NarrativeBear

Tonight's Toronto Critical Mass, "organized by the community, for the community", will see hundreds of cyclists take the streets in protest against this attempt to rip out our bike lanes. Meet-up is at Bloor St. and Spadina Ave. at 6:00 pm.

Cycle Toronto https://www.cycleto.ca/

Visit the Facebook group for more:

https://www.cycleto.ca/r?u=o6hy3ltLwo-dflPNfvaWKiW6yyaPhPtz2eTJUsob5PoiI7K4sdqtuCdpPZCea1fPjXCWz3iIUKR5qedlB5XtNQ&e=afd8d3f0606f8534b04fd6f600d0758f&n=2

Gladys and Nelson Gonzalez have called the United States home since 1989. Their three daughters, now grown, were all born and raised in California.

“For nearly four decades, they have built a life here — raising three daughters, giving back to their community, and recently welcoming their first grandchild,” their daughter Stephanie Gonzalez wrote on a GoFundMe page for the family. “Now, they are being treated as criminals.”

Last month, the parents checked in at an immigration court in Santa Ana, just “like they have been doing since 2000,” Stephanie wrote in an email to CNN.

But this check-in ended with a much different outcome.

The couple was arrested and handcuffed during their February 21 appointment and put in federal custody, where they spent three weeks before being deported to Colombia.

“We didn’t expect that they would be apprehended and held in custody. And again, it’s not really unique to them anymore. It’s happening across the country,” Crooms told CNN, pointing to recent immigration policy changes in the US two months into the current administration.

The Gonzalezes spent many years searching for a viable path to citizenship, paid their taxes and never had any trouble with the law, according to Crooms and their daughters.

Ideally, the couple would have been given time to get their affairs in order and say goodbye to their daughters and grandchild, according to Crooms. But that didn’t happen.

“We had to go and pick up their car from the parking lot and didn’t get to say goodbye,” Stephanie said.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/26834396

Family and friends of a Vancouver entrepreneur are demanding answers after she was unexpectedly detained by U.S. immigration officials while attempting to cross the border with a job offer and visa paperwork in hand.

Jasmine Mooney, a 35-year-old business consultant and co-founder of a drink brand, has been detained for 11 days under what her supporters describe as “inhumane conditions,” with no clear explanation of why she was arrested by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Eagles, who said she found out about Mooney’s detention through a family friend, noted that her daughter had been working in the U.S. but was detained at the San Ysidro U.S.-Mexico border crossing near San Diego, Calif., on March 3.

Eagles said an immigration lawyer was finally able to reach Mooney late Thursday, but despite having no criminal record and facing no charges, Mooney remains in custody with no clear timeline for release.

“We have no issue with her being denied entry, we have no issue with her initially being detained. But we have a huge issue with the inhumane treatment she is receiving and that she knows nothing, has not been charged and has not been able to speak with us directly,” her mother said.

Eagles said the family has received an update from a third-party that Mooney may have a tentative release date of March 24, which — if true — remains “still too far away.”

“By then, she’ll have been in custody for three weeks,” Eagles said. “That’s twice as long as she’s been there already. And so we want to get her home as soon as possible.”

Mooney was detained by border officials while trying to enter the U.S., as she had previously done successfully when applying for a Trade NAFTA, or TN, work visa.

After spending three nights in detention at the world’s busiest land border, Eagles said her daughter was transferred to a facility in San Diego then to the San Luis Regional Detention Center south of Yuma, Arizona, where she has since been sleeping on the floor of a cell alongside nearly 30 other women.

Eagles said that each time her daughter was transferred, she was handcuffed and in chains.

“I was put in a cell, and I had to sleep on a mat with no blanket, no pillow, with an aluminum foil wrapped over my body like a dead body for 2½ days,” she told a reporter.

As her detention continues, Mooney remains confined to a concrete cell with no natural light, no mats, no blankets, and minimal bathroom facilities.

“Every single guard that sees me is like ‘What are you doing here? I don’t understand — you’re Canadian. How are you here?’” she told ABC News.

“One or two months ago, if CBP officers found an issue with a Canadian’s work visa, the typical route taken is revoking the visa and ordering that person to leave the country,” said Neitor. “To detain someone like this would have been considered extreme not long ago, but’s it happening much more frequently nowadays.”

Neitor noted that while there is no limit on how long U.S. immigration authorities can detain a non-U.S. citizen, individuals have the legal right to talk to a lawyer while in detention.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/26304598

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/26304594

Posted speed limits in nearly 200 Mississauga school zones will soon increase to 40 km/h

With the new amendments on local roads, City of Mississauga officials said the speed limit will remain 30 km/h from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Friday, and outside that period will be increased to 40 km/h. The move was prompted by complaints from drivers that the 30 km/h limit was too low during times when there were no students and other people around.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/26304594

Posted speed limits in nearly 200 Mississauga school zones will soon increase to 40 km/h

With the new amendments on local roads, City of Mississauga officials said the speed limit will remain 30 km/h from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Friday, and outside that period will be increased to 40 km/h. The move was prompted by complaints from drivers that the 30 km/h limit was too low during times when there were no students and other people around.

The Beer Store takes back all alcohol primary and secondary packaging sold across the province, including bottles, cans, kegs, cardboard packaging, bottle caps and plastic rings. The Beer Store also accepts all empty containers under the Ontario Deposit Return Program, including all alcoholic beverage containers sold in Ontario.

Where to take empties?

For now, it’s unclear whether customers will have a convenient empty return option if their local Beer Store closes. The best bet appears to be commuting to the next closest Beer Store retail outlet.

Alternatively, you could hold on to your empties and donate them to a fundraising drive in your community. Many community groups, such as Rotary clubs, the Knights of Columbus and local sports teams, hold bottle and can collection events.

Metroland has reached out to The Beer Store to ask what options consumers may have for empty container returns following the next round of Beer Store closures.

The lawsuit was filed in Ontario Superior Court on Friday, Feb. 21. The 40 business owners are seeking $10 million from the city for “negligence and nuisance”

The group is also requesting a court injunction to remove the bike lanes along Bloor Street West and restore the streets to their original condition.

Cody MacRae is the founder of the non-profit community group Balance on Bloor. He says the community’s concerns about the bike lanes have been ignored.

“It has caused huge suffering in our community. Whether it be senior citizens who can’t access businesses properly or people with disabilities who are complaining.”

Cyclists and advocates have long called for action to improve safety on Toronto’s streets following numerous fatalities and bikes struck by drivers on roadways.

Executive Director of Cycle Toronto, Michael Longfield questioned the decision to sue the city.

“The City of Toronto has voted on these bike lanes now at least four times. And each time it passes City Council. I understand folks may not be content with that decision, but there is actually a transparent and democratic process for how these projects happen.”

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/25878550

The Greenbelt scandal is the elephant in the room of Ontario’s 2025 election, even as Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives try to leave it in the rearview.

It’s been more than a year since the RCMP opened an investigation into the boondoggle, which saw the Ford government open sections of environmentally protected land outside Toronto for housing construction in fall 2022. That move came at the request of a select group of well-connected developers who stood to make more than $8 billion from the deal. 

In early February, The Trillium reported that two former Ford government staffers — one a central figure in the Greenbelt changes who resigned amid the fallout, the other an employee of Ford’s re-election campaign — are being sued by a developer alleging they accepted money in exchange for promises to use “backchannel contacts” to rezone land, but did not deliver.

It also prompted attention from journalists, who soon revealed developers stood to be the main beneficiaries. Ontario’s auditor general and integrity commissioner released twin reports in August 2023 that were chock-full of bombshell revelations. The public was furious, while Ford remained defiant, even as Amato and Clark resigned from their roles. (Clark has remained an MPP in the Progressive Conservative caucus, and was named government house leader last June.)

But there were also spinoff scandals. One revolved around a pre-wedding stag-and-doe party for one of Ford’s daughters in the months before the Greenbelt changes — developers were invited, and attendees were encouraged to give cash gifts to the happy couple in addition to the $150 ticket price. Another involved a Las Vegas trip involving key Tory figures and a would-be Greenbelt developer that happened in 2020. There were also allegations about an alleged unregistered lobbyist dubbed Mr. X who had close ties to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Finally, in September 2023 — as new salacious details mounted about a Tory MPP getting a massage at the same time as a would-be Greenbelt developer during that Las Vegas trip, prompting more resignations in the Progressive Conservative government

There were major delays reported along a portion of Line 1 on Tuesday morning after ice and snow on the rails at Davisville Station resulted in a train getting stuck.

The issue was first reported at around 7:40 a.m. and didn’t clear until shortly after 9 a.m.

Shuttle buses were running between Bloor-Yonge and Eglinton stations while service was restored.

In a post on social media, the TTC said that there was a train stuck at Davisville Station “due to ice and snow on rails,” which meant that trains were only able to travel through the stations using one of the platforms.

While full service has since resumed, the TTC says that delays of up to 10 minutes are being reported between Vaughan and Finch stations due to a separate issue related to weather conditions.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/25616911

A growing body of research suggests that road salt contributes to metal corrosion and can have a negative impact on ecosystems. Despite the introduction of some successful alternatives, many Canadian cities are still using salt because it's cheaper.

Email to Carrytel Customers: Dated Feb 11

I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to inform you of an upcoming adjustment to the pricing of our services at Carry Telecom. We have always been committed to providing you with high-quality internet, VOIP, and IPTV services at competitive prices. However, due to recent economic changes and our continual commitment to enhance service quality, we find it necessary to revise our pricing structure. The current monthly fee of your Cable Internet 1000(ON HotDeal) is $49.99. From Mar 17,2025, your new monthly service fee will be $64.99.

The decision to adjust our prices has not been made lightly and is influenced by several key factors: Inflation: The ongoing global economic situation has led to increased costs across various sectors, impacting our operational expenses. Labor Costs: To maintain our high standard of service and customer support, we have invested in our workforce. This includes fair and competitive compensation for our dedicated team, ensuring we attract and retain the best talent. Investment in Our Network: We are continually upgrading our network infrastructure to provide you with more stable and robust services. These enhancements are crucial for meeting the growing demands for high-speed and reliable connectivity.

We understand that any price increase can be of concern. Please rest assured that this decision is in alignment with our goal to offer you the highest quality of service. We are dedicated to continual investment in our technology and people, ensuring that you receive the best possible experience.

We thank you for your continued support and understanding. Carry Telecom remains committed to providing you with exceptional service and connectivity solutions.

Warm regards, Carry Telecom Inc.