Item - 2014.LS29.1

The Licensing and Standards Committee:

1.         Directed the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards to continue to monitor yearly average temperatures in May, to assess on an ongoing basis whether any changes may be required to allow landlords to turn heat off earlier than currently required in Chapter 497, Heating and report back at a future date.

2.         Requested the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, to include at least one City Councillor from the Tenants' Subcommittee of the Community Development and Recreation Committee in the Municipal Roundtable referred to in the staff report accompanying item LS 29.1. 

3.         Requested the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, to hold at least three (3) consultations, open to the general public, to present recommendations from the Municipal Roundtable and receive input from tenants regarding maximum heat standards, heating requirements, cooling rooms, building codes, air conditioning, subsidies and access to cool spaces.

4.         Requested the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, to emphasize and prioritize environmentally sustainable options for cooling apartment buildings and/or units and ensure that relevant experts are invited to participate in the Municipal Roundtable and subsequent public consultations identified in Recommendation 3 above.

5.         Requested the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, to request the Medical Officer of Health for Toronto to report on whether a maximum temperature for apartment units is needed and, if so, identify an appropriate temperature.

6.         Requested the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, to report back to the May 2015 meeting of the Licensing and Standards Committee, and the next meeting after that date of the Tenant Issues Subcommittee of the Community Development and Recreation Committee, on the results of the Municipal Roundtable and other relevant measures regarding maximum heat standards, heating requirements, cooling rooms, building codes, air conditioning, subsidies and access to cool spaces for tenants.

7.         Directed that the Roundtable meetings be held in public and that Councillors and Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) be notified of the meetings.

This report responds to City Council's request to study the necessity of amending City of Toronto by-laws to change the date ranges between which landlords must provide heating and air conditioning in residential rental units.

Staff were asked to review the need to change the current dates prescribed in Chapter 497, Heating, to allow landlords to turn off heat by May 15, instead of June 1. Permitting landlords to discontinue heat earlier would allow for cooling systems to be turned on in buildings that are equipped. Staff were also asked to review the need to amend Chapter 629, Property Standards, to require that all air conditioning systems in rental units, where provided, be turned on by May 16.

Staff reviewed Environment Canada data on the temperatures experienced each May between 2000 and 2014. The data shows that, while mean temperatures do increase towards the end of the month, the majority of daily average temperatures are below 18ºC – the outdoor temperature which Environment Canada and energy companies consider to be the barrier temperature between when indoor heating and cooling systems may be required. Moreover, the data also reveals considerable variance in temperatures throughout the month of May when, between 2000 and 2014, the average range of daily high and low temperatures was 10.7 ºC. This range makes it particularly difficult to provide the right level of indoor heating and cooling at all times, as industry stakeholders indicate that the heating systems within large residential properties are complex, and cannot be turned on and off on a sporadic basis, or as the weather changes.

Based on the experience of generally low temperatures in May, and the considerable variance between the temperatures experienced, staff are not recommending changes to City by-laws at this time.

Staff propose to monitor temperature and climate changes going forward and to report back on any by-law changes that may be necessary in the future.

Toronto Public Health was consulted in the preparation of this report.