Decisions

The Executive Committee recommends that:

1.         City Council, in its capacity as Shareholder, approve pursuant to section 6.3.1(b) of the Shareholder Direction, the sale by Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCH) of the 56 unoccupied and vacant properties containing 64 units, listed in Confidential Attachment 1 of the report (January 10, 2012) from the City Manager and the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, on condition that:

a.         prior to the sale of any properties, TCH provide a plan, satisfactory to the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, and the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer, for the administration and use of the proceeds of any sales of stand-alone units, net of reasonable transaction costs, in the state of good repair of existing social housing units, consistent with its Real Estate Investment Strategy – "Housing Works;

b.         prior to the sale of any properties, TCH provide a plan, satisfactory to the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, for maintaining TCH's mandated service level standards, which includes the replacement  of 61 rent-geared-to-income (RGI) units and rent supplement units within the existing TCH portfolio with units that will accommodate similar sized households;

c.         the reallocation of the RGI and rent supplement units set out in Recommendation 1.b. be funded from within TCH's existing operating subsidy;

and subject to:

d.         TCH and/or the prospective purchasers obtaining the various necessary planning approvals and legislative, municipal and corporate consents (including consent of mortgagors, if necessary);

e.         approval from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and/or Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation if necessary.       

2.         City Council not consider the sale of the 18 TCH houses listed in Appendix C of the report (January 10, 2012) from the City Manager and General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, that are under legal agreements with supportive housing agencies and refer consideration of the possible sale of these properties back to TCH for further analysis and consultation with the agencies and their clients.

3.         City Council not consider the sale of the 168 properties listed in Appendix D of the report (January 10, 2012) from the City Manager and General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, and refer consideration of the possible sale of these properties back to TCH for further analysis to determine the feasibility or benefit of selling these properties.

4.         City Council authorize the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration to amend the TCH Operating Agreement as necessary as a result of the sale of properties pursuant to the adoption of recommendations in the report (January 10, 2012) from the City Manager and General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, and to execute such other agreements, notices, consents and ancillary documentation deemed appropriate in connection with the sale of the properties on terms and conditions satisfactory to the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration and in a form satisfactory to the City Solicitor.

5.         City Council direct TCH to report annually, through TCH's Annual Report to Council, on the status of the sale of the properties and on any tenant and community impacts resulting from the sales.

6.         City Council require that as a condition of the agreement of purchase and sale for the property at 201 Crawford Street (Ward 19) and for the properties designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act (OHA), the Purchasers shall be required to enter into Heritage Easement agreements with the City under Section 37 of the OHA to the satisfaction of the Manager, Heritage Preservation Services.

7.         consistent with Council's 10 year affordable housing plan, Housing Opportunities Toronto, City Council reiterate, in the strongest terms possible, its urgent request to the federal and provincial governments to provide ongoing and sustainable funding to ensure the social housing stock achieves and maintains a state of good repair. 

8.         City Council request the City Manager and the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration to report back to Council in October 2012, through Executive Committee, on the potential sale of the remaining 619 properties containing 676 units listed in Appendix A of the report (January 10, 2012) from the City Manager and the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration.

9.         City Council request the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to expedite the process for approving the sale of the 55 unoccupied and vacant properties that require Ministerial Consent under the Housing Services Act, 2011.

10.       City Council request the Board of Directors of TCH to:

a.         initiate a process to solicit interest for the purchase of the stand-alone properties listed in Appendix A of the report (January 10, 2012) from the City Manager and General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, at market value from social housing providers, charitable, non-profit and community agencies that deliver housing to low-income and vulnerable populations within Toronto;

b.         directly inform the above housing providers, charitable, non-profit and community agencies of the location and market value of each stand-alone property when listed for sale.

 11.      City Council request the federal and provincial governments to jointly provide annual capital repair funding averaging $150 million from 2013 to 2017 and $90 million a year from 2018 thereafter so that the Toronto Community Housing portfolio can achieve and maintain a good state of repair.

12.       City Council request the Chair of the Affordable Housing Committee to establish a Special Working Group, as described below, to submit a final report to Executive Committee at its September 10, 2012 meeting: 

a.         Membership - The Special Working Group shall be chaired by Councillor Ana Bailão, (Chair of the Affordable Housing Committee) and up to four (4) additional members, to be selected jointly by the Chair and the Mayor.  

b.         Mandate - The Special Working Group shall investigate, make findings and report on:

i.             a detailed property by property review of the current tenants in the homes proposed for sale and implications of households being displaced from sales.

ii.            a review of the interest and capacity of existing tenants to purchase the home they reside in, at market value, on a right of first refusal basis.

iii.           a review of the interest and capacity of charitable and non-profit organizations to purchase any of the properties, at market value, to be operated as affordable housing.

iv.           where Recommendations 12b.ii and 12b.iii above indicate there is interest, but not capacity, to identify the size of the subsidy required to bridge the gap between market value and affordable cost and to recommend a source of funds to pay for the subsidy.

v.            the social and financial implications of limiting the sale of single occupancy homes to any of those that become vacant on turn-over by the existing tenants.

vi.            requirements for a new Intergovernmental Strategy to assist in engaging the federal and provincial governments in securing long-term sustainable funding in providing safe, secure and affordable housing in Toronto.

vii.              innovative financing models to address the social housing repair backlog, including a model for determining when properties should be sold rather than repaired.

viii.      a review of any home that has been specifically equipped for accessibility for people with disabilities and seek to work with organizations that deal with persons with disabilities.

ix.        identify any residents escaping domestic violence, with notification to the Police, and work with, and seek advice from, organizations that deal with domestic violence.

 c.        Process - The Special Working Group:

i.             shall consult with stakeholders as required to make its findings.

ii.            shall submit a progress update, in the form of an information report, to the Affordable Housing Committee at its meeting of May 28, 2012.

iii.           shall consult with Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) to understand its Facility Condition Index (FCI)-based decision making process.

d.          Staffing – The Special Working Group:

i.          will be supported by staff from the City Manager's Office, or other staff the City Manager deems appropriate;

ii.         may, with the support of the City Manager, retain the services of an external consultant, if required, to provide analysis, research and report-writing.

13.       Confidential Attachment 1 of the report (January 10, 2012) from the City Manager and the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration remain confidential until such time as the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration advises the Clerk that confirmation from the Chief Executive Officer of TCH has been received that it is no longer necessary to maintain the confidentiality of the information to preserve the integrity of the properties listed.