MEDIA ADVISORY: Campbell Park and Christie Pits area residents to join Friends of Moss Park today at 5 pm in "Naming" next Temporary Dump Site; Giving Voice to the Voiceless
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: TORONTO Friday July 24, 2009 10 a.m.
"Giving Voice to the Voiceless - Parks R 4 People"
Moss Park Temporary Dump Site, Friday July 24 2009, 5 p.m.
Background:
The City of Toronto has repeatedly stated criteria in selecting locations for temporary dump sites in Toronto parks as having enclosed, paved surfaces, such as found in outdoor ice rinks.
Moss Park fails this criteria.
Christie Pits area resident and University of Toronto Professor, Dr. Boris Steipe, states that "Every 1 (one) mm of precipitation equals one Liter of water per square meter. A regulation basketball court is about 450 square meters, on this area 1mm of precipitation deposits a volume of water that fills 1.5 bathtubs. Yesterday's rains were 31mm, that is more than 45 bathtubs of water between each pair of hoops. This water has picked up all the filth we saw leaking out of the bags. Where is all that water now? 45 bathtubs for each basketball field? Is it it safely tucked away in the mulch/granulate/sorbent socks?"
Jack Fava representing Friends of Campbell Park will be bringing children from the Dupont and Landsdowne neighbourhood to Moss Park this afternoon. He is asking, "Why aren't the children being heard?"
Action:
Today, shortly after 5 p.m., the Friends of Moss Park will be "Naming" the next temporary dump site.
Since the dump has opened, numerous out of area residents have been driving their garbage here, unaware that the Villiers Street temporary dump site is but a five minute drive from Moss Park. Friends of Moss Park have been communicating this information by handing out maps to the Villiers site to drivers upon exit of the site. Many drivers have expressed appreciation for this information and stated that next time they will drive their garbage there.
It is having a positive effect as over the past few days, there has been a reduction in numbers of garbage drop offs at Moss Park. Friends of Moss Park will have further comment about these positive results later this afternoon.
It is confirmed that the current dump site perimeter will be expanded onto the grass soccer field by four fence lengths on Monday July 27, 2009.
Friends of Moss Park will be providing practical, immediate, and reasonable alternative to this expansion.
Conclusion:
A resident of the shelter across from Moss Park arena, speaking on behalf of his fellow shelter residents stated yesterday about the basketball court and soccer field being taken over by garbage, "I may be homeless, but I still enjoy sports. We can't play sports no more [sic]."
Friends of Moss Park will be reminding fellow Torontonians as well as Toronto's decision makers that the point is not how many people appear at Moss Park this afternoon, the point is how many people did not appear, because Moss Park has no voice.
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For further information:
Jack Fava, Friends of Campbell Park, cell: 416-301-5367
HiMY SYeD,
http://Torontopedia.ca/FriendsOfMossPark
http://Torontopedia.ca/MEDIA_ADVISORY:_Giving_Voice_To_The_Voiceless