Latest news with #WoodGreen
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Chimney swifts' housing crisis creates hurdle for affordable housing providers
The chimney swift is a disappearing bird that originally nested in hollow old-growth trees. After those forests were logged, it found a creative solution — it moved into chimneys in human cities. But now it faces a new housing crisis. Thanks to modern heating technology and regulations, many chimneys are being capped, demolished or modified with a metal liner that makes them unsuitable for swifts. And now, efforts to protect the bird are bumping up against efforts to ease the housing crisis for people. Municipal councillors in Leamington, Ont., as well as Toronto-based affordable housing provider WoodGreen, have run into this paradox over the past year — and in both cases learned that preserving swift habitat can lead to higher costs for housing providers. In Leamington, about 55 kilometres southeast of Windsor, Ont., council wanted to demolish a school and use the land for "attainable and affordable housing." But because the school had a chimney where swifts were nesting, it required the approval earlier this month of a $640,000 plan to build a new home for the birds. As Mayor Hilda MacDonald told CTV News, "You could build a pretty nice home" for the cost of the swift habitat. "You could house some people who are facing housing precariousness with an expenditure like that," she said. "And here we are building a place for birds?" But conservation advocates say creative solutions have benefits for both the birds and their human neighbours. Neighbours under threat If you live in an urban area from Manitoba east to Nova Scotia, there's a good chance you've heard chimney swifts as they flit high overhead in the evening while hunting insects, says Allison Manthorne, aerial insectivore conservation strategist for the non-profit group Birds Canada. "They make this really unique kind of 'chittering' sound," she said, noting that most people don't know what species they're hearing. "So although they're ubiquitous across the landscape in Eastern Canada, they're just really not well known." They spend most of their lives high above us, beaks open, gulping insects that make up "aerial plankton." Manthorne likens them to baleen whales in the sea. Chimney swift populations have fallen 90 per cent since the 1970s. They're listed as threatened with extinction both federally and provincially across their Canadian range. Manthorne, who is based in Sackville, N.B., said that's mainly due to a decline of the insects they eat and the loss of their own habitats for nesting and roosting — typically, chimneys. What it means for chimney owners The birds are protected under both species-at-risk laws and the Migratory Birds Convention Act. If swifts are found nesting in a chimney, the building owner needs a federal or provincial permit to alter it. To get the permit, they might need to maintain the chimney, build a new one "or find equivalent habitat elsewhere," nearby, Manthorne said. Both Leamington council and WoodGreen needed to find alternative swift housing that was located within two kilometres and was at least as tall as the original nesting sites. WoodGreen's property was a century-old church with three chimneys in Toronto's east end. When the congregation had trouble affording upkeep, they worked with WoodGreen to find a solution. They decided to demolish and redevelop about two-thirds of the building into 50 units of affordable housing for seniors, while retaining the facade and some space for the congregation, said Darlene Cook, WoodGreen's director of growth and development partnerships. At a community meeting about the plan, a resident informed them that swifts were nesting in the church's chimneys. An investigation by consultant Beacon Environmental found a total of seven birds in the chimneys — two nesting pairs and some "helpers." Coincidentally, Geoff Cape, the CEO of WoodGreen's builder, The Assembly, was also the founder and CEO of Evergreen, a non-profit that runs a community and park space called Evergreen Brickworks. It is located at a nearby former quarry and brick factory, which once had four tall brick chimneys, each bearing one of the words in "Don Valley Brick Works." One, bearing the word "Valley," remains. It stands 26 metres high in the middle of a children's garden featuring edible plants like corn and squash, a brick pizza oven, a water cistern and a pump. Cape proposed the chimney as a possible replacement for the soon-to-be-demolished church chimneys, Cook recalled. Lois Lindsay, chief program officer at Evergreen, said the chimney had been deteriorating for decades and was capped in 2008 to protect it from further damage. Evergreen knew the chimney was a potential swift habitat and wanted to restore and uncap it but "we really didn't have the money." Luckily, given its obligations, WoodGreen paid for the full chimney restoration. It could not provide an estimate of the specific cost, but said the money came out of its $19.8 million budget for the affordable housing project, funded by the City of Toronto through the federal Rapid Housing Initiative. Benefits for birds… and people Evergreen's chimney was uncapped this spring and has been monitored by Beacon Environmental. Beacon's CEO and senior ecologist Brian Henshaw said a number of chimney swifts have already been spotted circling above the chimney and diving down as though about to go in. That's a "good sign," he said, since the birds usually "check out" a nesting site for a year or two to ensure it's stable and predator-free before nesting in it. He added that the Evergreen Brickworks chimney has the potential to do more than the two short chimneys it replaced. While short chimneys are suitable for nesting, the taller chimney has the potential to be a "roosting site" where dozens or hundreds of birds can rest. Swifts must roost in chimneys because their foot anatomy makes it impossible for them to perch in trees. WATCH | Hundreds of swifts will funnel into a single chimney to roost overnight:[MEDIA] Evergreen Brickworks has already put up interpretive panels about the swifts at its children's garden. "We are super excited to incorporate chimney swift education and programming ... and can't wait to welcome the swifts back," Lindsay said. As for WoodGreen, its partial demolition of the church is complete and it hopes to finish construction of its 50 apartments in the spring of 2026. Meanwhile, despite some grumbling, Leamington's council approved a plan to build three free-standing artificial chimneys to replace the school chimney — one 15 metres high like the original chimney, one four metres high, and one 5.5 metres high. They'll be clustered along a trail with some benches, greenery and signs about the swifts. "It could lead to some education, give the community someplace to visit," Robert Sharon, Leamington's director of infrastructure services, told council. He added that if swifts end up using the smaller chimneys, that could loosen future requirements and make accommodating swifts easier and less expensive. Manthorne said the challenges faced by Leamington and WoodGreen aren't unique. Up until recently, there was a successful federal chimney swift restoration fund, which helped with the cost of building and restoring structures such as chimneys — costs that typically range from $5,000 to $130,000. Although there is a waitlist for funding, Environment and Climate Change Canada had not yet decided as of this week whether to renew it. Manthorpe said some situations can look like a conflict between housing birds and housing people, but noted that both housing and biodiversity crises exist. She added that people benefit from protecting biodiversity — including swifts, which share our cities and eat a lot of insects. "So they're providing pest management. They're really a joy for a lot of people," she added. "I think it's really important, especially now, to really consider how we can coexist with nature and how we can solve these problems collaboratively instead of [it] just being an us-versus-them problem."


CBC
4 days ago
- General
- CBC
Chimney swifts' housing crisis creates hurdle for affordable housing providers
The chimney swift is a disappearing bird that originally nested in hollow old-growth trees. After those forests were logged, it found a creative solution — it moved into chimneys in human cities. But now it faces a new housing crisis. Thanks to modern heating technology and regulations, many chimneys are being capped, demolished or modified with a metal liner that makes them unsuitable for swifts. And now, efforts to protect the bird are bumping up against efforts to ease the housing crisis for people. Municipal councillors in Leamington, Ont., as well as Toronto-based affordable housing provider WoodGreen, have run into this paradox over the past year — and in both cases learned that preserving swift habitat can lead to higher costs for housing providers. In Leamington, about 55 kilometres southeast of Windsor, Ont., council wanted to demolish a school and use the land for " attainable and affordable housing." But because the school had a chimney where swifts were nesting, it required the approval earlier this month of a $640,000 plan to build a new home for the birds. As Mayor Hilda MacDonald told CTV News, "You could build a pretty nice home" for the cost of the swift habitat. "You could house some people who are facing housing precariousness with an expenditure like that," she said. "And here we are building a place for birds?" But conservation advocates say creative solutions have benefits for both the birds and their human neighbours. Neighbours under threat If you live in an urban area from Manitoba east to Nova Scotia, there's a good chance you've heard chimney swifts as they flit high overhead in the evening while hunting insects, says Allison Manthorne, aerial insectivore conservation strategist for the non-profit group Birds Canada. "They make this really unique kind of 'chittering' sound," she said, noting that most people don't know what species they're hearing. "So although they're ubiquitous across the landscape in Eastern Canada, they're just really not well known." They spend most of their lives high above us, beaks open, gulping insects that make up "aerial plankton." Manthorne likens them to baleen whales in the sea. Chimney swift populations have fallen 90 per cent since the 1970s. They're listed as threatened with extinction both federally and provincially across their Canadian range. Manthorne, who is based in Sackville, N.B., said that's mainly due to a decline of the insects they eat and the loss of their own habitats for nesting and roosting — typically, chimneys. What it means for chimney owners The birds are protected under both species-at-risk laws and the Migratory Birds Convention Act. If swifts are found nesting in a chimney, the building owner needs a federal or provincial permit to alter it. To get the permit, they might need to maintain the chimney, build a new one "or find equivalent habitat elsewhere," nearby, Manthorne said. Both Leamington council and WoodGreen needed to find alternative swift housing that was located within two kilometres and was at least as tall as the original nesting sites. WoodGreen's property was a century-old church with three chimneys in Toronto's east end. When the congregation had trouble affording upkeep, they worked with WoodGreen to find a solution. They decided to demolish and redevelop about two-thirds of the building into 50 units of affordable housing for seniors, while retaining the facade and some space for the congregation, said Darlene Cook, WoodGreen's director of growth and development partnerships. At a community meeting about the plan, a resident informed them that swifts were nesting in the church's chimneys. An investigation by consultant Beacon Environmental found a total of seven birds in the chimneys — two nesting pairs and some "helpers." Coincidentally, Geoff Cape, the CEO of WoodGreen's builder, The Assembly, was also the founder and CEO of Evergreen, a non-profit that runs a community and park space called Evergreen Brickworks. It is located at a nearby former quarry and brick factory, which once had four tall brick chimneys, each bearing one of the words in "Don Valley Brick Works." One, bearing the word "Valley," remains. It stands 26 metres high in the middle of a children's garden featuring edible plants like corn and squash, a brick pizza oven, a water cistern and a pump. Cape proposed the chimney as a possible replacement for the soon-to-be-demolished church chimneys, Cook recalled. Lois Lindsay, chief program officer at Evergreen, said the chimney had been deteriorating for decades and was capped in 2008 to protect it from further damage. Evergreen knew the chimney was a potential swift habitat and wanted to restore and uncap it but "we really didn't have the money." Luckily, given its obligations, WoodGreen paid for the full chimney restoration. It could not provide an estimate of the specific cost, but said the money came out of its $19.8 million budget for the affordable housing project, funded by the City of Toronto through the federal Rapid Housing Initiative. Benefits for birds… and people Evergreen's chimney was uncapped this spring and has been monitored by Beacon Environmental. Beacon's CEO and senior ecologist Brian Henshaw said a number of chimney swifts have already been spotted circling above the chimney and diving down as though about to go in. That's a "good sign," he said, since the birds usually "check out" a nesting site for a year or two to ensure it's stable and predator-free before nesting in it. He added that the Evergreen Brickworks chimney has the potential to do more than the two short chimneys it replaced. While short chimneys are suitable for nesting, the taller chimney has the potential to be a "roosting site" where dozens or hundreds of birds can rest. Swifts must roost in chimneys because their foot anatomy makes it impossible for them to perch in trees. WATCH | Hundreds of swifts will funnel into a single chimney to roost overnight:[ MEDIA] Evergreen Brickworks has already put up interpretive panels about the swifts at its children's garden. "We are super excited to incorporate chimney swift education and programming ... and can't wait to welcome the swifts back," Lindsay said. As for WoodGreen, its partial demolition of the church is complete and it hopes to finish construction of its 50 apartments in the spring of 2026. Meanwhile, despite some grumbling, Leamington's council approved a plan to build three free-standing artificial chimneys to replace the school chimney — one 15 metres high like the original chimney, one four metres high, and one 5.5 metres high. They'll be clustered along a trail with some benches, greenery and signs about the swifts. "It could lead to some education, give the community someplace to visit," Robert Sharon, Leamington's director of infrastructure services, told council. He added that if swifts end up using the smaller chimneys, that could loosen future requirements and make accommodating swifts easier and less expensive. Manthorne said the challenges faced by Leamington and WoodGreen aren't unique. Up until recently, there was a successful federal chimney swift restoration fund, which helped with the cost of building and restoring structures such as chimneys — costs that typically range from $5,000 to $130,000. Although there is a waitlist for funding, Environment and Climate Change Canada had not yet decided as of this week whether to renew it. Manthorpe said some situations can look like a conflict between housing birds and housing people, but noted that both housing and biodiversity crises exist. She added that people benefit from protecting biodiversity — including swifts, which share our cities and eat a lot of insects. "So they're providing pest management. They're really a joy for a lot of people," she added. "I think it's really important, especially now, to really consider how we can coexist with nature and how we can solve these problems collaboratively instead of [it] just being an us-versus-them problem."


The Sun
6 days ago
- The Sun
Migrants ‘illegally working as delivery drivers' nicked in ANOTHER Home Office raid
MIGRANTS suspected of illegally working as delivery drivers were nicked in another Home Office raid yesterday — after the Government gave out the locations of asylum hotels. We revealed how platforms like Just Eat and Deliveroo would be able to block users from taking orders at known asylum accommodation sites. 1 Yesterday Immigration Enforcement officers questioned a number of delivery riders in Wood Green, North London, where at least one man was detained. A photo shows officers talking to the men, including some wearing Just Eat uniforms. One rider suspected of working illegally, who was wearing a beige t-shirt, was searched and placed in the back of a van. It comes two weeks after another Immigration Enforcement raid on the Thistle City Hotel in Islington, Central London, which had been used as a hub for illicit gig economy jobs. When The Sun returned to the hotel on Tuesday we found delivery rider bags and e-bikes were still parked in a fenced-off enclosure outside the three-star hotel. And we saw a steady stream of riders coming and going despite pledges by the Home Office to crack down. Delivery firms that fail to properly vet their workers could face £60,000 fines each time an illegal worker is picked up. But two migrants charged with illegally working – the first since our undercover investigation – as riders failed to appear in court last week.


Daily Mail
17-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Boys aged 15 and 16 are charged after attack on 11 Met police officers as they tackled gang of shoplifters
Two teenage boys, aged 15 and 16, have been charged after 11 police officers were injured in an attack whilst they were tackling a group of shoplifters. When officers arrived in Wood Green, north London, just before 5pm on Tuesday, a number of people attacked them, the Metropolitan Police said. All of the cops suffered minor injuries and were treated at the scene by the London Ambulance Service. The boys, aged 16 and 15 from Wood Green and Ilford, were charged with assault on a police officer on Wednesday 16 July, the force said. They have been released on bail and are due to appear at Highbury Corner Youth Court on Thursday 7 August. Passersby who gathered around to watch filmed the chaotic scene from multiple angles and posted the clips on social media. Videos show crowds of people surrounded by police vans and cars whilst officers were clashed with people on the street. Seven other people were arrested or held in relation to the incident. A boy, 12, was arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated public order and criminal damage. A girl, 13, had been held for common assault along with a boy, 15, who was detained for assaulting a police officer. Another 15-year-old boy is in custody on suspicion of affray, and a 16-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police officer. Two women, aged 20 and 29, were also held for assault. A spokesperson for the Met Police said: 'Four teenagers, a child and two adults remain in police custody after they were arrested following a large disturbance in High Road, Wood Green at 4.53pm on Tuesday, July 15. 'Officers responded to reports of a large group attempting to steal items from a shop in Wood Green. 'Upon their arrival, seven people attacked officers and were subsequently arrested for assaulting a police officer, racially aggravated public order, affray, common assault and criminal damage. 'Enquiries are ongoing.' Anyone with information can contact the Met via 101, quoting 6112/16JUL.


BBC News
17-07-2025
- BBC News
Two teenagers charged over attacking Met officers in Wood Green
Two teenage boys have been charged after 11 police officers were injured while dealing with a group of shoplifters in Wood Green, the Metropolitan Police boys, aged 16 and 15 from Wood Green and Ilford, were charged with assault on a police officer on Wednesday 16 July, the force have been released on bail and are due to appear at Highbury Corner Youth Court on Thursday 7 Metropolitan Police said officers were attacked by a number of people when they arrived in Wood Green just before 17:00 BST on Tuesday 15 July. Police officers who were hurt were treated at the scene by ambulance crews for minor women, a child, and two teenagers were arrested on suspicion of offences including assaulting a police officer, racially aggravated public order, affray, common assault and criminal child was released with no further action and the others have been bailed pending further investigation.