THE BUZZ New street food vendors approved, page 12 Chinatown’s dragon boat team, page 6 MAY 17, 2013 VOL. 18 NO. 5 At the heart of Ottawa since 1995 CENTRETOWNBUZZ.COM What makes a UZZ community B As summer starts, we celebrate the services, ENTRETOWNevents and groups that make a neighbourhood C 2 CENTRETOWNBUZZ.COM MAY 17, 2013 May 17, 2013 — Vol. 18, No. 5 Letters to the editor THE Admiring the bravery ing place, with the friendly the part of their hearts that is edge that their homes will CEN T RE T OWN of new Canadians folks I run into. still with home and long-ago always await them, if only in I visit many stores along relatives. Some have visited their memories, as those will Walking down Pres- my walks and delight in home but others have not in be with them forever. ton Street the other day, I speaking with the owners, years and you can see and I tip my hat to them all. BUZZ couldn’t help but notice all mostly Italian and Chinese. I hear the silent sadness in What a brave thing to do. We At the heart of Ottawa since 1995. the changes over the years. make small conversation and their eyes and speech as they thank you. As a senior, I remember we end up discussing their continue with the conversa- 101-210 Gloucester St. Preston Street as “Ottawa homes in Italy and China, tion. In all sincerity, Ottawa, ON Road #73.” and the fondness of their As a Canadian, I don’t K2P 2K4 There was hustle and young life before coming to think I could handle leaving Joanne D. Samson Phone: 613-565-6012 bustle back then, as it is to- Canada. Ottawa, my home, for anoth- Gladstone Avenue day. Mind you, there came to No language barrier here. er country. How brave they be more spaces until it grew They discuss the hardships are to make a better life for www.centretownbuzz.com into today’s beautiful meet- in their homeland but also those they love in the knowl- twitter.com/centretownbuzz facebook.com/centretownbuzz Construction confusion Centretown BUZZ Staff Managing editor Kathryn Hunt | [email protected] Associate editor Eleanor Sawyer City editor David Gladstone | [email protected] Distribution managers Archie Campbell & David Seaborn [email protected] Advertising The BUZZ is proud to offer an effective advertising medium that reaches 10,000 Centretown homes and businesses each month. Our competitive advertising rates are as low as $28 per issue. View our rate card and publishing dates at centretownbuzz.com. For more information, email [email protected] or call 613-565-6012. Next Issue KATHRYN HUNT / THE BUZZ The next issue of The BUZZ will be published In the “Take on Centretown” column in the March issue of The BUZZ, which discussed planned construction June 14. Contact the managing editor on the block housing the former European Glass & Paint, #488-500 Bank, it was mistakenly stated that the for submission deadlines. building pictured above—#502-510 Bank—was also being considered for demolition. In fact, there are no plans for construction on this site. Vaughn MacDonald, owner of Black Squirrel Books, said, “I was only made Mail Subscriptions aware of the article recently, but the other shop owners, and my own employees, have been receiving condo- lences from customers on our assumed closure.” The BUZZ apologizes for any confusion. Annual subscriptions to The BUZZ are available at a cost of $25. Please send cash or cheques to the #488-500 Bank, which is the planned future site of C4, a nine-storey condo building that will be part of the address above. South Central group of condos being built by Urban Capital, is pictured below. Thank you to our carriers Archie Campbell, Audrey Brewster, Bayne Pearen, Bill Filleter, Bill Hingston, Brian Gilligan, Carol Sis- sons, Catherine Boucher, Charles Akben-Marchand, Charles Gregory, Chris Edwards, Craig Haynes, Craig Layng, David Gladstone, David Perkins, David Seaborn, Drina Wethey, Eleanor Sawyer, Erin Sallie, Gabrielle Yensen, Georgia Lay, Glynda Newton, Gor- don Harding, Jennifer Bedwell, Joan Spice, Jordan Charbonneau, Kim Malcolm, Maija Kagis, Martha Musgrove, Michael Hatfield, Michael Powell, Michelle Kirkham, Murray Shaw, Pat Shaulis, Patrick Garcia, Rob Byrne, Sean Darcy, Shelley Pearen, Sue Stefko, Tim Young, Wendy Bennett, Matthew Young, Will Murray, Zsofia Orosz. To join our distribution team, please call 613-565-6012 or email [email protected] The Centretown BUZZ is published by the Centretown BUZZ Board of Directors, a group consisting of community members representing all residents of Centretown. The Centretown BUZZ operates under the guidelines of the Canadian Copyright Act. © 2013 Centretown BUZZ KATHRYN HUNT / THE BUZZ MAY 17, 2013 CENTRETOWNBUZZ.COM 3 Self-directed learning centre tackles current education system by Samantha Lem founded the Compass Cen- Next year, the fully-fledged pleting the program, Morson versity or the University of lot of freedom and you trust tre to provide teenagers with program will charge $7,500 said that there is a number of Vermont. Some do unusual them, you just have to wait ince his first day an alternative to the current per year. paths alumni can take. and cool things, like Cirque and see what emerges from in Grade 4, Joshie education system. They both Located in the Bronson Members at the Compass du Soleil training. Some oth- that.” S Zeithmmel has dread- hold teaching certifications Centre, the Compass Centre Centre are legally recognized ers have started their own Zeithmmel agreed with ed going to school. and university degrees. sprawls across three rooms. as homeschoolers, so they business, like a computer Karos, saying that this greater Despite trying five spe- “We’re not trying to say One is the office, where a can apply to post-secondary animation business,” he said. freedom “changed his life.” cial education programs that school is bad,” said big whiteboard outlines the schools through a separate “There’s really no limit.” Sitting on the couch, at various public schools, Karos. “We’re just saying week’s schedule. Logic, con- process. However, Karos admit- Zeithmmel played a comput- Zeithmmel still struggled that it doesn’t work for ev- ceptual physics and drum- But Morson quickly added ted that a number of people, er game he programmed for with a reading disability. eryone and there needs to be ming are just some of the un- that post-secondary educa- especially parents, oppose a project last month, while During recess, he was often an alternative.” conventional classes that fill tion should not be seen as the the program because “our others sat in biology class taunted and teased by other The Compass Centre’s the time slots. The adjoining “be-all and end-all” for teen- society generally supports across the hall. students. program is modeled after room has three couches for agers, as some may choose to traditional education.” “I’m learning to read fast- So when Zeithmmel heard North Star, a 16-year-old teenagers to relax and so- directly enter the workforce. Karos leaned back in her er and I can do what I really about the Compass Centre self-directed learning centre cialize. Across the hall is the According to the co- office chair and pointed up at like, which is computer pro- for Self-Directed Learning, in Massachusetts. Morson centre’s sole classroom. founder of North Star, Ken the giant whiteboard beside gramming,” he said, keeping the 13-year-old left school used to work at North Star Since the Compass Cen- Danford, North Star’s 300 her. his eyes fixated on his laptop mid-Grade 8 and enrolled at before opening a centre in tre does not follow a cur- alumni have pursued a vari- “A lot of people think screen. “I’m just really inde- the centre. Canada with Karos. riculum, Karos said that the ety of career paths. this idea is ludicrous, but it’s pendent here and I love it.” Now, having been at The program is based on schedule is constantly chang- “Some go to traditional only ludicrous in the way the the Compass Centre since the idea that everyone learns ing, depending on teachers’ colleges, like M.I.T., Brown current system is set up,” its opening date in January, best through self-motivation. availability and members’ University, McGill Uni- she said. “If you give teens a Zeithmmel said that learn- Teenagers are given the inde- interests. ing is more enjoyable. He pendence and freedom to set All teachers are volun- said that he can read what their own learning agenda teers who are knowledgeable he wants and does not have based on their interests and in a particular area. If a teen- to worry about bullies any- skills. ager is really interested in the more. “The day could be made subject, they will get a proj- The Compass Centre is up of classes or tutorials, ect to work on independently the first centre in Canada working on an independent or with a volunteer. to offer a full self-directed project or working on so- The Compass Centre does learning program. It does not cializing and building social not give its members tests, call itself a school but rather skills. Each teen can decide grades or assignments either. a not-for-profit learning cen- their own schedule,” said Morson said that this elimi- tre for teenagers aged 12 to Morson. nates competition between 18. It has 10 members cur- The Compass Centre is the members and allows rently enrolled. currently in its pilot program, them to appreciate the pro- Co-director Abby Karos which will end in June.