More Shorties

Here are some more interesting items that I found over the last few days about which I thought I would write a short note.

DUMBSET

I see that Smart Set is closing down on Tuesday and that downtown business owners are demanding the City take action to stop the bleeding.

Haven't they figured it out yet that the City is the problem. Haven't they figured out yet that the downtown is moving eastward toward the Casino and where the new City Hall is going to be built.

Why waste money on streetscaping and talking about what can be done in the "old" downtown. No one is listening or interested.

And if the Psychic quoted today in the Star is right, things can only get worse for the downtown while the story by Trevor Wilhelm should make the business owners cringe as Windsorites get more reasons to stay away!

WHERE WERE THE WARD 2 COUNCILLORS

I figure that Councillor Postma was off shopping in the US again so she could not make it but where was the West End booster, Councillor Jones. He was probably out watching the demolition of homes on Indian Road to ensure that City by-laws were being complied with.

I am totally shocked that the 2 West End Councillors missed the opportunity to enlighten us with how important Sandwich is to Windsor again. Imagine allowing Avi Friedman, "the internationally acclaimed architect and proponent of livable and sustainable communities," to walk around Old Walkerville and Ford City and not Sandwich.

Imagine all of the lines he could have made that the Star could have published attacking the border ideas of certain unnamed parties. Imagine how he could have waxed poetic about Sandwich's proposed Historical Designation.

They blew it big time!

WRESTLEMANIA

I am pretty disappointed in how our Superjock, Mayor Francis, is handling the WWE extravaganza. Just because Eddie cannot chum up with Roger Penske does not mean that the event should not be promoted heavily as Super Bowl was by Windsor.

Now Eddie is making sure that his name will be known with the wrestling crowd. I read that "WWE will be conducting a Wrestlemania press conference on 2/2 in Windsor, Ontario at the Silver City movie theater at 11:30AM. Among those scheduled to appear include Windsor mayor Eddie Francis" but I have not seen any Windsor build-up as for Super Bowl.

And just so that you know how big a deal the WWE is:

• "WWE fans had made WrestleMania 23 at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich., the highest grossing live event in World Wrestling Entertainment history.
  
  With tickets still available, WWE has already grossed more than $4.35 million in ticket sales for WrestleMania 23, shattering the company’s previous record of $3.9 million for WrestleMania X-8 at the Toronto SkyDome on March 17, 2002...
  
  Almost 50,000 tickets are now in the hands of fans for WWE’s annual pop culture extravaganza, putting the company on pace to achieve its objective of entertaining more than 78,000 fans at WrestleMania 23 on Sunday, April 1, 2007, which would make it the largest number of fans ever assembled in the history of Ford Field."

SELLEBRATORY PUCKING

A reader asked "do you think you could ask the mayor for an extra sellabratory puck for me? Since my grand kids will likely still be paying for the arena it might be nice if they get a valuable hand me down remembrance of this historical event.

CAPITOL IDEA

It should be interesting how Council deals with the Theatre's request for money.

If the City can spend all of that money to help out the Spitfires (What's a few extra millions in interim financing to get it done more quickly to help out a private business), one would think that there should be a few hundred thousand taxpayers dollars lying around somewhere to help out a cultural institution.

The Mayor is in a difficult position. He won't want to antagonize the Star who did not favour helping out Brentwood. Yet he said during his Inaugural Speech:

• "Reports and surveys have shown that a critically-important factor in attracting the knowledge-based jobs and workers we need, is to have a thriving arts and cultural community.
  
  We have such a strong arts and culture foundation."

Eddie won't be able to draw any more call centre jobs here, or doctors, if, only a few weeks after telling us how strong our arts foundation is, the Capitol goes into bankruptcy.

Oh well, perhaps we can give that away to St. Clair College free too. We can justify giving it away since otherwise, the City would have to deal with its "long-term sustainability." That is assuming of course that St. Clair completes the Cleary deal.

A FARHI TALE

Remember what the Star's City Hall reporter gushed in her BLOG about Shmuel Farhi, the London developer who exchanged land with the City for the East end arena deal.

• "Windsor city officials are right to be rolling out the red carpet for people like Farhi. Anyone who thinks Farhi will negatively impact anything should think again."

Here's a recent story about him. It looks like he plays hardball if he has to do so. I wonder if our Mayor and Council are in his league:

• "Farhi rejects parking plan for core area
  The developer insists a proposed garage on Queens Avenue "is not going to help."
  By JONATHAN SHER , FREE PRESS CITY HALL REPORTER Jan. 8, 2007
  
  You might think a city hall proposal to spend millions to build parking garages in the core would be backed by downtown's biggest property owner.
  
  After all, it was Shmuel Farhi, owner of more than 80 properties downtown, who has demanded more parking before he'll rehabilitate heritage buildings and secure tenants.
  
  But Farhi says he's upset with a city plan to seek a private partner to build a garage at 185 Queens Ave., next to the London Club.
  
  "A parking (garage) is not going to help rejuvenate this area . . . Parking is not needed there," said Farhi, who owns about 250,000 square feet of vacant space downtown.
  
  "I want to work with the city but I'm losing my patience," Farhi said yesterday.
  
  When Farhi speaks, city hall listens, as was the case 10 weeks ago, when he told politicians to step up with plans for parking or he'd raze or let rot some heritage properties.
  
  "Literally, I can knock down 20 buildings tomorrow," he said then.
  
  But while Farhi wants parking, he doesn't want a parking garage on the city-owned lot at Queens Avenue.
  
  With the downtown so much in need of residents and key services such as a supermarket, the city shouldn't commit key real estate to a stand-alone garage, he said.
  
  Instead the city should partner with a developer who could build parking underground, a supermarket on the main floor and residential apartments above, he insisted.
  
  The city also needs to stop renewing temporary permits for parking lots such as the one at the old London Mews, which has been a lot for seven years and is seeking another three years, he said.
  
  Temporary lots do nothing to fill vacant office space because those seeking to develop those spaces need permanent parking.
  
  "I have four heritage buildings within a block (of the London Mews) and that lot does nothing for long-term development," Farhi said.
  
  Farhi also contends the city examined the Queens Avenue location and rejected it for a parking structure.
  
  "Why are they bringing this dead horse out now?" he said.
  
  E-mail and phone messages detailing Farhi's concerns were sent last week to city finance head Vic Cote.
  
  A divided city council voted last month to seek a partner to build a parking garage at the Queens site, the first step in a plan that could cost taxpayers as much as $5 million.
  
  Deputy Mayor Tom Gosnell later said if the venture succeeds the city should spend up to $20 million to build more garages."

PS...London had a Capitol Theater too. Perhaps we should sell it to Farhi if the St. Clair College or the University have no interest in it and the City won't advance any funding. Here's what happened in 2006:

• "One of London's longtime downtown landmarks, the Capitol theatre on Dundas Street, has been sold to local developer Shmuel Farhi, who says he plans to turn it into a parking lot.
  
  The owner of Farhi Holdings Corp. said yesterday he desperately needs the 50 or so potential parking spaces at the Capitol site to accommodate his downtown tenants...
  
  Farhi said he plans to preserve the streetfront facade of the Capitol and will likely demolish the rear of the building soon.
  
  He added the Capitol is "an eyesore" that blighted the area.

Note, just recently according to the London Free Press

• "Downtown London's largest landowner has backed off a threat to demolish two Dundas Street buildings . . . for now.
  
  Shmuel Farhi said yesterday he'll wait eight months for the city to come up with a plan -- including a parking garage -- aimed at revitalizing a troubled, nine-block section of downtown that includes 204 and 206 Dundas St., the old Capitol Theatre and former Bowles Lunch Counter.
  
  But Farhi also wants council to back off efforts to designate the Capitol as a heritage building.
  
  "I don't need anyone designating those properties, putting a gun to my head," Farhi told board of control this week.
  
  "I (own heritage properties) because I believe in heritage. Designating that building will not bring it back to life."