r/Brampton

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The Save Max name is coming off a Brampton sportsplex now that the brokerage’s sponsorship has been terminated, not long after its accounts were frozen by the Real Estate Council of Ontario.

A spokesperson for the City of Brampton confirmed to INsauga.com that the Save Max Sports Centre will be going back to its previous name of the Brampton Soccer Centre, and that the sponsorship agreement with Save Max Real Estate Inc. “has been terminated in accordance with the terms of the agreement.”

The name change comes after RECO said several Save Max real estate brokerages in Mississauga and Brampton used $2.7 million in client funds to pay off expenses – allegations that Save Max has disputed.

RECO says funds held in trust for real estate sales were instead used for loan payments, property management fees, taxes, credit card balances and vendor services.

Save Max and the city inked a 15-year $2,512,500 sponsorship deal in 2020 for exterior naming rights. Listings on the city’s website show sponsorship and naming rights opportunities for the Brampton Soccer Centre field and gymnasium.

The city didn’t specifically say whether the sponsorship was terminated due to the allegations against Save Max, but says signage updates and online references are currently underway.

Between 100 to 150 active Save Max listings were frozen by RECO, and some 400 registered real estate salespeople left brokerages across the broader Save Max network following the freeze.

But the RECO has agreed to lift the freeze if strict conditions are met, including the appointment of a third-party monitor to oversee the management of two accounts and the suspension of Raman Dua, Save Max’s broker of record and sole director.

Suspensions are also still in place for Nidhi Dua (broker of record of Save Max First Choice Real Estate Inc.), Save Max First Choice Real Estate Inc., Save Max Supreme Real Estate Inc., and Save Max Ace Real Estate, the RECO says.

“The Freeze Order pertaining to Save Max Real Estate Inc.’s Commission Trust Account continues to apply until a comprehensive audit is completed to RECO’s satisfaction,” the council said in March.

Lawyers for Save Max filed an appeal of the freeze, admitting investigations by the RECO did find “incorrect disbursements,” but claim most were “reversed promptly within 30 days – a number of them within 24 to 48 hours, and one within a matter of minutes.”

The largest of the disputed transactions was a transfer of $700,000, which was “reversed the next day,” according to the appeal.

Yes, we have old folk's homes and retirement friendly communities, but are we seriously able to handle the inevitable ageing of our population?

I never want to remove people from their homes, but we don't even have the condo space to settle them.

What are some other options that we could consider? Especially in the information age where people can get push button entertainment.

We want to be civil and humane, but also realistic. I know I can't maintain my house forever, and my family is remarkably uninterested in learning how to build, plan, and construct things. Give it 20 years, and if I'm still breathing, I'll not want to live in a decaying household that I can no longer afford - but I don't want to be stuck in an apartment either.

Has anyone seen lemon trees in stores anywhere this year? I saw some a couple years back in Walmart but haven’t come across anything this year. Desperately looking for a potted lemon tree 🍋

How does THG's Hot Chicken stack up against Dave's Hot Chicken? I love Dave's Hot Chicken but it's damn expensive.

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Why do so many of Canada’s great soccer players come from Brampton?

The Ontario city has produced a roster of homegrown talents, including Atiba Hutchinson, Jonathan Osorio

While Edmonton waits anxiously to see whether adopted son Alphonso Davies will be fit enough to play at BMO Field when Canada’s World Cup team kicks off in Toronto next month, there are no such worries a few kilometres down the road from the stadium.

Brampton’s representation at the world’s biggest sporting event is all but assured: It’s a strong possibility that the Ontario city, with a population of just 777,759, will lay claim to a quarter of the 26-man squad when head coach Jesse Marsch announces his roster on May 30.

“I remember when I first joined the team, and the guys asked me where I was from and I said Brampton, the first thing they said to me was, oh, not another one,” said Liam Millar, who began playing soccer at age four for Brampton Youth. “So many guys from this team have been in Brampton. It’s a real identity of our team.”

Mr. Millar, who left the city at 13 to pursue his soccer dreams in England, made his national-team debut in 2018 and got on the field at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, coming on as a substitute against Belgium. (That tournament’s team featured seven players from Brampton.)

The 26-year-old, who now plays for Hull City in England’s Championship – one rung below the Premier League – credits his globe-trotting career in part to what he feels is a uniquely Brampton upbringing in a country that is traditionally obsessed with winter sports, especially hockey.

“In many different parts of Canada, I don’t feel like everyone was playing soccer all the time,” he said. “And I felt like always at my school and where I was, there was always a soccer ball, there was always someone trying to play. We just had that soccer-first mentality.”

Blazing a trail Long before Mr. Millar pulled on a national-team jersey, other Bramptonians – such as Iain Hume and Paul Stalteri – were putting the city on the soccer map. But among past and present players from the area, one name stands above the rest: Atiba Hutchinson.

“He’s one of the most important people in football in our country,” said former national team defender Doneil Henry of Mr. Hutchinson, who skippered Canada in Qatar. “He’s cap. He’s played at the highest level, of course, but he’s also an amazing human being. So there’s so much to take from Atiba and what he’s done in the game.”

Mr. Hutchinson, who made a record 104 appearances for the national team before retiring three years ago, started playing just like Mr. Millar: as a four-year-old at Brampton Youth. He left Canada at 19 to try his hand in Europe, ultimately playing his way into the Champions League and rubbing shoulders with the best players on the planet. In 2021, he captained Turkey’s Besiktas JK to a league and cup double – alongside fellow Brampton native Cyle Larin.

Despite the accolades, Mr. Hutchinson has never forgotten the place where he grew up. Two years ago, he gave his name to the drop-in Atiba Hutchinson Soccer Court at Century Gardens – the first fully lit soccer court in the country.

“This city played a huge role in shaping us as players and as people,” Mr. Hutchinson told a Brampton soccer rally earlier this year. “The lessons we learn here – hard work, resilience and believing in yourself – stay with you your entire career. Brampton has always been full of talent, passion and diversity. That’s what makes this city a very special community, and why so many players have come from here.”

Creating a brotherhood For Mr. Henry, who played alongside Mr. Hutchinson on the national team for a few years, being able to literally touch someone who was living the dreams he aspired to helped instill the self-belief that he could do the same.

Growing up in a family of hard-working Jamaican immigrants, Mr. Henry started playing for Brampton Youth at age 10, beginning a lifelong friendship with current Toronto FC captain and national-team midfielder Jonathan Osorio. He trained at the Toronto FC Academy, then embarked on a itinerant career that took him to England, Denmark, South Korea and the United States, before retiring in 2023.

And just as Mr. Hutchinson played a role in his journey, Mr. Henry has influenced other Brampton players now in contention for Canada’s World Cup squad, including Jayden Nelson and Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty.

“These interactions are the biggest thing,” Mr. Henry said. “You might not see the impact while you’re playing, but when I see Jahkeele, and I see these guys, and they’re like, yo fam, you remember when you saw me here? … You changed my life.”

Mr. Marshall-Rutty, who also went through the TFC Academy, now plays for Red Bull New York. He made his national-team debut in March with a substitute appearance against Tunisia. The winger had previously broken Mr. Davies’s record for the youngest men’s national-team call-up when he was included on the Canada squad in 2021 as a 16-year-old.

Now 21, Mr. Marshall-Rutty grew up playing for Brampton East, and credits the city’s youth clubs for allowing him to have a professional career.

“I think they did so well to kind of set us up for our next step,” he said. “And for me, that was Brampton East for two, three years.”

Building a foundation With the World Cup less than a month away, there is understandable pride at Brampton City Hall in the way these players have represented the city.

Brampton has long been known as the cricket capital of Canada – it has often played host to international tournaments – and Mayor Patrick Brown is more than happy to add soccer to that moniker.

As to whether the city itself laid the foundations for that title, or whether its superstars greased the wheels, Mr. Brown doesn’t hesitate to credit people such as Mr. Hutchinson.

“Honestly, looking at Atiba’s journey, I think the great players developed first, and we’ve made investments into recreation after the fact, really, in their honour and to inspire the next generation,” he said.

To cater to more than 153,000 people between the ages of 15 and 29, the city has 100 outdoor soccer fields, according to city officials. Last year, its young people recorded more than 31,000 hours of soccer play on those pitches.

Bill Boyes, Brampton’s commissioner of community services, says there are between 2,500 and 3,000 registrations for outdoor soccer in the city, with a similar number opting to play the game indoors.

The city also offers an “active assist program,” which subsidizes children’s sports programs for families of a certain income.

It helps that soccer doesn’t have a high cost of entry in the way that hockey does, says Chrys Chrysanthou, who coached national-team winger Tajon Buchanan with the Brampton Blast and Mississauga Falcons.

“They may be living paycheque to paycheque, they may be living hand to mouth,” Mr. Chrysanthou said. “… They may not be able to do very much, but they have just enough to be able to get their kids into the sport.”

Coming together Others Bramptonians note that the city’s sporting successes extend beyond the soccer pitch.

Mr. Chrysanthou points to athletes such as Toronto Raptors star RJ Barrett, who played for the Brampton Warriors, and Buffalo Bills wide receiver Josh Palmer, who attended the city’s St. Roch Catholic Secondary School.

“If you look demographically, who are the best athletes in the world, that kind of population base is concentrated in Brampton,” he said. “You’ve got a large Jamaican population. Jamaican sprinters, they’re all quick, some quicker than others, but all of these guys were quick.”

In sports, as the saying goes, iron sharpens iron. Putting all this talent together, to be forged in the crucible of sports, can only be beneficial in producing skilled players.

“The city has 271 different cultures, okay, and we speak 171 different languages,” city councillor Rowena Santos said. “And so when you have that level of diversity in a small footprint in Brampton, in a city, you’re bound to have tremendous talent.”

Case in point is Mr. Osorio, who grew up in a Spanish-speaking home after his parents immigrated from Colombia. At one point, the Toronto FC captain was coached in Brampton by Argentine Juan Cruz Real – who currently coaches the Nicaraguan national team.

Greg Spagnoli, the soccer coach at Brampton’s St. Edmund Campion Catholic School until 2024, had Mr. Osorio on his team for four years – during which time they won a provincial title. He also coached Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Larin during his almost two-decade tenure at the high-school soccer powerhouse, and feels that the city’s melting pot has paid dividends on the pitch.

“Brampton was a hotbed for large immigrant populations,” Mr. Spagnoli said. “... I think when you share that commonality of something, just the ball and being able to play anywhere – parking lot, grass field, wherever – I think you can just find that sense of belonging, inclusivity, to where you can just elevate and do what you love. And it’s a cheap sport to play.”

Performing for the world Before joining up with Canada for a World Cup training camp in Charlotte, N.C., later this month, Mr. Millar has another important appointment – at England’s Wembley Stadium. Fittingly, given Brampton’s outsized impact on the global game, it will be against a fellow Bramptonian, as Mr. Millar’s Hull City takes on Mr. Larin’s Southampton FC for a place in next season’s Premier League, the world’s richest soccer league.

But whether a game is taking place at the world’s most famous soccer stadium or in front of billions on TV this summer, people in Brampton want everyone to know exactly where their hometown heroes are from.

“When we are playing on those fields at the World Cup or anywhere you go, please say you’re from Brampton, not from Toronto, okay?” Ms. Santos said. “Brampton represent.”

Looking for recommendations for good bars in Brampton to chill with friends. (While this is Brampton sub but even Mississauga suggestions work, if anyone here knows, because we can drive there).

Primarily looking for good vibes and crowd. Not looking for Indian places.

Before I even explain, I know - downtown is full of crazy ass people. I lived here in the late 90s/early 2000s. It was crazy then and it's worse now.

Some seriously messed up individual has been mutilating pigeons around Church/Thomas Streets. It is very obvious that these birds are not roadkill or attacked by other wildlife. Yesterday we found a white one on the road, today, a grey one a few metres away. Both in the exact same state.

**TW: animal abuse, graphic details**

The heads and legs are cut off and nowhere nearby to be found. The birds are laid on their backs, wings in the same position, and cut open down the chest and stomach. The first ones insides were piled next to it; the second one, no organs left near the body, but clearly had been removed.

I reported both incidents to 311 and if it continues, I think calling the non-emergency police line would be appropriate. Anyone familiar with true crime/horror knows that someone who enjoys killing small animals doesn't exactly get better with time.

Was doing a review of my monthly expenses and realized I was paying over $150 just to get basic cable and the sports packages for the weekends. It's completely insane how much these monopolies charge us here in Ontario.

I ended up returning their box. A coworker helped me set up a private uncompressed server directly on my smart tv instead. I'm using geniustv . store .Best decision ever.

It consolidates all the global sports feeds (including all the PPV and overseas stuff) into one raw feed at 60fps without the usual lag. Basically dropped my entertainment bill to almost nothing while upgrading the quality.

Curious how everyone else in Brampton is handling the cable mess right now? Are you guys just eating the monthly costs or did you find workarounds?

UPDATED TO ADD BRAMPTON LOCATION

There are currently monthly protests going on against Doug Ford, in multiple cities across Ontario.. the next date is Saturday, May 30th and here's a list of the current locations:

1PM - Angus - 12 Commerce Rd - Peacekeeping Park

1 PM - Barrie - 555 Bayview Dr - Sadlon Arena

1 PM - Belleville - Bell Blvd & Front St N - Bell Front Shopping Centre

1PM - Blyth - Bell Blvd & Front St N - Bell Front Shopping Centre

2 PM - Bowmanville - 23 King St W - MPP Todd McCarthy’s Office

12PM - Bracebridge - 230 Manitoba St - MPP Graydon Smith's Office

12PM - Bradford - 425 Holland St W - Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library

1PM - Brampton - Main St S & Wellington St E - City Hall

12PM - Brantford - 96 Nelson St - MPP Will Bouma's Office

11AM - Brockville - 77 Blockhouse Island Pkwy - South End Brockville Railway Tunnel

11 AM - Burlington - 3027 Harvester Rd - MPP Natalie Pierre’s Office

11 AM - Cambridge - 73 Water St - MPP Brian Riddell’s Office

1 PM - Cornwall - 120 2nd St W - MPP Nolan Quinn’s Office

12 PM - Elliot Lake - 325 King’s Hwy 108 - Miner’s Memorial Park

2 PM - Elmira - 63 Arthur St S - MPP Mike Harris’s Office

12:30 PM - Etobicoke - Weston Wood Rd & Royal York Rd - End of Doug Ford’s Street

2PM - Etobicoke - 964 Albion Rd - Doug Ford's Office

10 AM - Fergus - 181 St. Andrew St E - MPP Joseph Racinisky’s Office

1 PM - Georgetown - Mountainview Rd N & Guelph St - Mountainview Road North/South

12 PM - Guelph - Gordon St & Wellington St E - Wellington Plaza

2 PM - Hamilton - York Blvd & Dundurn St N - Dundurn Park

12:30PM - Kincardine - 807 Queen St - MPP Lisa Thompson's Office

11AM - King City - 2220 King Rd - MPP Stephen Lecce's Office

12 PM - Kingston - Princess St & Gardiners Rd - The North-West “Big Box” Hub

12 PM - Lindsay - St. Joseph & Kent St W - Lindsay Square Mall

1PM - London - Central Ave - Victoria Park Northwest Corner

12:30 PM - Markham-Thornhill - 7380 McCowan Rd - MPP Logan Kanapathi’s Office

12 PM - Meaford - Sykes St - Meaford Hall

11:30 AM - Milton - Main St & Martin St - Downtown Centre

1 PM - Mississauga - 120 Lakeshore Rd W - MPP Rudy Cuzzetto’s Office

1 PM - Newmarket - Yonge St & Sawmill Valley Dr - MPP Dawn Gallagher Murphy’s Office

1 PM - North Bay - 219 Main St E - MPP Vic Fedeli’s Office

12PM - Oakville - 74 Rebecca St - MPP Stephen Crawford's Office

12 PM - Orangeville - 180 Broadway Ave - MPP Sylvia Jones’s Office

1 PM - Ottawa - 220 Elgin St - Canadian Tribute to Human Rights Monument

TBA - Owen Sound - 345 8th St E - MPP Paul Vickers’ Office

1PM - Pembroke - 400 Pembroke St E - Service Ontario Plaza

1 PM - Peterborough - 864 Chemong Rd - MPP Dave Smith’s Office

1 AM - Pickering - 1550 Kingston Rd - MPP Peter Bethlenfalvy’s Office

1 PM - Port Hope - 117 Peter St - MPP David Piccini’s Office

1 PM - Sarnia - 805 Christina St N - MPP Bob Bailey’s Office

12 PM - Simcoe - 50 Bonnie Drive - Wellington Park

11 AM - St. Catharines - Tremont Dr & Glendale Ave - Pen Centre

2 PM - St. Thomas - 750 Talbot St - MPP Robert Flack’s Office

2 PM - Stayner - 7317 Highway 26 E - MPP Brian Saunderson’s Office

12 PM - Stouffville - 37 Sandford Dr - MPP Paul Calandra’s Office

10AM - Stratford - 55 Lorne Ave E - MPP Matthew Rae's Office

1 PM - Strathroy - 81 Front St W - MPP Steve Pinsonneault’s Office

12PM - Sudbury - Paris St & Brady St - Tom Davies Square

1PM - Temiskaming Shores - 83 Whitewood Ave - Canada Post

11 AM - Thunder Bay - 774 James St N - MPP Kevin Holland’s Office

12 PM - Toronto - 111 Wellesley St W - Queen’s Park

11 AM - Vaughan - Islington Ave & Rutherford Rd - MPP Michael Tibollo’s Office

11 AM - Wallaceburg - 60 McNaughton Ave - MPP Steve Pinsonneault’s Office

1 PM - Waterdown - Hamilton St & Dundas St E - Hamilton Street North/South

12PM - Waterloo - 75 King St E - Town Square

12 PM - Whitby - 3000 Garden St - MPP Lorne Coe’s Office

1 PM - Windsor - 5452 Tecumseh Rd E - MPP Andrew Dowie’s Office

1 PM - Woodstock - 12 Perry St - MPP Ernie Hardeman’s Office

If none of these locations work for you, and you'd like to organize at a different location.. shoot me a DM and I can hook you up with the main lady organizing and updating the list signage! Hope to see some of you out there! We need to be in the streets, in insane numbers, for everything - housing, healthcare, education, cost of living, EVERYTHING.. so, let's get out there and start making some gods damned noise! Doug Ford needs to go!

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The number of international students living in Brampton strained the city’s ability to provide services, according to Mayor Patrick Brown.

Speaking on the Greg Brady Show on 640 Toronto on May 5, Brown said the international student population grew rapidly as thousands arrived to attend dozens of private colleges that opened in a short period of time.

He estimated that at one point, as many as 100,000 international students were living in the city.

Brown said the surge, which peaked near the end of 2023, created challenges for municipal services and affected the quality of life residents had come to expect.

“Frankly, international students, for several years, were out of control in terms of what was coming into Canada,” Brown said.

Canada admitted high numbers of international students during and after the pandemic, partly to address labour shortages through pathways to permanent residency. Colleges and universities expanded intake amid funding pressures, as international students pay higher fees. As a result, many small private colleges opened in Brampton to capitalize on demand from students seeking to immigrate.

Brown said the rapid population growth put pressure on housing, health care and other local services. City officials have previously raised concerns about issues including overcrowded housing, increased waste, and strains on social supports.

“It just wasn’t sustainable,” he said. “The system was broken. At one point, we had 80 officially recognized colleges in Brampton, and I think only a handful were reputable.”

Brown said responsibility for the situation was often debated between levels of government.

“The federal government said it was up to the province to accredit schools, and the province would say it is the federal government that admits the international students,” he said.

He added that both levels of government have since taken steps to address the issue, with Ontario tightening oversight of colleges and the federal government placing limits on international student intake.

Brown said the City of Brampton is advocating for future policies that tie international student numbers to available housing.

“Obviously, there are still a large number of international students in Canada,” he said. “But going forward, I think we are going to see visas linked to credible institutions that can provide housing.”