People need to speak openly about what needs to be done in Scarborough before the area’s past prosperity can return, say supporters of the Scarborough Community Renewal Campaign.
Started recently as a project of Scarborough’s Rotary clubs, the campaign hopes to "raise the profile of the need for renewal" in Scarborough, the former municipality organizers say "has fared most poorly" of those amalgamated into Toronto in 1998.
Hit hard by the switch to a service-oriented economy, the former borough is now home to "the majority of Toronto’s undeveloped industrial land," and several vacant industrial buildings which "hold high potential for job creation in Scarborough neighbourhoods," says a discussion paper by the campaign.
Despite receiving several new community hubs and health centres, Scarborough has seen little of the private investments flowing into Toronto in recent years, and has close to half of what the city now calls Neighbourhood Improvement Areas. "We see a trend toward increasingly negative indicators of community well-being in Scarborough that needs to be reversed," the Rotary clubs said in a release.
"We asked, why isn’t this renewal happening here?"
The Rotarians hope a public meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. next Tuesday, June 24, in the Scarborough Village Community Recreation Centre at Kingston and Markham roads will kick-start discussions with residents, agencies, community associations and institutions such as Centennial College and University of Toronto Scarborough.
They hope the campaign can turn to local businesses and entrepreneurs that have the "discretionary money" to bring economic renewal about.
Already, though, the Rotarians are floating ideas that could turn into long-term goals, such as a Scarborough Economic Development Corporation, tax-free "enterprise zones" for the area, and an "arts and music" hub similar to the Mississauga Living Arts Centre.
At a meeting of Scarborough Community Council this week, local politicians hearing about another ambitious idea - a new park and market building covering what is now a section of McCowan Road near Scarborough Town Centre - spoke about the need for boldness and creativity in reviving Scarborough’s spirit.
One councillor, Mike Del Grande, remarked he was embarrassed by how the Scarborough Civic Centre, post-amalgamation, has turned into a place with "rips in the carpet" and faulty lighting.
"We seem to be getting second best all the time," he said.
Organizers have said they hope the campaign will show residents "Rotarians are relevant," and promise to follow up the June 24 meeting with others "geared to each cultural group" in Scarborough.
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