Report from Tenants and Housing Townhall - March 28th, 2019
On March 28th, 2019, we gathered as a community to discuss tenancy and housing. We were lucky to be joined by an expert panel of housing advocates who were able to answer many community questions about challenges being faced in Toronto-St. Paul's.
The panel consisted of:
- Geordie Dent, Executive Director - Federation of Metro Tenants Association
- Cheryll Case, Principal - CP Planning
- Thorben Wieditz, Director - FairBnb
- Alejandra Ruiz Vargas, East York ACORN Chapter Chair - ACORN
- Pat Wilkin, Board Member - Toronto-St. Paul's Tenant Associations Network
- Karen Andrews, Staff Lawyer - Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario
- Helle Hulgaard, Community Legal Worker - West Toronto Community Legal Services
The townhall began with statements from each of our panelists, and then moved to questions from the audience.
Key questions and concerns that were raised include:
- Above the Guideline Rent Increases
- What qualifies for an AGI?
- How much can they charge?
- How can tenants fight and AGI?
- Renovictions (renovation evictions)
- Are renovictions legal?
- Smoking and Allergies
- Inclusionary Zoning
- What supports are there for the recently incarcerated?
With well over 100 people in the audience, no stone was left unturned. It was incredibly exciting to see people from all over Toronto-St. Paul's come together and engage on such important issues.
Overall, it was a fantastic event. An event that spurred a discussion that needs to continue in our community. To that end, I can assure all the residents of Toronto-St. Paul's, that while this was the first Tenants and Housing Townhall that my office has held - it will not be the last.