proposed discussing a plan for a united approach to this development in the community to ensure the park is protected
   • John to visit the next MLCN meeting to keep posted; Les and Angela will share their presentation with us.
     • Tim to connect John and Les
7. Other business (5 min)
   • Accident at Lake Shore and Superior
     • There is a GoFundMe for the mother of three who was killed
     • Mike to pass that along, and we can do a shared post to support
   • Phillip’s Billboard offer – 520 Kipling
     • Tim to follow up – affirm that we’re interested, find out what we need to make it happen.
   • Feb city council: Grimes passed a motion to finally evict ML Ready Mix at the end of June
     • Keep an eye on it over the next few months to ensure it stays on schedule
   • Project proposed by the city on the Queensway (Royal York to Windermere) to make it more friendly for pedestrians and cyclists. The budget is proposed for the coming weeks – a good opportunity to let the Councillor know about your support for it if you support it.