Toronto Central Sport & Social Club -- The Location Situation

Field/Gym Locations
Central Toronto does not mean the corner of Bay and Bloor. The TCSSC has always defined central Toronto as Islington (on the western side) east to Victoria Park and south of Steeles. While it would be ideal for many of our members to play their games within the downtown core, this is not realistic - there are simply not enough fields and gyms in the concrete jungle.

While some members prefer the downtown locations, there are many members who work and live in various regions within the city. So, while the High Park area may not be convenient for you, it is perfect for someone else. Likewise, facilities north of the city are actually preferred by some of our members. Recognizing this, we always attempt to equalize the number of games that each team plays at each location when more than one facility is used for a league.

As the leagues continue to grow, it may even become necessary to further extend our playing area so that we can accommodate all of our new members.

Field/Gym Quality
The TCSSC literally applies for every gym and field within Central Toronto. If we were able to have our choice of locations we would obviously pick the best facilities. Unfortunately there are over 500 other groups who are also attempting to acquire permits in our area. In addition, the City of Toronto has a mandate to allocate at least 70% of the field locations to youth groups.

With such intense competition for fields and gyms, our hands are somewhat tied in our ability to always acquire the best fields.

TTC Accessibility / Traffic
Many of our members rely heavily on the TTC for transportation, and the majority of our locations are situated in TTC accessible areas. However, while not every location can be situated directly next to a subway, there is usually some form of transit that gets players to and from the games.

There are locations that are more difficult to get to then others, but our experience has shown that players (especially individuals) usually carpool after the first few games. This is no different than getting to your work, etc.

The traffic in Toronto is not something that the TCSSC can control. The reality in Toronto is that to get from point A to point B, a lot of patience and time is required. Whether you are commuting to work, going to watch a Leafs game or meeting up with friends, traffic is going to slow you down. Traveling to TCSSC games is no different - give yourself lots of extra time.

What We Are Doing to Improve
The TCSSC spends approximately 400 hours annually to acquire, maintain and improve locations for members. Aside from the regular City of Toronto permits, we are constantly contacting private schools, companies, churches, community centres and other organizations in an attempt to find bigger and better locations for you.

Where possible, we always strive to improve the facilities that we use - e.g. cutting the grass on fields. At certain locations, our attempts to improve the facilities ourselves have been denied due to union laws and restrictions within school boards.

In addition, the TCSSC - in cooperation with other field user groups - has started "Friends of Athletic Fields" to lobby various bodies at the Federal, Provincial and Municipal Level in order to improve your playing experience. If you are involved with or have contacts that may help "Friends of Fields" with their objectives, please email us.


	THE LOW DOWN ON LOCATIONS
	*Please read this to fully understand why we play where we play!*

	Permitting policies and league growth continue to force the TCSSC to expand our playing areas. While we are making every effort through the TCSSC and Friends of Athletic Fields to improve this situation, we cannot guarantee (nor can any league that is of any useful size) that locations will remain the same from one year to the next. If you want to play in fixed locations, please look into our tennis, beach volleyball, and fitness classes!


	Field/Gym Locations Central Toronto does not mean the corner of Bay and Bloor. The TCSSC has always defined central Toronto as Islington (on the western side) east to Victoria Park and south of Steeles. While it would be ideal for many of our members to play their games within the downtown core, this is not realistic - there are simply not enough fields and gyms in the concrete jungle. While some members prefer the downtown locations, there are many members who work and live in various regions within the city. So, while the High Park area may not be convenient for you, it is perfect for someone else. Likewise, facilities north of the city are actually preferred by some of our members. Recognizing this, we always attempt to equalize the number of games that each team plays at each location when more than one facility is used for a league. As the leagues continue to grow, it may even become necessary to further extend our playing area so that we can accommodate all of our new members. Field/Gym Quality The TCSSC literally applies for every gym and field within Central Toronto. If we were able to have our choice of locations we would obviously pick the best facilities. Unfortunately there are over 500 other groups who are also attempting to acquire permits in our area. In addition, the City of Toronto has a mandate to allocate at least 70% of the field locations to youth groups. With such intense competition for fields and gyms, our hands are somewhat tied in our ability to always acquire the best fields. TTC Accessibility / Traffic Many of our members rely heavily on the TTC for transportation, and the majority of our locations are situated in TTC accessible areas. However, while not every location can be situated directly next to a subway, there is usually some form of transit that gets players to and from the games. There are locations that are more difficult to get to then others, but our experience has shown that players (especially individuals) usually carpool after the first few games. This is no different than getting to your work, etc. The traffic in Toronto is not something that the TCSSC can control. The reality in Toronto is that to get from point A to point B, a lot of patience and time is required. Whether you are commuting to work, going to watch a Leafs game or meeting up with friends, traffic is going to slow you down. Traveling to TCSSC games is no different - give yourself lots of extra time. What We Are Doing to Improve The TCSSC spends approximately 400 hours annually to acquire, maintain and improve locations for members. Aside from the regular City of Toronto permits, we are constantly contacting private schools, companies, churches, community centres and other organizations in an attempt to find bigger and better locations for you. Where possible, we always strive to improve the facilities that we use - e.g. cutting the grass on fields. At certain locations, our attempts to improve the facilities ourselves have been denied due to union laws and restrictions within school boards. In addition, the TCSSC - in cooperation with other field user groups - has started "Friends of Athletic Fields" to lobby various bodies at the Federal, Provincial and Municipal Level in order to improve your playing experience. If you are involved with or have contacts that may help "Friends of Fields" with their objectives, please email us.