Village Pillage

If the width of a person’s eyes is any indicator of enthusiasm for an idea, Taras Pater’s cup runneth over.

Pater, an affable Bloor West Village woodworker and Humber College instructor, regularly visits friends in Ottawa. “I time my visits to coincide with the Great Glebe Garage Sale. You can walk around for hours and not see everything,” he says.

“It’s this huge event where you can find old stuff for sale at every second or third house in the neighbourhood. Last year, we parked the car and started to walk in the sale when I picked up these HUGE books on architecture! They were so heavy, I had to go back to the car to drop them off. My friends weren’t too impressed,” he grins. “Then we went back and wandered for HOURS!”

“It’s just kinda neat,” Pater continues. “People get into it, neighbours are out talking. The restaurants in the area are packed. The ATMs are all cash-starved that weekend. People come from other areas in a shopping frame of mind.”

“Everybody’s asked to donate 10% of their proceeds to the Ottawa Food Bank, so even the less well-off benefit. It’s hard to find parking close to the sale and traffic is rough, but that’s because so many people come to the sale.”

So why are we talking about a massive Ottawa garage sale in a Bloor West Village coffee shop? “Why not create the same thing in the Village? We could make it comparable in size to the Glebe sale – say from Jane to Glendonwynne and Annette to Morningside.” These aren’t set boundaries, he notes – the idea doesn’t have much flesh on it yet.

Ideas pour forth nonetheless. “We could call it the Village Pillage! I’m not sure about the name – we’re not a bunch of Huns around here, after all. Anyway, we could sell official garage sale balloons to each participant and give the proceeds to a charity, like the Runnymede Hospital. The balloons would tell passersby that a sale is part of the Pillage.”

“Many people wouldn’t put on a garage sale by themselves – they might not want to go to the trouble of promoting it, postering the neighbourhood. A huge organized garage sale takes care of that problem.”

“Traffic wouldn’t be too bad. We have two subway stops and a bunch of bus routes.”

There’s a planned spring “yard sale” in Rennie Park as well. Could the Village Pillage and the existing sale combine to form a whole that’s greater than the sum of its parts?

“Sure! Vendors could come from outside the area and set up at a table there!”

Good ideas benefits from community input, and Pater is looking for exactly that. He wants to take his idea off the drawing board towards reality. “I’d like to set up a little meeting, maybe a board of directors to figure out next steps.”

Would Pater’s friends come down from Ottawa to check out the Village Pillage? “I could see that happening,” he says.

To get involved, contact Pater at villagepillage@yahoo.ca.

For more information on the Pillage, click here

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