Phew! The TTC won't strike — for now

Plus, Ford's cabinet shuffle and the gentrification of Moss Park [The Star] First Up [By Kevin Jiang] By Kevin Jiang Good morning. Here’s the latest on the TTC strike, Doug Ford’s pre-hiatus major cabinet shuffle and sweeping gentrification coming to a downtown neighbourhood. DON’T MISS Andrew Francis Wallace/The Star labour [The TTC and union negotiators reached a framework settlement to avoid a strike]( Toronto has narrowly avoided a total transit shutdown — for now — after the TTC and its front-line workers’ union reached a last-minute framework settlement on a new contract before the midnight deadline Thursday, Mahdis Habibinia reports. “It is a tentative deal. We just need to cross the Ts and dot the Is,” TTC CEO Rick Leary said. Specific details of the three-year agreement won’t be revealed until union members have reviewed and voted on it; the deal needs majority support to be ratified. [Here’s what we do know](. - Go deeper: While Leary believes the new agreement is a “very good deal” that workers will ratify, the union president emphasized the settlement is just a framework. [The last TTC strike in 2008 began after union members rejected a similar tentative deal](. - Context: [Sticking points in the contract negotiations include wages, job security and the contracting out of maintenance jobs](. The two sides have been trying to reach a deal since February; the union has been without a contract since March 31. Canadian Press/Chris Young provincial politics [Doug Ford shuffled his cabinet and promoted an MPP embroiled in the Greenbelt scandal]( Ontario’s legislature will look different when it returns from an extended summer hiatus. Doug Ford made dramatic changes to his cabinet after ending the legislative session a week early yesterday, swapping longtime education minister Stephen Lecce and energy minister Todd Smith — on top of moving 14 ministers and expanding his executive council to 36, Robert Benzie, Rob Ferguson and Kristin Rushowy report. Ford is so confident the RCMP investigation into his $8.28 billion Greenbelt land swap scheme will not touch his office, he even brought back Steve Clark — who resigned as housing minister last September over the scandal — to be government house leader. [Here’s what you need to know](. - More: The most significant change is plugging Lecce into the rebranded Ministry of Energy and Electrification, with increased responsibilities for electric vehicle infrastructure and boosting Ontario’s nuclear power generation. - What we know: Ford’s move comes as the premier mulls an election next spring, a year earlier than scheduled. The latest polls show his Tories are in good shape, [enjoying 39 per cent support, compared to the Liberals’ 26 per cent and the NDP’s 22 per cent](. Giovanni Capriotti for The Star toronto [New development will transform one of Toronto’s lowest-imcome areas — for better or worse]( The Garden District and Moss Park area has housed some of downtown’s lowest-income residents for more than a century. But now it’s rapidly changing, with approximately 40 new developments emerging in the area — including luxury condo towers and an upscale hotel, Reanna Julien reports. Experts say the sweeping gentrification — dramatically raising property prices and the cost of goods and services — could force lower-income residents and small businesses out, while ushering in an influx of transportation vehicles and disputes over street space. [In an increasingly expensive city, where are low-income Torontonians meant to go?]( - Why it matters: Local community workers, church leaders and longtime residents fear the rapid development in the area is squeezing one of Toronto’s last viable pockets for those living in deep poverty. [Can a neighbourhood change without pushing people out?]( - Silver lining: While changes in traffic and increased costs of operations will likely hammer small businesses, business owners are generally optimistic the expansion will be good for operations given the new residents, tourists and students who will occupy the coming developments. WHAT ELSE [Israeli airstrikes killed 18 displaced Palestinians in central Gaza overnight, just a day after Israel killed 33 people]( including women and children, sheltering in a UN-run school. Should the truck driver who caused the deadly Humboldt crash be allowed to stay in Canada? [His MP says yes — and is trying to rally Canadians to his side](. Why was a York University encampment cleared after a day, [as U of T protesters head into day 35?]( “This is real money supporting real homes.” [City staff are urging Toronto council to pump millions into affordable rentals](. Under fire, an oil company CEO is [accusing MPs of trying to “create headlines and villainize the industry.”]( “Our sector is ready to build.” [Ottawa’s $1.5-billion co-op housing program is welcome news to the co-op federation](. [Police have identified a second man who died]( after a shooting outside an Etobicoke high school. An Ajax man has been arrested for allegedly trying to [carjack a police cruiser and steal an officer’s gun](. The NDP’s “punk-rock politician,” Charlie Angus, is leaving Parliament soon to focus on his music. [Here’s why that matters](. [Remote workers are better rested and spend more time with their kids]( new StatCan data reveals. [Thunderstorms and rain are in the forecast]( as a “cold blow” brings unsettled weather to the GTA. [Drake drops $500K bet on Edmonton Oilers]( to win the Stanley Cup. POV Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick [Canadian politicians who commit treason should go to jail.]( CLOSE-UP Jordan Pettitt/Getty Images FRANCE: Justin Trudeau walks beside French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (left) and Prince William (right) as they attend the Government of Canada ceremony [marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day at Juno Beach in Courseulles-sur-Mer yesterday](. Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_214784). Andrew will see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. 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