Tuesday, October 16, 2018 7 p.m., 79 Regal Rd. (Home of Beth Marcilio)

In Attendance:  John Keating, Beth Marcilio, Rosa Cordiano, Manjeet Matharoo (Regal Heights Village BIA), Linda DeGiorgio, Harry Lay, Florence Watts, Carol Gallagher, Kevin Johnston, Peter Norman, Dave Meslin, Margaret Smith, Richard Cavanaugh, Robert Szarchrajuk, Marie Goldthorpe, Brigid Higgins

Regrets: Carol Gallagher, Elena Simonetta

Street Beautification

• Garden update:Deferred. Mary Anne was away.
• Graffiti: Florence noted that everyone can help get rid of graffiti by reporting it to the proper authority. It takes time but the system works. Phone 311 or email the City with the location of the graffiti. You can report graffiti to the City on-line using this link: CLICK HERE. For the brown Bell boxes, call 1-866-213-1756. Give the nearby address or the number on the box if you can find it. Their response is quite quick usually. Call Toronto Hydro at 416- 542-3195 for street lights out or graffiti. The Regal Heights BIA has a graffiti clean-up policy for the fronts of their buildings. It does not cover the building backs, which are usually on lanes. Lanes get a lot of graffiti and owners tend to give up on repainting. Discussion followed on remedies to the problem. Members mentioned where lovely murals had been painted on the lanes in Toronto. Dave Meslin has contacts with art groups who might be available. He will contact the BIA with information regarding this. Florence reported that the spruce tree planted at the corner of St. Clair W. and Oakwood is in poor condition. John will write to the school board and the principal to get it looked after.
• Update on willow replacement: Kevin reported that he consulted with arborist Trevor Whiteside, who recommended that we replace the old Springmount willow with either a sugar maple or a red oak. John reported that he asked Nick D’Amico if the family would approve of having the new tree planted in honour of his late sister Anne Marie D’Amico. Nick agreed and thanked the association. We also agreed to pay an additional fee for a larger tree. We hope the planting will happen in the spring.
• Daffodil Hill: Florence reminded the group that we plan to plant 800 bulbs on Daffodil Hill, immediately south of Regal Road School on Sunday October 28 at 10 am.  We invite volunteers to come out and help. Click here for more information.

Planning, Community and Communications

• Communications update: Peter reported that our email list is now approaching 450 people. He continues to try to drive traffic to the website when sending out emails. The website has new material about events and other items of interest almost every week. So check back often! The Association also communicates with members and promotes our activities through social media. Those who use these media should connect with us through Twitter, Facebook and Instragram!
• Discussion – Should we have more public meetings? After much discussion we agreed it would be worth adding at least one more public meeting during the year. It was suggested that the meeting could be about a specific issue or project. We will watch for an opportunity to arrange such a meeting. 
• Regal-Springmount intersection project update: Some members of the community continue to be upset by the proposed changes to the intersection. A wide array of views and ideas were heard at the recent neighbourhood meeting on the matter. We will make every effort to invite the whole community when the City schedules its public meeting on the issue.
• Update on 49-51 Springmount Ave issue: John reported that the new TLAB hearing is set for October 25 – 26.  [Important note: The developer withdrew their appeal after our meeting. There will be no hearing.]
• Safer crossing at Oakwood: Kevin reported that he was met with Anthony Ferrari of Cesar Palacio’s office, who recommended we write to the City’s traffic manager and try to arrange a site visit. John will write the letter.
• Proposed Regal Heights Review: Dave proposed creating a full colour publication summarizing some of the RHRA’s work for distribution to every household in Regal Heights. This would increase the association’s visibility and address concerns of some residents who say they are unaware of our activities. The idea was approved. Dave will look into the possibility of preparing it for the November AGM; otherwise, we will publish it some time in 2019.
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Special Events

•  Pumpkin Carving: The annual Pumpkin Carving will happen on Saturday, Oct. 27 at the parkette at Northcliffe and St. Clair, from 2 – 4, rain or shine, in association with the Northcliffe Village Residents Association. The executive approved money for buying the pumpkins. Peter reminded the group that you can tell us you’re coming on our Facebook Events page! The estimated cost is $60. This year, we will also take donation on the site.
• Winter Carnival plans: John reported that there has been little organization done toward the event and asked if there was still interest among the executive. There was little interest in pursuing it. John will consult with the Northcliffe Village group before making a final decision on the fate of the carnival.
• Recognition for Cesar Palacio: The executive agreed there should be an initiative to thank Councillor Palacio for his years of service. Harry and John will make the arrangements and invite Cesar to the AGM in November for a presentation.
• Cancellation of all candidates meeting: Due to organizational difficulties caused by the provincial government’s last-minute changes to the Toronto election, the RHRA cancelled its planned candidates meeting. Margaret reminded the group that a meeting organized by JJP is being held there on October 17^th. Report on that meeting can be found here.
• Ideas for AGM n November: Executive members made a number of suggestions during the meeting. John will draw up an agenda and find a suitable location. John also reported that the Wychwood Clarinet Choir will perform before the meeting, from 6:30 to 7:00.
• Pub Night reminder: Beth reminded everyone of the next Pub Night at the Fox and the Fiddle on October 25^th. Remember to identify yourself as part of the group to get the discount. Children are welcome.
• Police Community Partnership. While the neighbourhood is still generally very safe, Rosa reported that there has been an uptick in reported crime in the general area, ranging from a machete attack on a teen to distraction thefts and break-ins. She reminded us that police will only put resources into an area if they get reports about crime. So it is very important to report all incidents, even if they seem to be minor. As a reminder, In an emergency: Call 911; To report a crime that is not an emergency: non-emergency number 416-808-2222; To report a crime anonymously, call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS); and to report minor crimes including property crimes conveniently online: torontopolice.on.ca
• Community Welcome Project: Harry reported that there has been little activity lately. He is making arrangements with a local realtor to start to supply information about new home sales in Regal Heights so we can approach the new owners with a welcome package.
• Finances:

Thanks to the highly successful online fundraising campaign held in September, the association now has a substantially larger balance to work with. Many thanks to Dave Meslin for organizing this effort. Linda reported the following figures:

Operating Fund	$10,607.84
Heritage Fund	$276.00
Street Sale	$192.00
Petty Cash	$260.00
Total	$11,335.84

Next meeting is our AGM held on November 20^th in a public location TBA.