The new issue of Spacing — with an 18-page cover section focused on food in the city — will hit newsstands and your mailboxes next week. A whack of boxes arrived at our office today (see photo bel0w) while another shipment just got to our mailing house. If you subscribe to Spacing expect to see your issue by the end of next week (if you don't subscribe, maybe you should reconsider). If you pick up a copy on newsstands expect the issue to ...

A group of prominent urbanists — Eric Miller (director of the Cities Centre at U of T), Paul Bedford (former chief planner for Toronto), Richard Sommer (dean of U of T’s architecture school), and Richard Florida (director of the Martin Prosperity Institute) — have penned a letter to mayor Rob Ford and Toronto city council urging them to reconisder the recently unveiled "plan" for the Port Lands. The letter has been signed by 148 academics, planners, designers, and activists, and will be formally presented at a press conference at 1:30 today. You can read their letter on the Scribd web site. CodeBlue, a local organization opposed to the Ford plan, also released a complimentary "reality check" for city council to consider. Their 24-point report builds on the sentiment 1. Nothing is happening on the waterfront REALITY CHECK: A carefully coordinated collaborative process is now bearing fruit. Just take a look at Corus Quay, George Brown College, the wave decks, Sugar Beach, Sherbourne Common, Mimico Waterfront Park, Port Union Waterfront Park, and improvements to the Martin Goodman Trail. Companies like Great Gulf, the Hines Corporation, and Castain are investing. The Athletes’ Village is taking shape on the West Don Lands to be ready for the PanAm Games in 2015. Toronto’s waterfront is currently the largest regeneration operation in North America, with some $2.6 billion of private-sector investment already committed. All of this is possible because of Waterfront Toronto’s detailed advance planning, as well as its investment in necessary infrastructure and spectacular public spaces. 2. Waterfront Toronto has dropped the ball on the Port Lands REALITY CHECK: Waterfront Toronto has received world-wide recognition for: getting waterfront development moving and on the right track; engaging the public and the development industry and; producing award-winning new waterfront neighbourhoods – not just clusters of condominiums. A multi-year effort has produced a new Official Plan for the Lower Don Lands and zoning for the Keating Channel Precinct, which is ready to go. The Environmental Assessment for naturalization and flood protection along the Lower Don River is complete. It is sitting at the Ontario Ministry of the Environment right now. Until it’s signed, Waterfront Toronto and private-sector developers have to wait. Why the hold- up? Last spring, without Council’s knowledge, Mayor Rob Ford asked that the process be halted. Only he can get it going again.

While I attending Earl Haig Secondary School in the early 1990s, the construction of subway lines suddenly became a fascinating interest to me. There was a debate raging at the local level about whether residents would support North York mayor Mel Lastman's dream of a Sheppard subway line — which would be built about 1km away from my childhood home. At the same time,  a new station was being added to the Yonge line — North York Centre — two blocks away from my high school. Fast forward a decade: I was working as the art director of The Hockey News and the magazine's office had just moved from Yonge and College and into the Nestlé building at Yonge and Sheppard. By this time, I was reverse commuting, taking transit from Little Italy up to "downtown North York." The Sheppard line had been under construction for 2 years and was another year from opening. On the first day the line opened, I took a ride to Don Mills and back. I got out and examined the art on each platform and the architecture of the stations. At that point, I had spent 10 years listening to my grandparents (active residents association members), neighbours, and local politicians talk about how great the subway was going to be for the area. Sadly, I was underwhelmed. And after another 10 years of watching the subway in operation — mostly as a public space advocate and civic commentator — I still feel that the Sheppard line has failed to meet much of the potential that was promised to residents. Which brings me to Rob Ford's promise from the 2010 election. It seems, come hell or high water, he wants to build an extension east from Don Mills station out to Scarborough Town Centre. This may be the only promise he made during the election that he seems willing to keep.

One of the ways to counter the negative attitude that is engulfing Toronto — thanks to such things as small-minded and commie-free Facebook groups — is to remind ourselves of the good things we have in this city. That's why I've started this little series asking our readers about their favourite bits and pieces of Toronto. Last week I asked about your favourite Toronto bridges. Today, I'd like to know this: what is your favourite water fountain or water feature in Toronto? photo by Miles Storey

During my coast-to-coast road trip this summer (I'll have more posts on the trip over the coming weeks) I crossed over a wide variety of bridges. Some of them were remarkable (Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver, Laviolette Bridge in Trois-Riveres) while others were simply charming (Finlay Bridge in Medicine Hat, Broadway Bridge in Saksatoon). It got me thinking about which of Toronto's bridges I'd consider as some of my favourites. I think the Humber Bay Pedestrian Bridge would top my list, followed closely by the Bloor/Price Edward Viaduct. So I put ...

To coincide with the launch of Spacing's first national issue, the magazine presents the Spacing Road Show, a tour of 10 Canadian cities this summer. In each city Spacing will host an event with a panel discussion and party. The western swing of the Road Show takes place between June 16-to July 5. The eastern Canada jaunt runs from July 19-25. The Spacing Road Show is sponsored by BMO SmartSteps for Homeowners and supported by Autoshare and the Canada Council for the Arts. WINNIPEG —The first event of any tour — whether it's a rock show or a magazine launch — can be a little nerve wracking. Especially when it's in a city where no one has ever really heard of you and you're relying on social media, word of mouth, and a little media whoring to get asses in the seats (I got myself and the Road Show promo'd on Breakfast Television, CBC Radio, and the local Metro paper). I was eating dinner at the Winnipeg Free Press news cafe (I love the idea of a newspaper having a ground level cafe!) about 30 minutes before the doors were supposed to open at the gallery when I received a call that people were already arriving. This was a good sign and my nervousness was easily replaced by excitement. The three panelists that took part in the panel — Richard Milgrom (University of Manitoba, Planning), Christopher Leo (University of Winnipeg, Political Science), Robert Galston (local blogger of Rise and Sprawl) —were wonderful speakers and provided local insight into where urbanism is headed in Winnipeg. Probably the most amusing part of the night was the seating. If you look closely at the photo above the people sitting along the back wall were actually on top of bundles of hay. The hay is for an upcoming exhibit in the gallery, but the gallery's curator Joe Kalturnyk and myself set up the bushels as makeshift bleachers. There is nothing more urban than hay, right?

To coincide with the launch of Spacing's first national issue, the magazine presents the Spacing Road Show, a tour of 10 Canadian cities this summer. In each city Spacing will host an event with a panel discussion and party. The western swing of the Road Show takes place between June 16-to July 5. The eastern Canada jaunt runs from July 19-25. The Spacing Road Show is sponsored by BMO SmartSteps for Homeowners and supported by Autoshare and the Canada Council for the Arts. PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE IS AN EVENT IN SASKATOON TONIGHT WINNIPEG — After 24 hours of driving through Ontario over a three day period, I finally set foot in Winnipeg. I arrived a few days in advance of the first Spacing Road Show event (last Thursday) so I could get the blood running through my legs once again. Tomorrow (hopefully) I'll give a short report on the event and some of the things I saw while in Winnipeg, but I thought I'd give a little insight into my trek just to get out of Ontario.

Back in Spacing's spring 2010 issue, we featured a photo essay by Surendra Lawoti that focused on the life of people living in the Don Valley. Lawoti’s detailed and large-scale images focus on the makeshift shelters and their inhabitants that can be found along the river, as well as the recreational users of this green urban space. It is through the people he pictures that we begin to understand the dynamics of this landscape. This Saturday May 14,  Lawoti will discuss his photography series with me at Gallery ...

Thanks to all of Spacing's readers who braved the cold and long-weekend blues on Monday to show up to the El Mocambo for our 20th release party. Photographer Yvonne Bambrick captured a handful of images of our guests, as well as our Create Your Own Fantasy Toronto Transit Map contest. You can see all of the photos in Spacing's photostream at Flickr.

Back when the Pinko button-craze was full blown, we sent a handful of buttons and magnets to Don Cherry and his sidekick Ron MacLean. We hoped he'd wear a button on his weekly Coach's Corner, but he shied away from even mentioning the incident. Yesterday, Spacing received a postcard from Cherry. On the front of the card he wrote "thanks for helping the Home", a reference to the Darling Home for Kids where some of the proceeds from the button sales will end up. On the back he ...