Enertainer Gad Elbaz, Mayor Housefather and Councillor Cohen at the  gala Purim celebration at Beth Chabad.

I attended the gala Purim Celebration of Beth Chabad at the Cavendish Mall on March 9 at the Cavendish Mal, along with Mayor Anthony Housefather and Councillor Mitchell Brownstein. With hundreds of people in attendance and sensational Israeli singer Gad Elbaz performing on stage, the dynamic Rabbi Mendel Raskin provided the news we have all been waiting for. The Beth Chabad Menachem Community Youth Centre will open by early September in its brand new location in the heart of District 2 at the corner of Marc Chagall Avenue and Kildare Road. Beth Chabad has been based at the Mall since 2001. The Kildare Road site was rezoned to accommodate them many years ago. Construction began on the $5.8 million project two years ago. When fully completed, the new facility will include a youth lounge, computer and teen fitness rooms, a cafeteria, library, kollel/study room, social hall, Sephardic and Ashkenazi synagogues and a men’s mikvah. This will be a wonderful addition to the community and could help sales at the new town house development across the street. Rabbi Raskin and his wife Sarah do an outstanding job with their congregation. It was beautiful to see so many young families at the Purim celebration, which included a carnival for the children and fuilly catered meal by Toledano later on. Elbaz was sensational. At one point Rabbi Raskin turned to me and just smiled. "Can you imagine how good this is going to be when we move into our new building?" he asked rhetorically. I am working with Daniel Malca of Beth Chabad on a special event for residents of District 2, hopefully for June. Stay tuned to my blog for more details on construction progress.

Councillor Cohen is greeted by Rabbi Mendel Raskin at the Purim celebration.