This week –
Jazz at The Cobourg
Hello Cork & Cabbage
Music on Parliament Street
Cabbagetown Festival
Forsythia Festival report
Oops – proper dates for Centre Shift
BIA April Mini-Minutes

Sunday Jazz at The Cobourg
The Cobourg (533 Parliament Street) continues its amazing jazz evenings. The Perry White Trio is back. Sunday, 9:00 pm. No cover charge. (416) 913-7538. Beautiful music – don’t miss it.

Hello Cork & Cabbage, Goodbye Bistro Aubergine
Bistro Aubergine (195 Carlton Street) has undergone a TV makeover. The new version continues under the watchful eye of Sheila Nolan and Asim Ozses.
The new Cork and Cabbage will be a comfortable gastropub. The owners plan to offer up to fifty different brands of craft beers. The interior features a warm, wood-lined room with booths and tables at the front and a fireplace and library room at the back. The landmark outdoor patio is now open to the sky and more inviting. Previously a fine dining room, its menu will stay the same.
The television program will be broadcast in about two months and we’ll keep you informed.

Music on Parliament Street
Our successful spring music program is now almost ready for its launch. In June, we’ll be offering music at three Parliament Street locations: Winchester near the Tim Hortons, Carlton at the mural and Spruce beside No Frills.
Vicente Carbonel is back with his Peruvian wind flutes. Don MacDonald will play Irish fiddle music. Jim Heineman brings a jazz trio. Michael Caplan offers country and down-home songs.

Advance Notice on the Cabbagetown Festival
Save these dates: Saturday, September 8 and Sunday, September 9
Once again, we’re inviting outside crafts people, retailers, social service groups and other vendors to join us on Parliament Street during our Cabbagetown Festival. For details about available space, please call the BIA office at (416) 921-0857 or email us at lindsey@oldcabbagetown.com
The BIA Board has confirmed that the Grand Parade will indeed take place on Saturday, September 8. Our theme this year is “The Cabbagetown People’s Parade”. Your school groups, sports clubs, residents’ associations, cultural groups - anybody from Cabbagetown - will be our featured guests.
Plan ahead. Get colourful unforms, playful costumes and outrageous activities for your float. We’ll give a special grand prize to the group rated the most original in the Parade.

Congratulations to the Organizers
In fact, congratulations to everybody who took part in the 2007 Forsythia Festival. By all accounts, it was a smash hit.

Oops, wrong dates…
We must correct the dates that we listed for the Canadian Children’s Dance Theatre’s presentation of Centre Shift. We inadvertently cut the program short. Here’s the real stuff:
May 31 to June 3, Winchester Dance Theatre (80 Winchester Street). Tickets are $15 and $25. Reservations at (416) 924-5657.
Don’t miss it.


Mini-Minutes.
As a special feature in our newsletter, we’re publishing the Mini-Minutes of the BIA Board meetings. In April, the Board held two different meetings to deal with on-going business and also to discuss this year’s Cabbagetown Festival.

Old Cabbagetown BIA
Minutes
Board Meeting April 10, 2007
Paul Dineen chaired the meeting.
Treasurer’s Report
Rafiq Dosani, our auditor, distributed and reported on the 2006 Financial Statements. He noted the shortfall in our income during 2006 against the budget forecasts. This was offset by a cut in spending and, as a result, the actual deficit was lower than expected.
The BIA’s reserve has been reduced and needs to be replenished. Otherwise, our finances and reporting are fine.

Paul Dineen made a series of announcements:
The Mayor’s Clean-up Day - Saturday, April 20.
The Forsythia Festival - Sunday, May 6.
We have submitted our grant applications to the City of Toronto for the 2007 mural program and to Service Canada for the 2007 Summer Student Employment program.
We have had success at recent AGCO negotiations. The Cabbagetown Restaurant has had its license revoked. The Tender Trap has voluntarily withdrawn its license application for one year in order to show its good intentions.
The Cabbagetown Short Film & Video Festival is holding a fundraising event at the Stonegrill on Sunday, April 29 from 2 to 5 pm. Tickets are $10. This is part of the Festival’s efforts to become financially independent.
Gerry Gold announced that the Toronto Police Service are organizing a mural painting project in Broadcast Lane. Property owners along the lane have been approached and have approved the use of their wall spaces.

Cabbagetown Festival Parade
The previous decision to cancel the parade has stirred some discussion among BIA members and neighbours. Board members discussed the value of the parade and its possible future role in the Festival.

For some people, the parade hinders the flow of business on Parliament Street and delays patio openings until 1:00 pm. The cost is high and we have better places to spend this money. It now only has nostalgic value. It is possible to hold a ceremonial event in its place. Even if the parade costs are neutral, it is not a worthwhile project.

For others, the parade is vital for the first day of the Festival. It’s a great starting point for the Festival, a great community event and a great way to make the Festival prominent. It will be very hard to replace it with some other event if it is cancelled. Without a parade, there will be no crowds on Parliament Street on Saturday morning.

Several suggestions were put forward about parade costs. It was noted that the event can cost between $4000 and $10,000 to stage. Several Board members urged merchants to help us to find outside sponsors. A committee must be established to set up the program and get funds.

It is also possible to have a shorter parade by starting in St James Town and going straight south to Gerrard. The parade can also be a celebration that draws people into the Festival at no cost and is based on the community, not professional bands.

In the past, the Board was more heavily involved in planning and implementing the entire Festival. Costs were covered by outside sponsors. The parade can be used to honour special groups like the police, fire department etc and that it should be the occasion for getting all of Cabbagetown’s groups together.

Unfortunately at this time, two members had to leave the meeting to meet other obligations. Quorum was not maintained. A second meeting on this topic was scheduled for Tuesday, April 17 at 5:30 pm. Specifically, this meeting will deal with a vote on the parade’s future.

April 17
The Board met for fifteen minutes. During that time, discussion centred on the possibility that the parade could be held with outside sponsorships to cover costs. A volunteer has been recruited to be the parade chair. This approach was approved unanimously and the parade has been reinstated for the 2007 Festival.