| Article | August 13, 2010
Recipe for Community cooking for St. James Town residents
St. James Town residents will benefit from about $555,000 in capital and programming investments over the next 12 months, with today's launch of the Recipe for Community Program. The City of Toronto supports Recipe for Community in partnership with the Toronto Community Foundation, the Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) Team Up Foundation and Toronto Community Housing.
Joining residents for the launch were Mayor David Miller; Councillor Pam McConnell (Ward 28 Toronto Centre-Rosedale); John B. MacIntyre, Vice-Chair, Toronto Community Foundation Board of Directors; Tom Anselmi, Executive Vice-President and COO of MLSE; and Keiko Nakamura, CEO of Toronto Community Housing.
Recipe for Community uses ideas from residents to strengthen the community's sense of opportunity, belonging and pride, and to build community skills and capacity. Initiatives focus on food and nutrition, greening and beautification, community co-operation and youth engagement.
In St. James Town, activities will include beautifying park spaces, creating an outdoor mural, renovating an outdoor basketball court, programming for an outdoor basketball league, building skills in carpentry, bicycle repair, the culinary arts and small business development, and production of a residents' recipe book. To mark the launch, St. James Town youth demonstrated skills newly acquired through a basketball clinic, training in cooking nutritious foods and doing bicycle repairs.
"Recipe for Community is about community building - supporting the development of safe, vibrant, prosperous neighbourhoods in Toronto," said Mayor Miller. "The City of Toronto is pleased to be working on this initiative with its partners the Toronto Community Foundation, the MLSE Team Up Foundation, Toronto Community Housing and the residents of St. James Town."
"The Recipe for Community Program will help make St. James Town a more vibrant neighbourhood - a place in which residents are proud of where they live, and feel connected to each other and their community," said MacIntyre.
“The MLSE Team Up Foundation is committed to improving the lives of youth by building facilities to empower them through sports and recreation,” said Anselmi. “We’re excited to be participating in the Recipe for Community Program to help provide a great facility for the members of the St. James Town community.”
The Recipe for Community Program is consistent with the City's Tower Renewal program, which will drive broad environmental, social, economic and cultural change by improving Toronto's concrete apartment towers and the neighbourhoods that surround them. St. James Town is one of four designated Tower Renewal pilot sites.
Recipe for Community activities will be evaluated as part of Tower Renewal and, if successful, will be recommended as part of the rollout of Tower Renewal across Toronto.
"The Recipe for Community Program is a recipe for a stronger, healthier St. James Town,” said Nakamura. “Toronto Community Housing is proud to support this important initiative as part of our commitment to help create vibrant communities where residents are proud of where they live and where people feel connected to each other and their community.”
Recipe for Community was initiated following the 2008 release of the Toronto Community Foundation’s Vital Signs® Report, which identified a low sense of belonging and safety as key city issues. In 2009, Recipe for Community made its successful debut in Alexandra Park.
Toronto Community Housing is Canada's largest social housing provider and home to more than 164,000 tenants, about 6% of the city's population, with low and moderate incomes. Toronto Community Housing employs 1,400 staff in a broad range of jobs who deliver its mandate to provide quality housing and build great neighbourhoods. Toronto Community Housing is one of Canada's 2010 Top 100 Employers.
With more than 375 funds and assets of more than $210 million, the Toronto Community Foundation is one of Canada's largest charitable foundations. Community vitality has been our purpose, promise, and passion since 1981, when we started connecting donors to community needs and opportunities. We help people invest in Toronto, making it the best place to live, work, learn and grow. We monitor the quality of life in our city through our Toronto's Vital Signs Report. We provide the leadership and guidance to bring people together from all parts of our community. We exist for Toronto - for now and for always. |
