Leslieville / Studio District

[Film Worker]

What's really sad....

I'm sorry but did the OMB hearing already conclude or something? Did I just sleep through the next 90 days?

No decision has been rendered in this regard. Give the process some credit before jumping to an outcome that has yet to be determined.

Sad is the defeatist attitude that you are demonstrating.

What's REALLY sad is that TFS and SmartCentres have really, really good PR people (who know that the Toronto media is for sale). This morning an Editorial in the Star endorses the project, and perpetuates the TFS spin-myth that FilmPort will replace 629 Eastern Avenue, and even accelerates the timing by stating that film producers have ALREADY left the old studios in favour of the new ones (even though FilmPort hasn't even opened its doors). The copy reads like it was written by a TFS / SmartCentres PR expert, and likely was.

The editorial hammer even came down on Chris Hume, who caves by interviewing a SmartCentres exec about how they got Walmart to make huge concessions for this site.

Sadly, despite the coming OMB hearing, this deal is exactly like TEDCO's film studio scam. When there's this much money involved, these deals have already happened behind closed doors, and the theatrics that play out on the periphery are exactly that - meaningless theatrics.

 

[ShonTron]

Reminds me how the Star keeps talking bout how the Liberals have to do more on child poverty, cities, education, and so on, and how the NDP has the better platform, but comes out with an editorial unconditionally endorsing the Liberals it criticised.

The Star talks a good talk, but its editorial department won't go all the way.

 

[Alley Kat]

...to determine what's really going on instead of frequent ad hominem attacks by seemingly displaced industry workers.

Is this not itself an ad hominem toward those in the industry? Rather than refuting their arguments, you're attacking their credibility with the words "determine what's really going on", and "seemingly".

 

[userfriendly]

Apparently a tour of all of Toronto's film studios has been arranged for Hollywood film executives. Its purpose would be to generate interest and hopefully attract a full roster of shows for the second half of the 2008 season.

A provincial interest being declared would be welcome news for the industry. However without a provincial interest yet being declared, because of the uncertainty the studio executives may not book space at TFS studios at 629 Eastern Ave. Toronto will lose feature film work.

Because of a current lack of business, Showline Studios, right across Lakeshore Boulevard from TFS, will be for sale very soon unless things change. The 10 acre site is worth $3 million / acre, or more if SmartCentres is built. The Hollywood execs will not likely book space there either. Toronto will lose more films.

If the OMB rezones TFS, Cinespace Studios next door at 721 Eastern will be forced to seek rezoning to retail, as will Cinespace's studios on Booth Ave. Their land will become too valuable to maintain as film studios if Leslieville is to become a continuous retail mall from the Don to Leslie Street. Toronto will lose almost all its films.

2008 could be the final disastrous year for film production in Toronto, the tipping point.

If 629 Eastern Avenue is rezoned from employment to retail, by the end of 2008 there will be no film studios in Toronto except partially completed Filmport. The industry will collapse, and all because the Rose Corporation leveraged Toronto Film Studios at 629 Eastern, and the entire Toronto film industry to build Filmport, which apparently no one has booked and perhaps no one can afford to rent because it's too expensive in a bottom-line driven global economy. Apparently at $35 a foot to build, no one is committing to move their film support business there either.

Ken Ferguson of Filmport was quoted recently in the Vancouver Sun as saying that the Toronto film industry doesn't need anything other than huge Hollywood blockbuster movies. He will perhaps have one blockbuster movie at a time. Whether you agree with his logic or not, his Filmport will soon be the only game in town, and there will no longer be a film industry as we know it

Just a reminder that Filmport has a clause in its 99 year land lease with the city such that it can alter the usage of Filmport if it fails as a film studio. There is also a non-competition clause preventing other studio operators from relocating their businesses to the portlands, should Leslieville be rezoned to retail. They have nowhere left to go in the Studio District. An OMB decision to rezone will mean that the takedown of all film studios other than Filmport will become reality. Filmport will have a monopoly on film studios in Toronto, and if that doesn't work, they can convert Filmport to another use such as condos, big box mall, casino, future Olympic venue, etc.

An OMB decision to rezone 629 Eastern to retail for SmartCentres is death to the film industry and its 25,000 skilled jobs.

The dominos are standing.

 

[Film Worker]

The evidence is clear...

I think this matter will require an evidentiary hearing to determine what's really going on instead of frequent ad hominem attacks by seemingly displaced industry workers.

An evidentiary hearing would be welcome, given that the evidence is very clear that we, the stakeholders in this area (both residents and film industry workers alike) were all LIED TO by the three main players in this scam: TEDCO, Rose/TFS, and David Miller.


PLAYER ONE - TEDCO

It is clear from the leaked documents that TEDCO maintained Rose/TFS as the lead bidder even after it was clear that Rose needed to liquidate the old studios to have the capital to build the new ones. So TEDCO in fact LIED when they told the film industry that this was the best bid for the film industry. Clearly is was not, since it triggered this unholy mess.


PLAYER TWO - ROSE/TFS

When news of the required rezoning broke and things started heating up before the City Council vote on the new studio deal, TFS in fact LIED to the film industry about their intentions. The evidence is this "open letter" from TFS circulated to the film industry in the summer of 2005:


>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Linda" <linda@tfstudios.ca>
> To: "Linda Ferguson" <linda@tfstudios.ca>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2005 10:23 AM
> Subject: TORONTO FILM STUDIOS' OPEN LETTER
>
>
>> AN OPEN LETTER TO TORONTO'S FILM INDUSTRY July 20/05
>>
>> The new Mega-Studio in Toronto's Port Lands is about to become a reality.
>> Toronto Film Studios and TEDCO are finalizing a lease that will be
>> presented
>> to the TEDCO board before the end of July.
>>
>> For those in the industry, it means that for the first time Toronto will
>> be
>> able to attract and accommodate Hollywood's biggest blockbuster
>> productions.
>> This benefits everyone because every dollar spent directly on a film
>> generates another $1.50 in trickle-down activity.
>>
>> While the City's political leadership and the vast majority of the film
>> community are strong supporters of the Mega-Studio, some unfounded
>> rumours
>> have been circulated recently by parties who are opposed to the project.
>>
>> Here are the facts:
>>
>> FACT
>>
>> The Mega-Studio will mean more films are produced in Toronto; not just
>> the
>> big blockbusters but also medium sized US and Canadian productions that
>> are
>> our industry's bread and butter. It will NOT monopolize the industry or
>> kill other studios and film-related businesses - it will actually
>> increase
>> their workload.
>>
>> FACT
>>
>> The existing TFS Studio at 629 Eastern Avenue will continue to be
>> operated
>> as film studios as long as it is in demand. It has served us well and is
>> currently very busy so we have no intention of closing it in the
>> foreseeable
>> future.
>>
>> FACT
>>
>> The Mega-studio development is NOT dependent in any way on the zoning
>> application for TFS's Eastern Avenue lands. The Mega-studio financing is
>> arranged and will be announced soon. As prudent land owners, we are
>> preparing to develop our 9 acre vacant lot and expanding our options for
>> the
>> future.
>>
>> FACT
>>
>> Toronto Film Studios won the right to build the Mega-Studio in an
>> international competition. We are paying market value for the lands,
>> having
>> bid a higher price than anyone else. No other studio owner in the city
>> can
>> claim to be disadvantaged by this open and highly scrutinized process.
>>
>> FACT
>>
>> During a limited stabilization period and to satisfy development
>> financing,
>> TEDCO will be restricted from leasing to other studio operators in the
>> immediate vicinity of the Mega-Studio. Other film-related tenants such
>> as
>> equipment suppliers will be welcomed to the area and no existing TEDCO
>> tenants such as P.S. Production Services will be affected.
>>
>> FACT
>>
>> Recent eviction notices to film-related companies in the West Donlands
>> have
>> been issued by the Province of Ontario for Waterfront Revitalization. The
>> eviction of these tenants by the Province has nothing at all to do with
>> the
>> Mega-Studio, TFS, the City of Toronto or TEDCO.
>>
>>
>> Toronto needs the Mega-Studio now. Mayor Miller and our City Councillors
>> have worked hard to make it happen. Let them know that you appreciate
>> their
>> commitment to our industry and that you support the Mega-Studio in the
>> Port
>> Lands.
>>
>> We value your support. Please call or e-mail us if you have questions or
>> comments.
>>
>>
>> Ken Ferguson ken@tfstudios.ca
>> President 416-406-1235
>> Toronto Film Studios Inc.
>>
>>
>>
>>



PLAYER THREE - DAVID MILLER

As is evident in the YouTube trailers under "Forcible Decline", David Miller in fact LIED to the many deputants who voiced their concerns over the linked rezoning. He stated that when TEDCO reached a deal with Rose/TFS, it would be brought to Council for a decision, yet he very publicly presided over the lease-signing ceremony on the deal two weeks before it even came to Council.


And this last player is the most problematic one of all. Never mind TEDCO's laughable claim that they should be exempt from Freedom of Information legislation to protect their dirty dealmaking. Forget Rose/TFS's and SmartCentres' public relations influence that is powerful enough to trigger an incorrect editorial (yesterday) and a cruel political cartoon (today) in a major daily newspaper.


Because of David Miller's unmistakeable role in opening the door to SmartCentres, you will NEVER see an evidentiary hearing into the process that brought us to this point because the lead opponent of the rezoning - the City of Toronto - would NEVER bring evidence forward to cast their own Mayor in an unfavourable light, no matter how deserving of it he is.

And he truly is, with his golden locks. I wanna get my hands on those locks...


ps. I actually had to look up "ad hominem". Given that it means "the logical fallacy of attempting to undermine a speaker's argument by attacking the speaker instead of addressing the argument", I actually feel quite vindicated since I feel I HAVE been addressing the argument.

 

[userfriendly]

Bad photo of a hardcopy of that 2005 open letter

 

[Film Worker]

Wow...I didn't know we could attach screenshots...sorry TEDCO, but you deserve it...

My Birthday Gift to UrbanToronto.ca - a limerick in four parts, by Film Worker.

(also click on the thumbnails below for pieces of the leaked TEDCO letter)


There once was a agency named TEDCO
Whose letter never made it to Shred-Pro
It then leaked all over the ‘net
And now Jeff Steiner’s pants are all wet
He should never have written to Romano!


Jeff wanted to keep Rose in the deal
Even though the film biz, to Rose, didn’t appeal
So Jeff tried to broker a sale
Get Rose out of the biz, without fail
Please pinch me, this can’t possibly be real!


So now the rezoning mess has become clear
Something criminal has happened here
An RFP bidder maintained
Though his finances were strained
And the film industry took it in the rear!


So goodbye, my sweet 629
Over the years, you’ve been quite divine
You’ve hosted so many flicks
But now Rose sold you to fix
A deal with leased years 99!



.

 

[Alley Kat]

Province fails to intervene

LESLIEVILLE: SHOPPING MALL DISPUTE
Province fails to intervene

JAMES RUSK
April 23, 2008

The Ontario government has quietly turned down a request by Toronto city council to intervene in a controversial application to build a shopping mall in the old east-end Leslieville neighbourhood.

The deadline for intervening went by this week without the province filing the required documents for getting involved, both Ministry of Municipal Affairs and the Ontario Municipal Board confirmed.

In January, city council asked the Ontario government to declare a provincial interest on grounds that the developer, SmartCentres Inc., is building the $220-million mall on a site zoned in July, 2006, as employment lands, which means that it cannot be used for retail purposes.

The rezoning, one of the steps taken by council in a campaign to block the project, took place only weeks after the city's 2002 official plan had come into force. That plan designated the site for retail use.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080423.SMARTCENTRE23/TPStory/TPNational/Ontario/

 

[Alley Kat]

Film Worker,
You are a master at obfuscating the facts.

ad hominem ad nauseam

 

[Film Worker]

You keep making me look up words...ob-fus-ca-ting...

Film Worker,

You are a master at obfuscating the facts. Show me some proof that the closure of the Eastern Avenue film studio will result in a net loss of film industry jobs in light of the massive new Filmport studios.

That is the real issue I believe. If the result is neutral/positive then why can't the owner of the land decide its highest and best use?

Now that I know what your word means, I don't like the implication that I'm trying to intentionally confuse the facts. Allow me to clarify for you.

The REAL issue is an issue of POLICY. Specifically, what was the TEDCO/City/Film Industry process that got us here, to the point where we are nonsensically trading cheap studios for expensive ones, which just happened to trigger a problematic rezoning application?

The studio RFP responded to an industry study that said we needed large, purpose-built studios in Toronto. It did NOT say that we needed to eliminate the cheaper, converted studios that served the bread-and-butter film projects in our industry for over 20 years.

The RFP documents themselves said that the new studio would benefit from its proximity to the existing Studio District. It did NOT contemplate the removal of the vast majority of studios in the Studio District in order to finance the new studio.

The RFP documents stated that the financing had to be in place. It did NOT contempate a proponent selling existing film infrastructure in order to finance the new studio. This RFP requirement alone should have forced TEDCO to go exclusively to the second bidder Pinewood, not some joint-deal that kept Rose in the bid for no reason except non-film land development.

The RFP documents stated that this would be a positive development for the film industry. It did NOT contemplate a non-competition clause to restrict the expansion AND prevent the relocation of other studio operators, and it certainly did NOT contemplate a committed lifespan of only 10 years.

So as a direct result of this deal, Toronto has lost and will lose over 400,000 square feet of highly-sought, low-cost space from the non-relocated Marine Terminal Studios and 629 Eastern Avenue, NOT INCLUDING any potential expansion that never happened because of the non-competition clause. Remember that FilmPort is NOT BUILDING ANY low-cost space.

Already Canadian film and television productions that traditionally used the above two facilities are squeezed for space. Any big-budget Hollywood features that FilmPort lands with its new, expensive space are still hypothetical at this point, but the net loss of square feet of low-cost studio space is NOT hypothetical.

Don't jump to the "land owner gets to decide highest and best use" argument, because there is a process that takes us there. Rose/TFS is only in the position to make a call on that land precisely BECAUSE of TEDCO's dirty deal.

While it's not the OMB's job to clean up TEDCO's and Miller's mess, the net loss of highly functional film space should still be a factor. And the fact that we were all lied to by TEDCO, TFS/Rose and David Miller.

Hope this helps you get your head around the issue.

 

[spider]

Film Worker says
"So as a direct result of this deal, Toronto has lost and will lose over 400,000 square feet of highly-sought, low-cost space from the non-relocated Marine Terminal Studios and 629 Eastern Avenue."
We can only appreciate the loss if we can know how busy is the 400,000 sq. Is it all working every day all day or only sporadically?

 

[Alley Kat]

We can only appreciate the loss if we can know how busy is the 400,000 sq. Is it all working every day all day or only sporadically?

Film production tends to be somewhat seasonal, the period from early December to March typically being the slowest. Otherwise, speaking in broad terms, most film studio space is booked for nine months of the year, and in use about fourteen hours a day, five to seven days a week.

 

[Alley Kat]

Toronto Film Studios has made it known that they will be vacating the lands at the end of 2008, to occupy the new FilmPort development...

http://www.mirror-guardian.com/News/EastYork/article/46647

 

[TOinTO]

Film Worker,

You are a master at obfuscating the facts. Show me some proof that the closure of the Eastern Avenue film studio will result in a net loss of film industry jobs in light of the massive new Filmport studios.

That is the real issue I believe. If the result is neutral/positive then why can't the owner of the land decide its highest and best use?

That's not the issue at all.

Nobody can stop the closing of the Eastern Ave. studio. TFS isn't interested in operating one and it won't allow a new owner to operate one at that location. That's a private matter. Neither the city nor the OMB can mandate the operation of a film studio at that location.

The issue is whether the City can restrict, through zoning, the use of that land to places of employment, as opposed to retail or residential. I think this is an important issue which affects the prospects of maintaining and enhancing the diverse urban nature of the Leslieville area. It also affects the overall economy of the city.

If the City can't do that, then our ability to democratically influence the development of the city is sadly limited.

 

[TOinTO]

I think if TFS vacates then it's either retail, residential or a parking lot. There's no market demand for any other use.

So do nothing. That's fine. Or be creative and find some other use for the structures. Or leave it as a film studio. It was the developer's choice to buy into the property with a condition that the present profitable use would be disallowed. The city should have no obligation to make that deal work for them.

A few years ago, I heard the city was trying to preserve land south of Union station for office development. I thought that was wishful thinking. We had a downtown condo boom but no major downtown office development in more than a decade.
Now we've got three major office towers on the go - one of them south of Union. And another is planned at 18 York St.

Zoning needn't match the immediate market conditions and there is no (or should be no) obligation on the city to allow the owner the most profitable, immediate use of the land.

The developer bought in betting on a zoning change. I hope they lose.

I don't see any reason why a other employment uses couldn't come to the area. No right now, perhaps, but in a few years, sure. What's the rush?