Mary Pickford, America’s Sweetheart, 1929 Academy Award winner and Torontonian, was born at 211 University Avenue, in downtown Toronto.

She was an avid cyclist as you can hear within the first few minutes of this archived CBC interview first broadcast May 25, 1959.

Earlier this week, I attended The City of Toronto’s Public Works and Infrastructure Committee greenlighting of a recommendation that a pilot project for separated bike lanes be installed along University Avenue.

In the spirit of The Tooker, an initiative to name a future east-west bike corridor after one time Mayoral Candidate Tooker Gomberg, The Pickford is named after Mary Pickford.

Further to that, a number of existing bike lanes across Toronto could also benefit from an actual name. As to what those names should be, that’s where you come in.

Add your routes and any ideas for names in your comments below.

Please also share your thoughts for the separated bike lanes along University Avenue being named The Pickford.

Thank You Toronto,

HiMY SYeD

Mary Pickford's birthplace at 211 University Avenue. Hospital for Sick Children stands near here today.

Mike Layton, he didn't want a photo of us taken together until after he filed his nomination papers at City Hall. I blackberried this photo of Mike in Trinity-Bellwoods Park the morning of his candidacy announcement.

For the article linked above, Mr. MacNair contacted me as well as canvassing my opponents in the Ward 19 Council race to get a sense of our feelings on the son of the leader of Canada’s 4th Federal Party contesting the seat.

He pitched his item to several of the National Daily Papers but …none would bite.

The author then blogged it on his own site.

For his article, we had a full one hour phone conversation. Ironically when we spoke, I was standing on Augusta Avenue just north of Dundas Street West in Kensington Market across from the constituency office of my Member of Parliament, who also happens to be my opponent’s step-mom.

Apparently, all politics is indeed local …if not dynastic.

HiMY

I arrived safely in Rio De Janeiro yesterday afternoon after a short airport change in Sao Paolo.

The walk along Ipanema and Copacabana beach drinking up the ocean air did a world of good allowing my mind was able to breathe freely, away from the ‘echo chamber’ which the Toronto 2010 Election has become of late.

In Toronto, few new ideas and even less mutual understanding on how to move Toronto forward has taken up the headlines.

Here in Rio, within the next few days, thousands of city thinkers, builders, and visionaries will descend on Rio.

Their insight, knowledge, pitfalls, and experience on how all that may work to reinvigorate our home town of Toronto is what I will be bringing back. To Ward 19. To Toronto. And to The Toronto 2010 Election.

For now, you can enjoy these reports I did for Spacing during World Urban Forum 3 in Vancouver in 2006.

• World Urban Forum – Day One
• Sustainable City or Sustainable Illusion?
• The Wealth of Cities

Still hunting down an unlimited local Data Sim Card for my BlackBerry, until then, leave any comments here and I will get back to you.

Happy Friday Toronto!

HiMY SYeD

World Urban Forum 5, Rio De Janeiro

Today Monday March 8, 2010 is International Women’s Day the world over.

As often is the case Toronto is ahead of the curve. On Saturday Toronto marked International Women’s Day 2010 with a Rally beginning at OISE, followed by a march along Bloor Street, down Yonge Street winding up where this video was logged on the Ryerson Campus.

Happy International Women’s Day Toronto!

HiMY SYeD

Recorded on Saturday afternoon, Saturday March 6, 2010 which was also Toronto’s traditional Birthday.

It’s our city’s 176th Birthday and has aged well since its traditional incorporation on March 6, 1834.

Happy Birthday Torontonians !

Mike Layton, he didn't want a photo of us taken together until after he filed his nomination papers at Toronto City Hall. I blackberried this photo of Mike in Trinity-Bellwoods Park this morning.

Having made my decision to seek the council seat in Trinity-Spadina, becoming the first declared candidate in Ward 19 on January 4 2010, I look forward to the creative tension of competing ideas between my opponent and our campaign.

Neighbourhood residents can only benefit by having a clear choice in deciding whether they wish to extend and enhance the incumbent ideas of the past 30 years or if they wish to look forward and be included in mutual understanding and decision making at Toronto City Hall.

HiMY SYeD

Candidate Toronto City Council, Trinity-Spadina.

Plus tôt cette semaine, j’ai répondu à un tweet par @timyull demandant de Toronto Tech communautaire pour créer un événement de levée de fonds utilisant les médias sociaux pour Haïti Earthquake Relief.

Les choses se regroupent principalement par Twitter.

Cette vidéo rapide a été enregistrée devant le restaurant des Caraïbes Lakay au 613, chemin Kennedy, à Scarborough.

J’ai sauté dans Lakay pour commencer la conversation au sujet de confirmer, espérons un conférencier qui est de retour d’Haïti et peut participer à HaiHaiTO.

#HaiHaiTO suivre sur Twitter: Twitter.com/HaiHaiTO
Et voir le site en constante évolution: HaiHaiTO.com

Nous cherchons encore des bénévoles, commanditaires, et lorsque nous aurons le lieu et la billetterie en place, les participants.

Que seriez-vous Toronto! Oui Vous!

Plus sur #HaiHaiTO coming soon.

HiMY SYeD.

Earlier this week I answered a tweet by @timyull asking Toronto’s Tech Community to create a fund raising event using social media for Haiti Earthquake Relief.

Things are coming together primarily through Twitter.

This quick video was recorded outside the Lakay Caribbean Restaurant at 613 Kennedy Road in Scarborough.

I popped into Lakay to begin the conversation about hopefully confirming a speaker who has returned from Haiti and can participate in HaiHaiTO.

Follow #HaiHaiTO on Twitter : Twitter.com/HaiHaiTO
And see the ever-evolving website : HaiHaiTO.com

We’re still looking for volunteers, sponsors, and once we have the venue and ticketing in place, attendees.

And That would be YOU Toronto! Yes You!

More on #HaiHaiTO coming soon.

HiMY SYeD.

Stephen Colbert!

HiMY SYeD needs The Colbert Bump!

Recorded outside the Toronto Archives building on Spadina Road below Casa Loma and above Dupont Station.

We attended the All Candidates’ debate in Toronto Centre at The 519 Community Centre.

It was standing room only by the time we arrived.

There was an old time Town Hall Meeting feeling to the evening.

Though this is a provincial by-election, the public’s concerns during the Question and Answer session were surprisingly heavy on municipal issues:

• Crime and Safety
• Ambulance Response Times
• Safe-Injection Sites
• Exclusivity and Discrimination

It is expected that former Mayoral hopeful Glen Murray will win the seat and shortly thereafter be installed into Premier McGuinty’s cabinet.

Here are a few shaky videos recorded from the back of the room.

The Candidates attending this debate were

• Glen Murray – Liberal
• Cathy Crow – NDP
• Pamela Taylor – Progressive Conservative
• Stefan Premdas – Green
• Heath Thomas – Libertarian

Toronto By-Election Day in Toronto Centre is February 4, 2010.