| Meeting Name and Number/Purpose: | MRA February 2026 Meeting Minutes | |||||
| Date of Meeting: | February 12, 2026 | Time of Meeting (Start and End): | 7:00 pm-8:30 pm | |||
| Location of Meeting: | Virtual / Google Meet | |||||
| Meeting Chairperson: | Rozhen | Meeting Minutes Prepared By: | Guy Hoskins | |||
Date Meeting Minutes Distributed: | February 12, 2026 | Date of Next Meeting: | March 4, 2026, 7:00 pm | |||
In Attendance: Rozhen (Chair), Michael S, David, Jim, Richard, Andrew, Michael M, Victor, Guy
Meeting Summary
The participants, led by Rozhen Asrani, deferred approval of January minutes as the Gemini version was deemed unreliable. Much of the meeting was given over to planning the AGM, including hybrid delivery/tech support, virtual voting, the running order, and presentation materials. The board agrees on a response to the Morley team regarding CBC input for the GO station development. Agreed to defer decision on supporting the GO station bridge mural grant. Rozhen, Andrew, and Guy agree to meet the TFC Riders group. Future plans for the Foodfest event are discussed, and the Board agrees to proceed with Foodfest in summer 2026. Reports shared from the LAMP housing roundtable and an update from Mimico 2040, as well as the City budget meeting. Michael Schwanzer reported that the organization is financially stable, with over $7,000 in the bank.
Summary of Action Items/Agenda
| Item # | Discussion/Action Item |
|---|---|
| 1. Introduction | Approval of January Minutes deferred as the document is deemed unreliable (produced by AI) |
| 2. AGM Planning | Rozhen: confirming logistics and attendance for AGM. Rozhen: raising the question of whether we have a suitable Zoom account to accommodate a large group – unresolved. Rozhen: presenting AGM agenda. Rozhen suggests our MRA intro should last around 30 minutes, incl. treasurer’s report. We should get to the politician segment fairly promptly because that is the main draw for attendees. 5 minutes should be allotted to politicians for the opening address. Then Q&A for in-person and Zoom attendees. Victor suggests that we include the politician segment prior to the vote so as not to waste the politicians’ time. Andrew: prefers the original format. Victor concedes that if we can get the early segment through in 30 minutes, then the current running order should be fine. Rozhen: Jim will convene a nominating committee for new board applicants. Four new board members since the last AGM: Victor, Andrew, Guy and Ryan. They will be formally elected at this AGM. Victor: Michael received a complaint from an attendee at last year that there wasn’t any background on the board members. Guy: suggested inclusion of a point in the pre-AGM newsletter inviting people to review board bios. Rozhen: proposes material for AGM presentation – review of previous events/preview of Mimico 2040/treasurer’s report/by-laws/nominating committee report not available yet/thank-you to supporters. Andrew asks if we should present a plan for future events. Rozhen: It’s tricky to present future plans before the committee is officially signed in and has agreed on its new agenda. Agrees to include a slide on Green Mimico. Rozhen: asking Richard to prep comms – politician bios/Zoom link – could we turn it into a FB event? Rozhen: brings up messy voting from last year. How can we streamline the hybrid voting? Victor: Paper ballots distributed to verified members in-person. On Zoom, a moderator will need to verify the attendee account names. Raising virtual hands in Zoom?Rozhen: We have to remember to record the meeting this time! Jim has co. Zoom account that he believes he can use. Jim suggests using Zoom chat for virtual voting. Rozhen: asked Jim to create the event that includes the intention to attend in person or via Zoom. A sign-up link in the newsletter.Andrew: Zoom invite by email contains a sign-up option. Rozhen: Any new by-law amendments related to committees? Michael: Hasn’t thought about it. Rozhen: No rush to add a by-law for committees. Victor: We can create a document contract that can later be converted into a by-law. |
| 2. Board recruitment | Rozhen ask for an update on nominations. Jim: confirms one application. Rozhen: recruitment needs to be addressed – particularly to recruit women. Mike advised against the current candidate. Michael: Suggests that people he’s spoken to suggest that it’s hard to recruit without a new agenda/leader. Guy suggest to use schools to recruit new members. Jim requests improved wording to encourage diversity in applicants. David suggests using the invitational language used by LAMP. |
| 3. Response to Morley team on Mimico Go CBC | Rozhen reminds that the old station site has its own project trajectory and should not be considered as a CBC option. Andrew: likes the idea of multi-use trail but concedes it’s not possible (linear park). David: when ppl say something isn’t feasible, we should demand a report explaining why. Feasibility assessment on extending the tunnel to access from Cavell. Second, the current RY station is an embarrassment – adding 500 sq. ft would make a huge difference to the quality of the site. Victor: City funds shouldn’t be used for a Metrolinx responsibility. Andrew: notices that the trail is a CBC option from the Morley team. Could it connect Grand Avenue Park? Victor suggests building a bus shelter. Rozhen summarises options: support for multi-use trail/ask why it can’t be extended to Grand Av./build new bus shelter on RY/possible extension to station. Rozhen will relay those suggestions to Morley, and Jim will raise this at the meeting. Mike: make the big asks first and leave off the smaller concession pieces (eg, bus shelter). Victor: suggests Morley team is only brainstorming ideas. Agreement reached to make it explicit that the bus shelter is an additional ask and not part of the CBC |
| 4. Reports from City budget meeting | Michael notes that at the city planning meeting, the chief planner agreed to a Mimico walking tour, and that Andrew’s points were very well-received. Rozhen: We agree to stay connected to other Etobicoke groups. Andrew: update on city budget meeting – nothing on Mimico Creek trail. Morley is on the budget committee. TRCA has 600k for Mimico Creek trail. Andrew has been told that no one at TRCA is engaged on this issue. He intends to try to find the right levers to pull. Rozhen suggests we amplify the issue somehow beyond emails. Andrew: Jim once suggested converting Andrew’s presentation into a blog. Rozhen thanks Andrew for continued advocacy. |
| 5. Report from LAMP housing roundtable | Victor: LAMP affordable housing roundtable – great energy. Parking lots are getting converted to homes/and the LAMP site is being relocated and converted. Rozhen: Noted how many current projects elsewhere in the ward outside of Mimico/not a ton of takeaways for MRA, but good to stay connected with those groups |
| 6. Go station advocacy responses | Michael: Response to Metrolinx is just a draft at this stage. Some committee members have made comments, but still open. Maybe a fishing exercise would get lucky? Metrolinx has a new community manager for our area. Rozhen: Our advocacy video elicited comments from other transit groups. TTC Riders suggested a workshop/partnership. Rozhen suggests setting up a side meeting. Guy, Rozhen, and Andrew volunteered. |
| 7. Foodfest | Michael: Foodfest has high permit costs. 500 last year and 2k prior to that. Mike generously covered last year’s costs. Suggests combining FoodFest with 20-year anniversary – anchor event that justifies $500 outlay. September 19th. Richard: GLB could do a beer garden if we ask in advance. Mike: Could we run our own beer garden? Richard: fencing/security/smart serve – we would need to crunch numbers. Rozhen: opps to recoup costs through merch sales. Richard suggests we have a monopoly on drinks. Voted by the majority. Andrew points out that it always clashes with Ribfest! |
| 8. Treasurer Report | Michael Schwanzer shared the treasurer’s report, treasurer items from email: Jan 27: TD Bank balance $7,232.51 (-$81.36 cheque for web hosting not cashed yet); memberships active = 130 (124 Stripe + 6 offline) = income $1,560 p/a |
| 9. Bridge mural | Michael: Grant opportunity with the city for bridge painting. Will it get knocked down in a couple of years? Mike: his experience getting a mural done at the Burrito place on Lakeshore suggests it is very expensive. Rozhen: defer the bridge mural issue until later |
| 12. Open Forum | Richard: Any issues can be converted into a social media format. Suggests doing video spots with board members once the weather improves. Jim/Richard: agree on short meeting recaps on video when our board members attend community events |
| 13. Next Meeting | Next Meeting March 4, 2026, 7:00 pm |