TORONTO ADVERTISING HALL OF SHAME | PEOPLE FOR A CLEAN CITY
The Toronto Advertising Hall of Shame's (TAHS) only purpose is to focus community, government, and advertising industry awareness on the growing decay of our city environment by thoughtless businesses using our streets, traffic signs, utility poles, and transit shelters for advertising, making Toronto appear like a third-world city. The TAHS is not affiliated with any government agency, industry group, or other special interest. |
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Send us your photos, thoughts, ideas, complaints: torontoadvertisinghallofshame@gmail.com
All submissions are reviewed and posted the same day
Toronto Advertising Hall of Shame reserves the right to edit submissions to better conform with community standards for language and privacy.
I am not attacking since I am not offended with your harassment on small and legitimate businesses trying to make a living. At least they advertise looking for work, they are proud of their business and they don’t hide their identity. It just amazes me how much hypocrisy and ADD transpires from your actions. In your case you hide your name because you know that you have been using City of Toronto logo illegally. You harass people pretending that you care about the city. In fact, you fuel your buddy’s column at Toronto Star, which by-the-way, is by far the largest polluter in the city. Toronto Star readership has been declining rapidly.... The postings of start-up internet businesses help in the decline of the printing media, thank God. Toronto Star and The Sun and others would benefit to have connections and people like you to stir things up. You will pretend to defend the city from the postings and lawn sign, your friend will have something to write about and make a few bucks and the newspaper will have an excuse to print more trash and sell more advertising. Nice try. Thousands of tons of useless paper seem to be not of your concern. Now I understand why. There is always an underlying reason for someone’s action. You are afraid to post your full name and contact info because you realize that your harassment, blackmail and pretending to be the city’s agency without any authorization might get you on a collision course with the law. (sic)
Jerzy Makarczyk 416-835-5945
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Dear Sir/Madam,
When was the last time you hired a disabled person? I have one who prefers to post flyers than beg for money on the street. Perhaps your company needs a little more advertising since it doesn’t look very successful, at least on the internet. Or maybe it successful and it doesn’t need to advertise. Maybe a disabled person would be perfect for your business. Send me a request and I will direct him to your offices for posting your flyers or maybe you can offer him a better job. If you are so smart post yourself with your ”achievements”, a full name and contact info so we can all admire you and people like my person will not have to plaster ads in your neighbourhood. For now posting ads gives a poor boy a chance to pay for his internet, food a small basement apartment. Give me a call when you are ready to hire him at 416.835.5945. So far I am the only one helping him and I can hardly wait to see you taking part in making the world a better place to live. Thank you in advance. (sic)
Jerzy Makarczyk 416-835-5945
Ps. A lot of losers out there just talk and
they can’t even get a half decent website
going, never mind actually helping others in
need. Talk is cheap.
Dear Jerzy,
Your response is welcome but wish it were a bit more
civilized. The Toronto Advertising Hall of Shame has
discovered commerce is best served within the laws of
the land; vandalizing city and community property,
regardless of who you hire to do the work, does not justify
poor citizenship. Vilifying your opponents is not regarded
as a civilized method of discourse. Threatening freedom of
speech provided under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms
is a reportable offense.
Garcia
Dear TAHS,
I'm starting my own contracting business from home and want to put advertising stickers on traffic signs and traffic light poles like everyone else. Give me two good reasons why I shouldn't.
Ready to stick you, Scarborough.
_______________________
Dear Sticky,
1. It's illegal. Just because the city is lax in enforcing the rules, doesn't make the practice legal.
2. You will be a junk advertiser and some people seeing your handy work will not call you for work.
(Here's a third one for free) 3. You will be adding to the mess your fellow contractors have made of our city.
Advice: Be a good guy. Take the high ground. Do the right thing. Use your community newspaper for advertising or hire some kids to go door-to-door with your flyers.
Garcia
TAHS,
My neighbours and I removed over 100 Alpine Roofing signs this weekend from Royal York Road between Dixon and Summit Crest Drive and that probably wasn't even half of them. What a mess these people made of our neighbourhood. Doesn't the city even care about this problem? Or are they happy to get their licensing fee for trashing our communities?
Elizabeth A., Etobicoke
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Dear Liz,
I guess the city doesn't care. What other explanation
can there be? Alpine Roofing is right up there with
Avenue Road Roofing as Toronto's worst junk advertisers.
Garcia
Dear TAHS.
The city recently replaced many of the street light poles in our neighbourhood with new ones. It took an average of just two days before an asphalt paving company plastered the new poles. Doesn't anyone in the city care about this. I mean their phone number is right on the junk ads and they've been doing this for years.
R. Smythe, Etobicoke
_________________
Dear R.,
The company you refer to is
City Asphalt Sealing,
of
Richmond Hill, Ontario.
They are amazing.
The stick
their junk signs to everything
but baby carriages. Clearly, they
don't care about
our city. As for the City officials, one does have to
wonder. There is no license one can purchase for
plastering mail boxes, traffic signs and street lights. Call City Asphalt to complain
and call Toronto's John
Romano at 416-394-2536.
Garcia
TAHS,
I have noted your concern and I will ensure that it is reviewed.
Best Regards,
Hanna Paterson
Rogers Communications
Hanna.Paterson@rci.rogers.com
______________________________
TAHS,
Thank you for bringing the issue to our notice. We have communicated our discontentment about the issue to the subcontractors who were retained to distribute the posters to HRSDC centres, community centres, and to post the flyers at community bulletin boards. We have asked them to stop the postering with immediate effect. As a responsible company, we appreciate that you have taken the initiative and we would like to let you know that Adventa will not be continuing with the current subcontractors.
Once again, thank you for your initiative to keep our city clean.
Abimanyu (Abi) Singam
Tel: 416 264 5133
Fax: 416 492 2930
pr@adventajobfair.com
www.adventajobfair.com
Adventa Job and Career Expo Inc.
Dear TAHS,
My husband I spotted Alpine Roofing junk signs all around the new Palais Royale this weekend. Gads, what a way to welcome visitors to our city - with junk signs. We pulled into the new parking lot and I jumped out and pulled the signs out of the ground and placed them in a proper disposal receptacle.
Andrea C.
_______________________________
Hello Visitors,
One of Toronto's most important tourist attractions is this
Alpine Roofing junk sign. Hope you enjoy it and tell all
your friends about our excellent junk signs.
Garcia
TAHS,
That is a lie Garcia, I never placed one poster on Clements or Widdicombe Hill. The signs you removed were on Brampton Rd. by the soccer fields so the soccer girls would have a option for a winter sport to keep fit.
Davies
_________________________________________
Thank you Davies,
Garcia stands corrected. Etobicoke-Ringette Skate signs
were/are posted on Brampton Road in addition to Clement
Road, Widdicombe Hill Blvd., and Lloyd Manor.
Most important, however, is knowing we sometimes plaster
our neighbourhoods with good intentions.
Garcia
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UPDATE
Since the original publication, September 4, 2007, Indoor Soccer and Ringette have expanded their junk sign distribution as far south as Lakeshore Blvd.
Dear Garcia,
Two men in a white pickup truck yelled at me from across a street last weekend while I was taking a sign down. They said they were calling the cops. Have I done something wrong?
Emily from Scarborough
_____________________________
Dear Emily,
I am not a lawyer and I cannot give legal advice. However, Garcia has discovered that most signs we see polluting our city are illegally posted and anyone has the right to remove them. Safety first! If you feel threatened by the these guys in the white pick up truck, retreat politely. This has happened to Garcia as well. I usually just say thank you, explain calmly that I am with a neighbourhood cleanup campaign and withdraw to return another day. Fact is, many junk advertisers and their junk agencies do not have municipal licenses for their grubby work, and licenses are not issued for posting advertising on traffic signal poles, traffic signs, utility poles, and in city parks. So, seems like we are all on safe ground. Besides, are they going to take you to court? Not very likely. Next time, use your cell phone camera to take a picture of anyone threatening you and give it to the police.
Garcia
Dear Garcia,
I had to take this sign down to mow the lawn in front
of my house near Kipling and Princess Margaret.
Drake in Etobicoke
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Dear Drake,
Good work! Tell your neighbours to get busy taking signs
down. Profesionalroofers.com is owned by UXDU Contracting, Inc., 216 Ryding Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario M6N 1H5. 416.604.9765 (voice).
416.244.2225 (FAX). Email : astrid.roman@sympatico.ca
Garcia
Dear Garcia,
My neighbour across the street is a contractor and puts his advertising signs out on the curb along with the trash cans. Both the cans and signs make our block look really crappy. What can I do about this without getting him angry?
Nivea in Toronto
___________________________
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Dear Nivea,
Your neighbour is just doing what all the other junk advertisers are doing - messing on your street. You might make it a point to visit him in person and introduce yourself if he is unknown to you and simply mention you are helping take care of the block and his commercial signs, while helpful to his business, infringe on the beauty of the area and lessen property values. Besides, who wants to do business with a polluter? No one.
Good work.
Garcia
Garcia,
Why is that so many our our neighbourhood junk signs putter-uppers are roofers?
Don't roofers generally have a poor reputation?
Gus T., The Lakeshore
___________________________
Dear Gus,
It is pretty amazing. So many contractors have less than exemplary reputations when it comes to contracts with homeowners that you'd think junking homeowners' neighbourhoods would just spread the icing on the cake.
Hi,
What's the record for junk signs removed in one day? Does anyone know? My husband and I removed 31 signs this weekend.
Nancy, Scarborough
__________________________
Dear Nancy in Scarborough,
You've done well cleaning our city! Not all sign removals are reported, however, we know of one couple removing 35 signs in a weekend. Your catch may be the best one-day record. It's a never-ending task because junk advertisers never give up.
Thank you and your your hubby from everyone in Toronto.
Garcia
Dear TAHS,
Do you think it's possible these junk advertising agencies are hiring taxi drivers to post this crap in their off times?
Meter running in The Lakeshore
___________________________
Dear Meter,
There's one we haven't thought of before. Let's keep our eyes open for this possibility on our streets. Makes sense, I suppose. Taxis are out late at night with little to do.
Garcia
Dear TAHS:
What's the story with you guys? Why do you have to even have this BLOG and web stuff? Why doesn't the city just pass a regulation against junk advertising on our streets? Didn't Etobicoke have a law like that before amalgamation?
Ugggggly Traffic Sign, Etobicoke
_____________________________
Dear Traffic Sign,
Therein lies the question. The phone numbers are right on these dang signs. It's easy to track these polluters. There must be a reason the city doesn't do it? What do you think that reason can be?
Garcia
Good Morning:
I want to commend you on your website and your attention to this important issue.
We at JuNK iT! firmly believe that these illegal signs are a blight on the city and refuse to participate in this form of advertising.
Thank you for organizing this effort and best of luck.
Chris Luciano, President and CEO
itchener-Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge and Area Direct: 519.568.5595 | Fax: 905.338.3542
Toll Free: 1-866-JUNK-IT-NOW (586-5486)
Proud Supplier of Services to HGTV’s My Parents’ House, Home to Stay and Colin and Justin’s Home Heist
.
| Date: | 18 Oct 2007 09:54:17 -0700 |
| To: | "Garcia Garbage" <torontoadvertisinghallofshame@yahoo.ca> |
| From: | sales@metrozonehealth.com |
| Subject: | your junk sign advertising |
Thank you for contacting us at Metrozone Health,
We will contact you within 24 hours. Your Interest is
appreciated in our company and Products, if you would
like to receive more information,please visit our
website www.metrozonehealth.com or call us directly at 416-466-0911
or toll free at 1 (888) 466 0911 Have a Great Day!
_____________________________
Dear Metrozone Health:
Waiting.
Garcia
_____________________________
October 26, 2007
Still waiting.
Garcia
Hey you guys,
Do these junk sign people you're always digging on ever respond to you? What do they tell you?
Re-signed neighbour
_____________________________
Dear Re-signed,
Few ever respond. Those who do usually state one of the following reasons/excuses:
1. Everyone else does it.
2. I'm just a small business person trying to make a living.
3. We can't afford real advertising.
4. We employ people who would out of jobs if we didn't advertise on traffic signals.
5. That what we do back in (country of origin).
6. Nobody even cares.
7. How come the big guys can do it and we can't.
Doesn't it all sound like spoiled teenagers complaining to their parents about staying out late?
Garcia
Hey TAHS,
I put a brand new trash can out in front of our Beer Store on Weston Road and someone slapped a junk sticker on it the very next day. Are there trash can spies waiting to trash my trash can?
A Beer Store Guy
_________________________________
Dear Store Guy,
Evil reigns everywhere.
Garcia
Garcia,
Wouldn't the city make more money by collecting fines for junk signs than from licensing some junk signs?
Baffled.
_______________________________
Dear Baffled,
That makes good sense.
Garcia
JUNK |
Most Recent BLOG Entries |
TAHS,
Won't the piles of winter snow put an end to junk lawn signs, at least until Spring?
Snowy Christmas Person
______________________
Dear Snowy,
Perhaps, the snow will deter some messing our neighbourhoods. But with our first snow December 2nd, it's clear junk signs will be stuck in snow piles by some persistent community polluters. But, Christmas is a time of hope and good will. Perhaps some of the Christmas spirit and sense of community welfare will rub off on all the junk sign advertising agencies and other junk sign polluters. City Lights, for example, uses street signs to paste their junk signs for Christmas lights. We can only hope for the best .... but expect the worst.
Merry Christmas,
Garcia
You're right!
Right after I saw your blog about snow not being a problem for some junk advertisers, I saw Alpine Roofing sticking signs in the ground in front of my house and my neighbour's house on Kipling and Princess Margaret. I pulled them out and threw them away. I did take a picture but my finger got in the way a little. I'll take another picture on the weekend cause Alpine has plenty of signs in our neighbourhood that need to come down.
Alpine Slippery Slope.
______________________
Dear Alpine Slippery Slope,
You are correct as well. Alpine Roofing is a
slippery customer. Do they know any bounds
for working in Toronto communities?
Garcia
Hi TAHS,
I never wrote to one of these things before. Someone is sticking signs in the snow bank at the corner of my driveway. We keep taking them away, but they keep putting them back. I live on Princess Margaret in Etobicoke. Before when my husband shoveled snow from the sidewalk and driveway, he had to pull the signs out of the snow. Now it's all ice and and more difficult for him to remove and I'm afraid he might have a heart attack trying to pull the signs out of the ice. I don't know why these people are sticking signs on my property. I guess is because we live on a corner. It's ugly and we will keep pulling them out. I thook this pciture with my cell phone camera. I hope it's ok. I'm afraid to call them myself.
Madeline.
Dear Madeilane,
The signs on your property were put there by the city's alleged worst junk sign polluter, Avenue Road Advertising.
We will pass this along to your city councillor, Gloria Lindsay Luby.
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TAHS, Painted in Etobicoke Dear Painted, This is an American company doing business in Canada without telling anyone on their signs that are red, white, and blue and sticking your neighbourhood with junk signs. Your city councillor is Gloria Lindsay Luby, 100 Queen Street West, Suite B38.
Toronto, ON M5H 2N2 Help by removing some of these signs yourself. Garcia |
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TAHS, I tried calling this Bin King place on the number. It's a cell phone I think. Indisposed. _______________ Dear Indisposed, Could this business be unlisted, unlicensed, untaxed? Garcia |
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How in the world can these guys sleep at night? They stuck almost every traffic sign and street light on my block. I hate this! Makes my house and my block (East Mall) look cheap and dirty. |
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TAHS, I've been reading your blog stuff and thought I'd ask if this sign I found on my lawn this week is from that same Avenue Road Advertising place you keep mentioning? Nobody asked me if they could put their Annoyed in Etobicoke __________________ Dear Annoyed, We don't know if it's the same company. It's interesting their signs look very much like those of one of the city's worst junk sign polluters, Alpine Roofing. Maybe you can find out and let us know. Meanwhile tell your city councillor. |
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Hey Garcia, You an man or a woman? Either way you got a big set, if you know what I mean. Who are these creepy people slopping up our city? I pay taxes to put up street lights and traffic lights not places for these miserable people to put their advertising. How come those guys at City Hall don't get off their duffs and help us out here. (anonymous) _______________ Dear Anon, Thanks for the compliment... I think. Your local polluter is Splash WC, Inc., They live in a postal box. P.O.Box 421 Station T, Toronto M6B 4A3. 416-652-3074. Your city councillor needs to hear this from you. Meanwhile, join us in taking some of their signs down. Garcia |
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TAHS, I keep seeing more and more landscaping signs around nailed to trees and high up on street light and utility poles. Some of them are like 15 feet off the ground. How do they get away with it? High on the East Mall __________ Dear High, They often have someone stand on the top of a truck and fix the signs to street light, traffic light and utility poles. The one to the left has been on the pole for more than a year. No one in Etobicoke seems to care. Call your city councillor and take down the roles you are able to handle. Garcia. |
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TAHS, My daughter pulled this sign out of the ground at Silvercreek Park Waterford Drive. Those junkie signs are ruining our park and whoever puts them there doesn't have the concern, respect, or common sense of my 10-year-old daughter. Up a creek __________________ Dear Creek. Your daughter needs to run for city councillor from your ward. Your present one doesn't see the problem. Garcia |
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Snip and remove
those signs! Free wire snips to remove those pesky, polluting junk signs strapped to traffic lights, traffic signs, and utility poles with wire or plastic straps. Removing these junk signs is easy. Just snip the wire or plastic strap and dispose of the sign properly. Need a pair of snips? We'll send you one free. Just send your postal information using the contact email. Your information is never shared |
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TAHS, I've seen what must be 50 signs for this stucco company in my neighbourhood all around Lloyd Manor. Me and a buddy have removed some and plan to get more later this week. They're all over the place. Stuck in Etobicoke _____________ Dear Stuckee, Thanks for helping to clean your neighbourhood. You're dealing with Maple Stucco Ltd., 416 832- 4647. FAX: 416-785-8975. 606 Roberts Avenue, Toronto M6E 4R7. maplewallsystem@hotmail.com. Call your city councillor to complain. Does Maple Stucco think their junk signs look as nice as their stucco craftsmanship? Garcia |
TO: TAHS buddy, you have too much time on your hands to worry about other peoples business and wasting time on a cheap website. statistics canada show that these signs posted on the poles is a great source advertisment. better than the newspaper! these signs are only illegal in the city of vaughan. what you really have to do is find a real job. maybe call one of those companies and apply! me_1010@live.com (sic) _________________ Dear me_1010@live.com, Society is all about watching out for the best interests of the community, not about junk sign effectiveness. Legal or not, junk sign advertising pollutes our neighbourhoods without regard for those who live there. It's typical, self-centered, I- can-make-a-loonie-this-way, so-mind-your- business. Society is not about personal attacks on the citizenship of others; too many wars have been fought over that idea. So, like UN Peacekeepers, local residents will have to protect their own neighbourhoods the best they can by making our elected officials more aware of polluters' activities and removing, as best they can, signs in their own neighbourhood until Toronto figures out what Vaughn is doing right. TAHS |
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TAHS I just read the jerky note from the me_1010@live.com guy. It burns me. This is just the kind of person who thinks it OK to put advertising in schools and playgrounds and sell high-caffeine drinks in vending machines in schools to kids because he can and because he can't sell cigarettes there anymore, regardless of what it does to our kids. It comes under the category of "I'll do what I damn well please as long as I can get away with it!" It's exactly what my teenage son says to me. By the way, my son's been grounded for two weeks. Father of the grounded. _______________ Dear Father of the Grounded, Well said. TAHS |
Do city councillors receive campaign donations and other cash for pet projects from junk sign advertisers? Alert Toronto residents want to know and are finding out. Watch here for information as it is developed. |
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TAHS, My son and daughter and I takes walks now on weekends starting today (April 6, 2008) and we are taking wire snips with us to take those junk signs down from of traffic lights and traffic signs. I was surprised how many there were for "Security Cameras" all along Eglinton, East mall, Renforth, all the way to Kipling. We took some down Today but we'll do more this week. I don't think my city Councillor cares as much about it as my kids do. Signee in Etbocike. |
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TAHS, My wife and I removed 11 junk signs for a moving company called imovecanada. How much do you think those signs cost? Moved in TO TAHS |
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Councillor Lindsay Luby Dear Garcia: |