BIA Smackdown
at Monarch Park Collegiate
Video on the right
On December 2, 2010 the merchants of Danforth showed up for round two of BIA fire at their second AGM in just three months. And though the councillors used their muscle to do everything in their power to keep their friends "on board", they certainly did not emerge from the smack down unscathed. Watching the whole AGM from start to finish was like going to a WWF competition –with the exception of leotards and bad make-up.
The first AGM was shut down after President Pat Silver, a long time friend of Councillor Janet Davis, rounded up Toronto Police to scare what was mostly a bunch of upset seniors who showed up to trim down a very fatty levy. Sadly, Pat Silver and her group of devout bobble-heads couldn't garner enough support, even after two months of campaigning, hitting the stores with tiny violins, and trying desperately to persuade merchants that their "opponents" were uneducated criminals……and a whole lot more hog wash, just to set fear into the community.
To see clips from the AGM, please see our youtube coverage. Be very cautious though, as your opinion of local councillors and the city will be forever jaded.
The Danforth Mosaic BIA is about three years old. But according to hundreds of BIA members, they just learned about it this year. They have been paying anywhere between $350 and $1200, depending on the MPAC value of their properties. BIAs quickly popped up around the city during the Miller regime. The municipal code bringing a BIA into effect is rife with loopholes making it difficult to stop a BIA from forming, and even worse, to have democratic elections.
Let us not be confused about BIAs. For one, if a BIA is set up for the right reasons and it is used democratically, chances are it could be good for a strip. However, if it is used merely to be abused by corrupt councillors, the BIA can quickly become more about appointing "friends" of councillors, and using the levy as a slush fund. In fact, many BIA's around the city are in hot water for sole sourcing. "It's the board members you have to watch out most," says one Mr. Pasquale. .."they are the ones using the BIA money for themselves. If you got board members using the money to build their own business, you have a sneaky agenda." Mr. Pasquale, a long time merchant on the street is paying $1100 for his building just east of Woodbine and Danforth.These people make me sick to my stomach…why they have to rip us off?" says Mrs. Florence. "…If you have clowns for $8000 and you are the president for this thing, you got a big problem…. If these guys doesn't want to listen to us, they can bet Mr. Ford will hear from us. We are the members, we got a role to play…. what are you telling us that you need $100,000 to pay for flowers? Are you stupid or you think we stupid? We are not marionettes!"
So the heyday for the former board members is over. No more using the BIA slush fund to make a few, or many bucks for oneself. The BIA members have spoken and they expect respect for their levy dollars.
For now, the board is composed of 12 merchants who were voted by the board. Following the AGM our city officials still got away with pretending that four former board members tied and the councillors used their influence to get their friends back on board. But as a matter of principle, I have committed myself to watching the new board meetings and letting our darling councillors know their every move is under a microscope.
