Thursday evening open thread

 I may be in transit on the way home from an afternoon at the Toronto Islands when this goes up (aerial view from Viator.com).

The street is mounting a campaign regarding a new build across the road from me; we think there should be an environmental assessment done before construction, because construction could have an impact on our elderly houses, and if there is a new build, it should conform to the bylaws and zoning; the proposal has requested 9 variances to the bylaws, most of them quite major, and they could have an impact on the property values of our houses, the enjoyment of our houses (blocking light, etc.), change the character of the street, and give precedence for similar builds in the future. 

We're not against increased density, but it's got to be done right. Basically, the owner (and it's unclear exactly who the owner is) wants to build a full sized second house on a tiny lot, with about 15 feet between the original house and the new build. This isn't a small laneway house at the bottom of the garden; the footprint will be almost the same as the original house, which is kept in poor repair. 

So my next door neighbour and I went out last night and started a petition which will be given to our city councillor, and a number of people want to attend the meeting set up by the city to discuss the variances.