Greetings, fellow Scarborough residents. Scarborough was on roll in April, with lots of local pride on display … and perhaps a little bit of Scarborough swagger!
Scarborough swelled with pride at the Scarborough Walk of Fame
In my April message, I profiled our stellar cast of new inductees into the Scarborough Walk of Fame. Our April 15 induction ceremony at Scarborough Town Centre lived up to the billing. Our newest stars, who come from different walks of life and from across the generations, collectively embody all that is great about Scarborough. It was a “Scarborough love-in” for the 300 of us in attendance at Centre Court. Our newest stars are profiled on the Scarborough Walk of Fame website and there are photos of the event all over social media. Take a look!
And if that wasn’t enough … the celebration of our newest stars was briefly interrupted for a special announcement. The Northpine Foundation took centre stage to announce the creation of the “Northpine Investing in Scarborough Fellowship” at Centennial College, to provide financial aid, mentorship, and career paths for Scarborough students from low-income families. Northpine and Centennial are each contributing $2.5 million, to create a $5 million endowment. Wow!
The Northpine Foundation and Centennial College were sponsors of the Scarborough Walk of Fame and the leaders of both organizations were there. So it was the perfect venue for the announcement. It was inspiring to see two important Scarborough-focused institutions working together to lift up Scarborough’s next generation of young adults.
But wait … there’s more! Mayor Olivia Chow attended and made an important announcement about the Eglinton East LRT project; now known as the “Scarborough East Rapid Transit Line”. City Council is prioritizing this project for funding and is moving project planning to the next level, including participation by Scarborough community leaders. SCRO is fully supportive of this and provided a letter of support to the City’s Executive Committee. We need to light a fire under our politicians at all levels of government to finally get this project done.
Businesses are betting big on Scarborough!
It’s not just our people who are shining. So are our businesses, large and small.
Did you hear? Toyota is building a new Canadian head office building, on the same parcel of land as its current head office, right here in Scarborough. Toyota will be moving Toyota Credit Canada Inc. into the expanded facility. This is excellent news for Scarborough, which will continue to serve as Toyota Canada’s head office for many years to come. We’ll have more investment, more jobs, and more prosperity, right here in Scarborough.
And that’s not all. Hitachi Rail is investing $30 million in a new state-of-the-art Canadian headquarters at Consilium Place, where they will occupy 125,000 sq. ft. on five storeys, bringing 1,100 new jobs to Scarborough’s most important commercial hub. It will also house Hitachi Rail’s
Global Communications-Based Train Control Competence Centre, which provides engineering and technical expertise to support Hitachi’s global operations.
Investments of this magnitude will strengthen Scarborough’s economy and create many new jobs across a broad range of occupations.
Scarborough Business Excellence Awards
It’s not just large corporations that are betting big on Scarborough. Our local businesses are shining brightly too.
On April 30, the Scarborough Business Association hosted the Scarborough Business Excellence Awards and Mayor’s Gala at the Guild Inn Estate, profiling some of Scarborough’s most successful owner-managed businesses, both large and small, across eight categories of accomplishment. It was truly an exceptional celebration. A huge dose of “Scarborough Pride” was on full display.
Scarborough stood tall and proud in April, with lots to celebrate, lots of Scarborough pride on display, and just a little bit of Scarborough swagger! It’s been wonderful to see.
Larry Whatmore
President
Scarborough Community Renewal Organization
https://www.scro.ca
Scarborough Walk of Fame https://scarboroughwalkoffame.com/
Larry.Whatmore@rogers.com
