Today in Toronto the 14th Annual Wavelength Festival launches ship at the Silver Dollar as they and Silent Shout present Phèdre, TOPS, Zoo Owl, Alden Penner (ex-The Unicorns/Clues), and You'll Never Get to Heaven. Check out our full preview of the weirdo indie music fest here. American experimental musician Jason Lescalleet will also be in town for Songs About Nothing at Double Double Land with Jubal Brown. The night includes a huge line up of short films plus Lescalleet performing live.

• The 2014 Wavelength Music Festival
• Jason Lescalleet's Songs About Nothing
• The Beaver Bazaar
• exhibition opening: A. Logheart at Weird Things
• Laugh Sabbath

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

Photo of Zoo Owl via Facebook

This Week in Film rounds up noteworthy new releases in theatres, rep cinema and avant-garde screenings, festivals, and other special cinema-related events happening in Toronto.

REP CINEMA

Bigger Than Life: Jean-Luc Godard's Hollywood Classics (February 20 - March 22; TIFF Bell Lightbox)

Now that you've swallowed up all of the French New Wave master's early period, TIFF offers Toronto cinephiles the chance to (re)visit all the films at which Godard was winking, nudging, and ribbing in those films. Godard's 60s period was an extremely ambivalent one in terms of his relationship to Hollywood; his copious references to American cinema was as much filled with conspicuous scolds and finger wags as it was with homages and hat tips toward the films he respected and held dear.

Fortunately for us, the former Cahiers du Cinéma critic had impeccable taste. This week's screening in this month-long series is Orson Welles' noir classic The Lady from Shanghai (Thursday, February 20 at 6:30PM), a film as indebted to German expressionism as it was to Surrealism's hyperrealities.

More rep cinema with week:

• CINSSU's Free Friday Films: Harold and Maude (Friday, Feb. 14 at 7PM; Innis Town Hall)
• Horror Remix: Love [co=presented by Rue Morgue] (Friday, Feb. 14 at 9PM; The Royal)
• My Bloody Valentine (Friday, Feb. 14 at 11:30PM; The Royal)
• Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus (Sunday, Feb. 16 at 6:30PM; The Bloor)
• What Difference Does it Make?: A Film About Making Music (Monday, Feb. 17 at 8PM; The Royal)
• Rue Morgue CineMacabre Movie Nights: Delivery (Thursday, Feb. 20 at 9:30PM; The Royal)

SPECIAL EVENTS

The Free Screen: Tempo Não Para (Time Doesn't Stop) (Tuesday, February 18 at 6:30PM; TIFF Bell Lightbox)
The latest in TIFF's avant-garde-geared The Free Screen series is a program of both film and video works with "time" on the brain. "As the injunction Tempo Não Para reminds us, time doesn't stop: it rolls along cyclically, continuously, day through night and season through season. The play of time is both the inspiration and challenge for these varied and beautiful film and video works, each of which in its own way attempts to harness and channel that ceaseless flow through technological apparatuses and post-production effects."

Vector 2014 presents: Code in Motion - A Screening of Early Computer Animation (Wednesday, February 19 at 7PM; CineCycle)
Math meets art in this retrospective screening of canonical experimental works from major voices such as Norman McClaren, Evelyn Lambart, and John Whitney. Curated by glitch art aficionado and filmmaker Clint Enns as part of the Vector Game + Art Convergence Festival, the work in this program ranges from 1951 to 1976, and presents some of the earliest examples of computers playing a major role in avant-garde film practices. Tickets are $5 if purchased in advanced, or $7 at the door.

FILM FESTIVALS

TIFF Next Wave (February 14-16; TIFF Bell Lightbox)

"A festival for young movie lovers" goes the festival's slogan, but you'll find plenty in here for audiences of all ages, especially in the five-film marathon of cult classics that includes films such as Wes Anderson's Rushmore (Saturday, February 15 at 9:15PM) and Richard Kelly's Donnie Darko (Saturday, February 15 at 11:30PM).

The festival starts off with a bang in the form of a Battle of the Scores competition. Taking place on opening night, the event will feature six high-school bands, each performing their own scores of an original short film live. Oh, and there are also ten new films screening as part of the weekend-long festival, in case all of that isn't enough. Check out the full festival schedule, and purchase tickets, here.

Reel Artists Film Festival (February 19-23; TIFF Bell Lightbox)

Reel Artists in a nutshell: films made by artists, about artists. Comprising twenty medium-to-feature length documentary portraits of artists at work and at play, the festival - presented by the Canadian Art Foundation - is now in its eleventh year, and is the only festival in North America devoted exclusively to documentary films about visual art and artists.

This year's slate spotlights such internationally renowned artists as Nan Goldin, LaToya Ruby Frazier, Michael Heizer, and Vancouver's experimental cinema scene from the 60s and 70s - obviously among many others.

NEW RELEASES

• About Last Night (Cineplex Yonge & Dundas)
• Beijing Love Story (Cineplex Yonge & Dundas)
• Endless Love (Carlton, Cineplex Yonge & Dundas)
• Gloria (Varsity)
• Gunday (Cineplex Yonge & Dundas)
• Here Comes the Devil (The Royal)
• Odd Thomas (Cineplex Yonge & Dundas)
• Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer (The Bloor)
• RoboCop (Carlton, Scotiabank)
• 7 Boxes (Carlton)

Lead still from Donnie Darko, screening as part of TIFF Next Wave.

How did your bus or streetcar do in the last quarter of 2013? Probably not well, if the latest TTC rankings are any guide (and they may not be, but more on that in a moment.) On average, the Toronto Transit Commission's 174 active surface routes managed to operate on or close to schedule just 65% of the time from October to December.

By its own admission, the TTC's route performance indicator, which ranks reliability as a percentage based on how often a bus or streetcar arrives three minutes either side of schedule, paints an incomplete picture.

Let's take an example: The 31 Greenwood, the most reliable bus according to the rankings, benefits from a short route - Greenwood station to Queen Street and back - quiet traffic, and a frequent schedule.

On the other side of the coin, the 26 Dupont, which hits its target 59.09% of time, worse than the TTC average, is hobbled by a long route - Jane station to St. George station via Jane, Dupont, and St. George - heavy traffic, and an infrequent schedule.

(In the interest of fairness, the worst bus chart excludes several rush hour-only services that do not operate for the majority of the week.)

"The percentage doesn't really give a fair way of judging reliability," said the TTC's Chris Upfold in an email. "That's why we're moving to a Journey Time Metric, i.e. what we say your trip should take versus how long it actually takes."

The streetcar rankings tell another story. Both the 510 Spadina and 512 St. Clair score well thanks to a frequent schedule and a dedicated right-of-way that eliminates many of the problems of associated with operating in mixed traffic. Lines without a dedicated lane and a long, crosstown route, like the 501 Queen, tend to struggle with punctuality, according to the data.

The Downtowner and Kingston Road services score low because both operate only during peak hours. The 508 Lake Shore streetcar was excluded completely because it only operates seven times a day, giving it just 8.33% reliability.

Bottom line: Buses and streetcars work best when there's little traffic.

TTC PUNCTUALITY Q4 2013 RAW DATA [GOOGLE DOCS]

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: Paul Sherwood/blogTO Flickr pool.

Toronto Restaurant Openings highlights the latest restaurant openings and closings in Toronto and also gives a preview of what's coming soon. Find us here every Thursday morning.

OPEN

• Rose City Kitchen (406 Queen Street West) could open as early tomorrow, Friday February 14th. The new Middle Eastern snack bar has also announced plans to open another location with accompanying juice bar and coffee shop at King and Yonge in the coming months.
• Ze Ze, the new informal cocktail bar and cafe is now open at 1704 Queen Street West formerly home of Bar Salumi. Weekend brunch launches this week.
• Scaddabush Italian Kitchen & Bar at 382 Yonge Street opens on Tuesday, February 18th. The new spot is nestled between Duke's Refresher and Reds Midtown off Gerrard.
• Petal Dust Bakeshop is now open at 9301 Bathurst Street in Richmond Hill.

RECENT REVIEWS

• College Street Diner
• Latin World
• 420 Smokehouse
• Greenwood Smokehouse BBQ

OPENING SOON

• Fat Pasha, a new Middle Eastern inspired concept from Anthony Rose (Big Crow, Rose & Sons) is coming soon to 414 Dupont Street (until recently home of the Indian Rice Factory). [Toronto Life]
• The Irv Gastropub is under construction at 195 Carlton Street formerly home to Fare Game.
• International Mongolian hot pot chain, Little Sheep is soon to open a second location in Chinatown on Dundas West near Spadina.
• O Resto Lounge (7 King Street East), an open concept kitchen is slated to open in March with a menu that spans breakfast, lunch and dinner.
• Coffee Jazz Mixers, a new Indie coffee shop specializing in Turkish, French press, siphon and espresso coffees is opening in late March at 116-28 Finch Ave West in North York.
• Los Colibris, an upmarket Mexican concept is opening this spring above the just debuted El Caballito at 220 King Street West. [Toronto Life]
• The Forth, a contemporary Canadian concept from Brassaii chef Chris Kalisperas is opening a 150-seat restaurant at 629 Danforth Avenue. [Toronto Life]
• The latest food truck turned brick and mortar restaurant is Let's Be Frank. The hot dog shop has launched a pop-up at 689 King Street West.

CLOSED

• As we reported, Ole Ole at 169 King East is dunzo after just five months.

OTHER NEWS

• Cut The Cheese (2910 Dundas Street West) has been open a couple weeks, but celebrates its grand opening this Friday, February 14th with a "buy one get one half off" promo.

Have you seen restaurants opening or closing in your neighbourhood? Email tips to liora@blogto.com

Photo by scarbouroughcruiser

Toronto bars will soon be able to serve booze bright and early if Mike Layton gets his way. It would only be a temporary thing, but the Ward 19 Councillor thinks that allowing 6am alcohol sales over the final four days of the Winter Olympics makes sense in this hockey-crazed city. If all goes according to plan, of course, this stretch would include medal games for both the men's and women's hockey teams.

It remains to be seen if the motion will pass -- how will Rob Ford vote on this, one wonders? -- but it's not without precedence given the frequency with which last call is extended during events like TIFF, Nuit Blanche and NXNE. And while the thought of slogging through a day of week after an early morning drinking session isn't that appealing, the men's gold medal game takes place on Sunday, February 23rd, so you can bet there'd be more than a few people willing to drink away the day, particularly if the team once again wins.

What do you think? Would you head to a bar early in the morning to watch Olympic hockey?

Councillor Paul Ainslie wants city council to rename a "significant" street in Toronto in honour of Canada's first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald. Nationwide celebrations are planned for January 11, 2015, Macdonald's 200th birthday, and the name change would be part of Toronto's contribution.

A small number of cities, including Kingston, Ottawa and Saskatoon, already have roads named in his honour, and the 401 is officially the Macdonald-Cartier Freeway. Though it appears Ainslie is open to suggestions, A Toronto Star article published in December suggested the "bland" Avenue Road might be a good option.

Last week, Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong moved a motion asking city staff to report on whether Union Station could be renamed for Macdonald. A report is due in April.

Macdonald, a father of confederation and former Toronto resident, helped form the Canadian Pacific Railway and was an advocate for women's suffrage. In recent years, Macdonald's legacy has been a source of criticism, particularly due to his racist views of Chinese immigrants and Canada's First Nations people.

If the motion gets council approval, a report on the matter will be presented to the public works committee in Spring.

What street would be good, if any, to receive the name? Is this a better idea than renaming Union Station?

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: Andy Carroll/blogTO Flickr pool.

Want to learn a new skill? Toronto is full of classes that will teach you how to cook, play music, sail or get fit. But what does Toronto offer to those of us looking for something a bit less conventional? I've scoured the city to find the 10 wackiest skills to learn from underwater adventuring to how to ride a unicycle. So take your pick, grab some friends and prepare to get (creatively) weird.

Here are the top 10 wacky and random skills to learn in Toronto.

How to channel your inner lumberjack at the Backyard Axe Throwing League
If there's such a thing as the perfect place to get in touch with your inner stereotypical Canadian, this is it. Round up your plaid-clad pals and register your group to compete in the League - or, make your next birthday a literal bash by hitting the BATL's warehouse, the "BATL Grounds," for the event. Either way, fun times will be in full swing (get it?) as your group learns the techniques of a true timber cruiser.

How to blow glass like a champ at Playing with Fire
As if the name of the place doesn't entice enough, glassblowing studio Playing with Fire in the Junction offers workshops for anyone in need of a creative boost (or glass blown tumblers or other shiny, homey knickknacks). Their newest "Glass Hearts and T-Shirts," which runs until the end of February, is a hit - but if couple-y activities aren't really your thing, gather some pyromaniac chums for one of their other sessions to make sure the next thing you accidentally smash to bits is something you made yourself.

How to ride a unicycle at Toronto Unicyclists
If navigating your bike through Toronto's winter traffic has soured the sport for you, try hitting a one-wheeler. Toronto Unicyclists meet in the heart of the city year-round, and welcomes everyone from the uni-noobs to the super champs to come out and practice the art of avoiding face-plants.

How to (literally) clown around at Hart House
They say laughter is good for the soul, right? "Discovering your hidden clown" is the goal of this class, which welcomes even the non-funny. Whether you really do want to tap into your funny bone or just need to finally get over that lingering childhood phobia, these professionally-guided lessons will season you into an expert chuckle-inducing goofball.

How to battle like a knight at the Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts
Yeah, this is a thing. And there's selection: students can sign up according to their combat of choice, whether that be grappling, daggers, swords, armoured combat, spears, archery - or even mounted combat (yes, with horses). Whatever your method, prepare to join the ranks of your Holy Grail heroes.

How to body-paint at the Alchemy Center
Because who wants to paint on canvas when you can paint on yourself? The Alchemy Center offers body-painting workshops that will not only give your right-brain skills a nice tune up, but also let you appreciate your bod in a whole new way.

How to brew beer like an 1800s gent at Black Creek Pioneer Village
This may be the coolest DIY you'll ever undertake: try brewing your own beer in a nineteenth-century setting, using antique retired crafting methods - oh, and while sporting an 1800s-era costume. If you like beer, and you like old-fashioned things (like old-fashioned beer), take the Brewing with the Brewmaster workshop at Black Creek Pioneer Village and take home a 2-litre growler of your own hand-crafted ale.

How to print in 3D at the Hot Pop Factory
3D printing is one of those Next Big Things - one that you probably want to check out. The workshops offered at the Hot Pop Factory introduce students to this futuristic new technology, and even let students get their own designs printed in 3D. Bring your own laptop, mouse and USB stick and step into the future at one of these too-cool classes.

How to turn your trash into treasure at Toronto Recycling Arts
Art-loving environmentalists, rejoice: Toronto Recycling Arts (a member of the Neighbourhood Arts Network) teaches classes that let you turn found items into masterpieces. From art journals to sculptures and tons more, students will learn to think outside the (recycling) box to revamp old junk. While they're closed for the snowy season, their garden re-opens with the warm weather - and until then, you can invite them to your place for an in-house workshop.

How to shipwreck at Save Ontario Shipwrecks (Toronto Chapter)
If you're looking for an interesting summertime hobby, try searching past the shallow end: shipwrecking is crazy-fun, fascinating, terrifying and a good workout all at the same time (and no, you're not actually wrecking the ships - you're exploring them). Save Ontario Shipwrecks teaches underwater archaeological training courses that prep you to dive deep into the history drowned in Ontario waters, adventuring to some of the most popular local shipwrecks, uncovering their stories and learning to love their underwater environment.

Writing by Amanda Storey

Once home to the well regarded Acadia, this cozy restaurant on Clinton St. just north of College is now open as 1950s-style Brooklyn diner, featuring classic Italian sandwiches and other comfort foods. With an extensive cocktail program and a $6 Negroni on tap, there's more to wash down a sandwich than a cold can of Brio.

Read my review of Red Sauce in the restaurants section.

March 6th is Toronto's birthday, and that should be cause for celebration say two city councillors. In a motion to be presented at city council next week, Paul Ainslie and Mike Layton will ask city staff to investigate ways to officially recognize the day the Town of York was incorporated.

Right now, the city doesn't do much to mark the day it officially became a legal entity, probably because when it's phrased like that it smacks of dull formality. In 2009, the year Toronto turned 175, there was a year-long series of events, including a day of festivities at City Hall on the March 6th.

Toronto will turn 180 this March, making it a good a time as any to start a recurring event, say Ainslie and Layton. But how best to celebrate the city? A stat holiday would be nice but, let's face it, it won't happen. If the motion clears city council, the city manager will investigate "appropriate" ways to mark the date.

How do you think Toronto should celebrate its birthday? The late winter date doesn't lend itself to picnics and barbecues but perhaps an event like Quebec's Winter Carnival would work, provided it had a local twist.

Write your ideas in the comment section or tweet us with the hashtag #TO180.

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: Alex Indigo/blogTO Flickr pool.

Keele Street may not feel particularly central geographically in Toronto, but historically speaking its been home to various hubs of activity for over a century. From the Canada Packers Stockyards at St. Clair to High Park, it's a diverse street with a rich history. Even today, the presence of York University and the subway extension at its northern tip (at least as far as Toronto goes -- the street actually extends to the Holland Marsh), ensures that it remains a place where development chugs along.

In the past, the busiest section of Keele was located along the stretch between Dundas and St. Clair, which was home to a variety of industrial and manufacturing enterprises as well as the previously mention Stockyards. Photos from the early 20th century show a dense strip of road in the area, which was well served the by the junction of multiple railway lines that gave the neighbourhood its name (prior to be being called the Junction, the neighbourhood was referred to as West Toronto).

In conjunction with the presence of High Park (which opened in 1876), the absence of these rail lines around Bloor explains why development was slower to catch on around this section of Keele, which up to the early 1910s served as a city dump. To this day, the area south of Annette all the way down to the Lake Shore is primarily residential.

To the north of Eglinton, Keele is marked by the strip-mall aesthetic that one sees beginning to form in the last two photos below in 1959. While there's really no doubt that long stretches of Keele would fairly be described as unremarkable, when you get out and explore, it's easy to spot traces of the street's history in what seem to be banal places, and there's something rather rewarding about that.

PHOTOS

Keele & Indian Road, 1912

Remains of Keele Street Dump (at Bloor), 1914

Bloor & Keele, alternate angle (also 1914)

Keele Street Subway at Lakeshore, 1915 (now Parkside Drive)

Keele Street, 1919 (unidentified location)

Keele looking south from St. Clair, 1923

Keele south of Dundas, 1923

Keele south of Hirons, 1923

Keele looking north of Dundas, 1923

Dundas & Keele, 1923

Keele Subway at Junction Rd., 1923

Howard Park & Keele, 1923

Keele Street Stables, 1925

Runnymede bus stop, 1929

Northeast corner St. Clair & Keele, 1931

Southeast corner St. Clair & Keele, 1931

310 Keele St., 1952

Keele looking north from Lloyd, 1958

Keele & Wilson area, 1959

Downsview Market (Keele north of Wilson), 1959

Photos from the Toronto Archives

Walking west on Queen Street past University Avenue you'll encounter a perfectly normal looking Georgian building, which if you didn't know its story might seem as though it was somehow spared redevelopment over the years if only because of its proximity to Osgoode Hall. In fact, the house was originally located at Adelaide St. and Frederick St. Built in 1822, its one of the best examples of what buildings used to look like before the Town of York became Toronto. It's also a structure that the City of Toronto took significant measures to preserve at a time when this was a rarity.

How did this all come to pass? Well, the building was uprooted and plopped in a new location so as to save it from being demolished. On March 31st, 1972 Campbell House was moved through streets of Toronto on a flatbed truck while a throng of interested viewers took in the spectacle. It took over six hours to make the one and half kilometre journey to the new site, the majority of which took place along Adelaide Street, which was stripped of traffic lights and low-hanging Hydro lines in preparation for the move.

When the last owners of the building prior to its move announced plans to demolish Campbell House, a Lawyer's group called the Advocates' Society took the building off of , but they needed significant help from the City to make it happen. One of the perks the group received was a tax-free provision for the property at the northwest corner of University and Queen, something which not every councillor was in favour of. Ultimately the City did vote to grant the special status and Campbell House subsequently became part public museum and part private lawyers club.

Photos from the Toronto Archives

Toronto has been referred to as "the city within a park," an observation that tends to ring true when one takes a look at this map put together by Kyle Baptista of Park People, a local organization devoted to improving our green space. There are over 1600 parks plotted on the map above, which naturally stand out against a background devoid of streets or other cartographic information.

Perhaps what's most interesting about this map is the degree to which one can easily pick out our ravine systems and long lost rivers. The Humber and Don are, of course the easiest to spot, but a good eye should also be able to locate the remains of Garrison Creek in the spotty remains of parkland running up from Fort York. Other features like the Belt Line Trail and High Park are also a cinch to pick out.

The map is obviously pared down to the barest essentials, but on account of this very strategy, it highlights the degree to which we're spoiled with green space in Toronto. It may be a bit of a challenge to spot your local park on this map, but the next time you're looking to explore for an extended period of time, this could very well be used as a starting point.

Check out a high resolution version of the map here.

Family Day 2014 in Toronto makes one wintery Monday in Ontario a little more tolerable. This year's holiday finds the Brewer's Backyard returning to Evergreen Brickworks with four breweries ready for you to sample their wares. You can also take a tour of the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres, the last surviving "double-decker" theatre complex in the world. Early Monthly Segments returns to The Gladstone with several shorts by Canadian artist Sandra Meigs (who will be present), and Lula Lounge hosts a Family Jam this afternoon.

Want more family day events? Check out this post for a more comprehensive round-up including a list of what's open and closed today. Be sure to also check our events section where there are a lot more events listed. Below are our top picks of what to do today.

• Early Monthly Segments #60 - Sandra Meigs in person!
• Family Day Free Tour of the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres
• Brewer's Backyard: Goldibocks and the Three Beers
• Family Jam

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

Elgin and Winter Garden Theatre by Jackman Chiu

The best public library in Toronto might be the one near where you live, or the one where you grew up, or the one you'll travel to because of the books in its collection, or a well-lit space by a window with a view. In any case, the Toronto public library system is a hundred-year accident that saw a philanthropic impulse meet with a rich man's generosity and the tiny library systems set up a dozen townships and municipalities to coalesce into the constantly evolving network of bookrooms all over Toronto.

Toronto's public libraries began over 200 years ago with a subscription reading room in Elmsley House, Upper Canada's parliamentary building. Over the decades, subscription libraries and reading rooms began springing up in fire halls and Mechanics Institutes all over what would eventually be called the GTA. City Hall created the public library system with the Free Library By-Law in 1883, but it was Andrew Carnegie who helped turn Toronto's libraries into esteemed parts of the streetscape.

You might use them to check e-mail, to cram for exams, organize your neighbours to fight City Hall, or simply to enjoy refuge in what remains one of the last relatively quiet places in the city. Chances are, though, you don't use them enough, so hopefully this will serve as a useful guide to the best the city has to offer.

Here are the best public libraries in Toronto.

Toronto Reference Library
When Raymond Moriyama's downtown reference library opened in 1977, it was probably the most futuristic-looking building in Toronto - in a brutalist, carpeted '70s kind of way. The bunker-like entrance led past a fountain and a curtain of knit art to open into a massive, dazzling atrium that, for generations of students, has meant "time to buckle down and study." A recent renovation, complete with revamped entrance, Balzac's Coffee, clear glass meeting and study pods and several neato digital upgrades has kept the TRL futuristic, only now it's more Gattaca than Logan's Run.

Bloor/Gladstone
Designed by Alfred Chapman the man who gave us the Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion and the Princes' Gate, this branch was the first wholly paid for by the city, and opened in 1913. It was expanded in the '70s by the architect's son, Howard, and again just a few years ago in an award-winning renovation that added a glowing glass box to the west of Chapman's building, an update that pours light into the space and set a standard for the preservation of the city's historic libraries. The tranquil reading garden, a particular hit of the latest reno, is being copied in subsequent updates to TPL branches.

Lillian H. Smith
You make your way into the most imaginative library in the TPL system past the griffin and winged lion guarding the doors. It's utterly evocative for the home of the children's lit and sci-fi collections, on the edge of U of T's downtown campus and a short walk from Kensington Market. The Lillian H. Smith branch began as the Boys & Girls House Library on Spadina north of Bloor, and moved to its new home on College in 1995. Its meeting rooms are the sort of place where kids' comic shop Little Island will host their Comic Arts for Kids Expo, and where the library holds regular meetings of Storygami, its origami club.

High Park
One of three libraries built by Eden Smith with Carnegie's second grant, it has clones in Wychwood and the Beaches, though subsequent renovations have significantly changed all three buildings. The adjacent neighbourhood is family central so the kids' room on the main floor is always busy, but if you show up at the right time you can find a quiet spot upstairs and leaf through the library's collection of Polish books, a remnant of the recent past on Roncesvalles.

Runnymede
The stylized stone totem poles on either side of the entrance to this library are a reminder of the first great period of Canadian nationalism, back when the Group of Seven were mythologizing our landscape. The building is meant to echo colonial Quebec, and thanks to a sympathetic addition by Bruce Stratton in 2005, it gained space, light and views, looking out on a park behind the library.

Wychwood
When it opened in 1916, it was a big, open room with high windows and a lot of empty space. Like its Carnegie sibling at High Park, the years have filled in a lot of that empty space with bookshelves, furniture and stairs, and until a flood closed it down earlier this year, Wychwood was in need of a refresh. Repairs have hopefully pushed ahead a scheduled update, and when it reopens later this month Wychwood should be tidier and brighter.

Yorkville
Built with money from the first Carnegie grant, this little gem just around the corner from the Toronto Reference Library opened in 1907 and succeeded the first branch of the Toronto library system, which had opened in Yorkville Town Hall. Renovated in 1978 and 2010, the library is the home of a fine local history and theatre collection, as well as the TPL's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Collection.

Parkdale
Opened in 1909 just outside the neighbourhood's border, the original Parkdale Carnegie library is now the home of the Theatre Centre. (If it looks familiar, it's because it was also designed by Robert McCallum at the same time he was building the Yorkville branch.) It finally moved to Parkdale proper in 1964, into the bunker-like building at Queen West and Cowan. A refresh in 1999 updated the library, which is probably one of the most well-used in the system, and home to books in Chinese, Tamil, Hindi and Tibetan, as well as the Rita Cox Black & Caribbean Heritage collection.

Mt. Dennis
The latest renovation in the TPL's ongoing refresh of its branches, the new Mt. Dennis branch opened last year to rave reviews. The new building is built on the bones of an '80s renovation of a simple but functional '50s building whose original floors can be found in the basement of the new library. The TPL gets better every time it puts up a new building or refreshes an old one, and the maze-like '80s building has been replaced with an airy, open space that still features some quiet corners, like the bench by the big front windows, and the reading garden tucked into a onetime alleyway.

Maria A. Shchuka
Beginning life as the main branch of the York Township library, it was renamed in honour of the head librarian of the onetime municipality before being demolished and replaced with Diamond & Schmitt's glass and brick cube in 2003. This is where the TPL turned a corner, both on new buildings and renovations, by commissioning unique facilities instead of working to a standard template. Bright and open, with a flexible floor plan to adapt to changing library usage, this Eglinton West branch library showcases the TPL at its best.

Riverdale
Another Carnegie library, this dignified building commanding the corner of Gerrard and Broadview is probably the ceremonial entranceway to Toronto east of the Don. Renovated several times since then, it houses the Chinese language collection you'd expect from a branch at the heart of the city's second Chinatown, and a local history section highlighting the Don Jail, its nearest neighbour.

Pape/Danforth
There are a few storefront libraries in the TPL system, most of them satellite branches to serve areas in need, but this little jewel box was built to blend into the streetscape in the same year as the Wall Street crash. Retrofitted several times since then, it was comprehensively renovated by Hariri, Pontarini Architects in 2006, it retained its mock tudor facade but gained big new windows and skylights that flood light into a fresh, white-walled space.

Photo by photoanalysis on Flickr

Today we're opening up voting in our latest Best Of poll. Now you can have your say in 10 categories including souvlaki, spas, book stores, candy stores and more.

Take the best of poll here

Voting in the poll ends at midnight on Tuesday February 25th.

Photo by Freight-Train in the blogTO Flickr pool.

Today in Toronto ground-breaking Canadian electro-industrial music project Skinny Puppy hit Sound Academy with Army of the Universe. If you're more in the mood for the theatre, George Bernard Shaw's play about about a brothel owner's relationship with her daughter, Mrs. Warren's Profession, previews tonight at the Sterling Studio Theatre.

• Skinny Puppy + Army of the Universe @ Sound Academy
• Spookey Ruben's Dizzy Playground LIVE! featuring Maurizio Guarini of GOBLIN and more!
• Mrs. Warren's Profession by George Bernard Shaw
• Bowl for Kids Sake Cosmic Bowling and Pub Night

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

Photo by di Matteo Bosi

The first closure of the year from DineSafe goes to the behemoth Chako Barbeque Izakaya restaurant in Scarborough this week for failure to prevent an insect infestation. Ew. Gobo Sushi, on the other hand, managed to stay open despite nine infractions.

See the rest of this week's worst DineSafe offenders below.

Chako (2190 McNicoll Ave)
Inspected on: February 12, 2014
Inspection finding:Red (Closed)
Number of infractions: 3 (Minor: 1, Significant: 1, Crucial: 1
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to prevent insect infestation
http://www.toronto.ca/health/dinesafe/index.htm?show=detail&id=1050

Gobo Sushi (836 College St)
Inspected on: February 11, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 9 (Minor: 3, Significant: 5, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to maintain hazardous foods at 60C (140F) or hotter

Evas Delicatessen (9 Roncesvalles Ave.)
Inspected on: February 11, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 4 (Minor: 1, Significant: 1, Crucial: 2)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to maintain hazardous foods at 60C (140F) or hotter. Operator fail to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated.

Mildred's Temple Kitchen (85 Hanna Ave)
Inspected on: February 10, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 2 (Minor: 1, Significant: 2)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Kiva's Bagel Bakery & Restaurant (1027 Steeles Ave W)
Inspected on: February 11, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 2, Significant: 3)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Naomi (112 Atlantic Ave)
Inspected on: February 11, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 2 (Minor: 1, Crucial:1)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to maintain hazardous food(s) at 4C (40F) or colder

TAT Burger (1118 College St)
Inspected on: February 13, 2014
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 2, Significant: 3)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

This massive Middle Eastern restaurant with a communal concept bakes pita and flat breads to order alongside traditional dishes and spreads like mezze, fattoush salads and falafels. Those looking for more modern offerings mike take interest in an arak sour cherry poutine and the lineup of unique cocktails.

Read my profile of District Oven in the restaurant section.

212 Indian Grove is a well-maintained eest end semi that's a five minute walk to High Park. This is a house that wears two hats (roofs?): it's currently set up as two 2-storey units but could be converted back into a single family home without much of a struggle. This might be the ideal opportunity for a couple hoping for an income property right now and planning for kidlets down the road.

At the moment, the owner-occupied second and third storey apartment is mostly move in ready. Refinished hardwood floors, a new kitchen with butcher-block counters and large windows are all standout features. The income property downstairs could use some fix-up before conversion--those turquoise cabinets should probably get out of town--but the unit is rented to a long-term tenant and nets a decent $1400 each month. A message to that tenant: sorry for showing these photos of your space, but your apartment looks very neat and tidy (love that pink table).

This patch of residential streets is known as the West Bend and sits comfortably between the Junction, Roncesvalles and the eastern edge of Bloor West Village. I live in this neighbourhood, and I'm shamelessly biased, but really, it's the best. There's a palpable sense of community pride. The streets may be quiet, but there are plenty of amenities within walking distance--everything from coffee and records at Cabin Fever to a killer karaoke night at Jekyl & Hyde. Just make sure not to mix up your "Indian"-named streets when giving out directions to visitors.

SPECS

• Address: 212 Indian Grove
• Price: $739,000
• Sq-Ft: 2,700
• Bedrooms: 5 (including 2 in the basement)
• Bathrooms: 2
• Storeys: 3
• Parking Spaces: 2 car garage in laneway
• Taxes: n/a

NOTABLE FEATURES

• Newly-installed bamboo floors in upstairs unit
• Heated floors in the second storey bathroom
• New patio and landscaping in the backyard

GOOD FOR

Making it to the Keele subway station each morning in record time, taking your dog to the off-leash areas of High Park, or rolling balls at the West Toronto Lawn Bowling Club up the street. The High Park North area is extremely popular with renters and finding new tenants for the main/lower floor apartment, if that time should come, won't be a difficult task.

MOVE ON IF

This type of house won't work for everyone right out of the gate. If you're searching for a single family dwelling, consider that the renovations needed to convert this place probably won't be massive but they might be pricey.

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Read other posts in this series via our House of the Week Pinterest board.