Beach(es) Beat

Print

E-mail

Text

I see by the paper, in this case the Beach-Riverdale edition of The Mirror, that the local Business Improvement Association and Bell Canada have embarked on a bold initiative designed to make this part of Toronto even more attractive.

This month art students from three area high schools have been charged with the task of transforming 14 Bell utility boxes into works of art by means of the creative imagination that today's young seem to possess in such abundance and a heartfelt hurray to all concerned is what I have to say.

This is the kind of thinking that sets The Beach(es) apart from the rest of Toronto. Nobody is putting up statues that will immediately be given unflattering nicknames and which will be totally ignored by the general populance which will only use them for hanging old bicycle tires on or draping them with tear-stained Go Leafs Go banners.

The project gives young art students a chance to display their burgeoning talents and I am convinced it will benefit the hard-working men and women who operate businesses in the area. It has been my own experience that those folks are for the most part always ready to make their places available for fund-raising events or to pick up the tab for raffle tickets as long as they are for good causes of course.

The more I think of it the more I think this beautification project is a Win-Win situation on a number of fronts: The artists involved get a chance to display their talents, the area is going to look a great deal more attractive and the businesses will get the benefits if more people are drawn down here just to see what all the excitement is about.

Shouldn't do any harm to house prices either not that they need the help. But speaking of the businesses that exist on both Queen Street and Kingston Road they are all in low-rise buildings and I believe that adds a great deal to the laid-back ambiance of life in the Beach(es). There is a coziness to them and since they are owner-operated it is easy to find the boss should the need arise. Big box stores serve a useful function in many parts of Toronto but when it comes to the Beach(es) it seems that small marts are a comfortable fit that suits the lifestyle of the area.