Residents look to name their neighbourhood

LISA RAINFORD

January 18, 2010

Residents made a pitch for their favourite moniker that they believe best fits their as-yet unnamed neighbourhood at a public meeting, Thursday, Jan. 14.

They are the residents who live in the undefined area stretching from Davenport Road to the base of Perth Avenue and encompasses the neighbourhood between the train tracks that run east of Dundas Street West and west of Lansdowne Avenue. It is one of the last areas in the city that remains nameless.

Thursday's meeting was the culmination of an almost year-long endeavor, spearheaded by Perth Avenue resident Kevin Putnam, who initiated the community improvement project christened 'Fuzzy Boundaries.' Adopting a name, said Putnam early in the process, would provide a collective and cohesive identity and create a sense of ownership.

Putnam called Thursday's meeting 'The Big One,' where all the name suggestions were tallied and everyone had a chance to make a plea for their preferred choice.

Sally Hewson came bearing a placard with her favourite, complete with a map, photographs and diagrams.

"I'm here to pitch 'Black Oak Triangle," said Hewson, who said she got the idea from the list of names suggested by other people on the Fuzzy Boundaries website. "The eco-system we live in is called Black Oak Savannah. It's a species of tree in High Park."

The Black Oak have traits, such as resilience and creativity, that relate to the qualities of the neighbourhood, said Hewson.

"It's got fire tolerant bark," she said. "When you look at the leaves on the tree, they're all slightly different, but have similar characteristics that you can identify as the Black Oak Savannah."

Pointing to a map, Hewson said the Fuzzy Boundaries are in the shape of a triangle.

"That's my pitch: Black Oak Triangle," said Hewson as those who had gathered at the new Boys and Girls Club on Ernest Avenue broke out into applause.

Carla Arruda, organizer of the Perth Community Festival and Perth Avenue Junior PS council chair, proposed South Junction Triangle because the Junction is right around the corner and it's what the neighbourhood has been referred to for years as well as Perth Park. "It's a name that's come up because of the park and the kids. They tend to stick with the name of Perth," she said. "The kids like the name Perth Park."

Local resident Michael Dellios said he wanted to get involved in the naming process because he owns rental properties on Symington and Franklin avenues. â?¨"You want to tie it to a neighbourhood to generate interest," he said of his rentals. "You want something that rolls off the tongue. Perth Park speaks to me because it's an alliteration. There's a sale-ability to it."

Dellios suggested the name 'The Triangle."

"It's a triangle," he said of the neighbourhood. "It's easy to say. You can build a reputation around it."

Other name suggestions included Symington Triangle, because it's a street that runs right up the middle of the triangle and there's a bus route named after it, Wallace Triangle, because it's "an important street for culture and cool things on it," said Dellios.

The Nook and The Wedge were another two that were bounced around. These are fitting, said residents, because the neighbourhood is between High Park and The Junction and beside Roncesvalles Village.

Although, argued one, they don't "identify where we are."

There is a list of more than 200 potential names at www.fuzzyboundaries.ca

A two-week voting period to narrow the list of names to the top Ten ends Jan. 29. A panel of experts and local residents will then make the final determination in February.