Many thanks to all of you who took the time to write with good wishes for my speedy recovery from West Nile virus. I’m getting a bit stronger every day and expect to fully recover.

A friend jokingly chided me for getting a one-in-a-million virus. “Why do you always have to be different? Couldn’t you just get COVID like thousands of other people?”

Both viruses can be life-threatening, with many potential short and long-term consequences. I am, of course, taking every precaution so that I will never …

by Alexander Brown – Chair, Toronto District School Board – Trustee for Willowdale

As we prepare to open our schools in September and welcome back students and staff, we are doing everything possible to ensure the health and safety of all school community members, while also providing the best academic experience possible for students, supporting mental health and well-being, and considering the needs of families and staff.

School starts on September 15, 2020. Grades will be staggered over the first week to safely reintroduce students to the building. More information …

This week, the City of Toronto announced the extension of the outdoor sport field season. The City’s outdoor sport and multi-use fields will remain open until Sunday, October 25th and permits will be issued for the remainder of the 2020 season.

The City offers almost 700 sport fields at more than 170 locations across Toronto. As a result of pandemic-related restrictions, many of the City’s outdoor sport and multi-use fields opened on July 6 for team training, and permits were issued for the summer season. The …

On August 17, I woke with an extreme case of double vision, quickly followed by an extremely  high temperature and very high blood pressure. This led me to Michael Garron Hospital, where I was admitted and sent for a battery of tests.  After more than a week I got the surprising result: West Nile Virus.

The more serious symptoms have subsided and I am now at home dealing with the main remaining one: extreme fatigue. While I regain my strength, my Chief of Staff Markus O’Brien …

This week the City of Toronto is mailing out over 800 ballots to commercial property owners and their tenants along the Yonge street corridor between Bishop/Hendon and Highway 401.  The ballot asks whether businesses will come together to form a Business Improvement Area (BIA) in the centre of Willowdale.  The majority of returned ballots will make that decision in late October.

BIAs are very successful in other parts of Toronto and benefit local businesses and their communities in a number of ways.  BIAs collect a small …

The City announced earlier this month that they are expanding the successful Digital Main Street program as part of the city’s Economic Support and Recovery Task Force’ short-term support and recovery plan for Toronto’s businesses in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Digital Main Street was created to provide direct one-on-one support to  businesses who are trying to develop an online presence. The program has already been successful in delivering over 12,000 hours of support, training and education to businesses across Toronto.

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