Toronto Announced “Close the Housing Gap” Campaign’s New Phase for Toronto Community Housing

Close the Housing Gap Poster
Close the Housing Gap Poster

Toronto Community Housing in Ontario is Canada’s largest social housing landlord.

  • “Its core business is to provide clean, safe, well-maintained, affordable homes for low and moderate income households.“

The City of Toronto and Toronto Community Housing launched the Close the Housing Gap campaign on June 24, 2013, at City Hall with a group of enthusiastic stakeholders donning campaign buttons to show their support.

  • The campaign took part in Let’s Get Growing event at Lawrence Heights Community Centre on July 18, 2013.
    • Staff handed out brochures, buttons, postcards and posters and gathered signatures on the Close the Housing Gap petition.

The goal of the advocacy campaign is to persuade the federal and provincial governments to continue funding social housing at existing levels and provide new, long-term funding for social housing capital repairs.

This video presents “Co-chair Councillor Ana Bailão discusses the Close the Housing Gap campaign.”

  • Co-chair Councillor Ana Bailao discusses the importance of the  campaign to Torontonians.

Federal contributions to social housing are declining across the country.

  • In 2012, the City of Toronto received approximately $161.3 million from Ottawa.
  • However, by 2017, that will decline by $33.4 million and reach zero by 2031.
  • Just to fill the $33.4-million gap alone would require raising property taxes by an estimated 1.4 per cent.
  • At the same time, the province has failed to harmonize social assistance subsidies between private market and social housing renters.
    • This means Toronto has to cover an annual shortfall of some $81 million.

The Close the Housing Gap campaign calls for the following measures.

  • The federal government to stop withdrawing money for social housing and instead reinvest that money back into social housing capital repairs.
  • The provincial government to treat social housing providers fairly when paying social assistance rent rates.
  • The federal and provincial governments to provide fully-funded, long-term housing strategies.

The campaign will employ bus shelter posters, buttons, pamphlets, postcards, public events and other means to deliver its message.

  • Torontonians is encouraged to mobilize their communities, organize campaign events and contact federal and provincial politicians to urge them to close the housing gap.
    • Here’s what you can do to make your voice heard.
      • Organize Close the Housing Gap events in your area.
      • Put up Close the Housing Gap posters.
      • Distribute, fill out and mail in campaign postcards.
      • Distribute and wear campaign buttons.
      • Tell federal and provincial politicians to Close the Housing Gap.
  • Organizations and municipalities across Ontario and Canada will be able to adapt the theme for their own advocacy initiatives.
  • The Close the Housing Gap campaign is one of the recommended actions in Putting People First – Transforming Toronto Community Housing, adopted by City Council in November, 2012.

Yesterday,  September 5, Campaign co-chairs Councillor Ana Bailão (Ward 18 Davenport), Chair of the Affordable Housing Committee, and Toronto Community Housing Chair Bud Purves, along with Toronto Community Housing President and CEO Gene Jones announced the exciting new phase in the Close the Housing Gap advocacy campaign.

  • They also unveiled the  Close the Housing Gap poster at a bus shelter on Queen’s Park Crescent East across from the provincial Legislature.

This campaign poster will appear in 136 bus shelters throughout the city, as well as in Ottawa.

  • Posters will start appearing in Toronto on Monday, September 9.
  • In October, posters will go up near Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

“Thousands of people live in social housing in neighbourhoods throughout our City. They are the people whose housing is at risk. We need your support to persuade Ottawa and Queen’s Park to Close the Housing Gap.“

Please click here for more info about the Close The Housing Gap campaign.

  • To get involved, please email them at: peoplefirst@toronto.ca .

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

NEWS RELEASE

September 5, 2013

Close the Housing Gap campaign enters new phase

The City of Toronto and Toronto Community Housing today kicked off an exciting new phase in the Close the Housing Gap advocacy campaign, unveiling the poster that will appear in 136 bus shelters throughout the city, as well as in Ottawa.

“Today, we are boldly expanding the visibility and reach of Close the Housing Gap,” said Campaign Co-Chair Councillor Ana Bailão (Ward 18 Davenport). “This will help drive the message home to Ottawa and Queen’s Park that they need to put people first by investing in social housing.”

“We encourage people to join their voices with ours in calling on Ottawa and Queen’s Park to provide their fair share of the millions of dollars needed to maintain Toronto’s aging social housing stock in good repair,” said Bud Purves, Campaign Co-Chair and Chair of Toronto Community Housing’s board of directors.

“Toronto Community Housing and the City are working together to find innovative ways to raise capital dollars such as asset sales, mortgage refinancing and operating more cost-effectively,” said Gene Jones, Toronto Community Housing President and CEO. “But we cannot do it alone. We need the federal and provincial governments at the table with stable funding for social housing so we can fix our buildings and improve the lives of our residents.”

The unveiling took place at a bus shelter on Queen’s Park Crescent East across from the provincial Legislature. Posters will start appearing in Toronto on Monday, September 9. In October, posters will go up near Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

Close the Housing Gap calls on the federal and provincial governments to put people first by continuing to fund social housing at existing levels and by making new, long-term funding available for social housing capital repairs.

Over the next five years, federal contributions to social housing will decline by $33.4 million and will eventually shrink to zero by 2031. Filling the $33.4 million gap alone would require raising property taxes by about 1.4 per cent.

“At the same time, the province’s refusal to harmonize social assistance subsidies between private market and social housing renters unfairly imposes an annual shortfall of some $81 million on Toronto taxpayers,” said Councillor Bailão.

The Close the Housing Gap campaign calls for:
• the federal government to stop withdrawing money from social housing and instead reinvest it back into social housing capital repairs
• the provincial government to treat social housing providers fairly when paying social assistance rent rates, and
• Ottawa and Queen’s Park to provide fully-funded, long-term housing strategies.

Details about the Close the Housing Gap campaign can be found at http://www.putpeoplefirst.ca.

Toronto Community Housing is Canada’s largest social housing landlord. Its core business is to provide clean, safe, well-maintained, affordable homes for low and moderate income households. Through collaboration and with residents’ needs at the forefront, it connects residents to services and opportunities, and helps foster great neighbour¬hoods where people can thrive.

Toronto is Canada’s largest city and sixth largest government, and home to a diverse population of about 2.8 million people. Toronto’s government is dedicated to delivering customer service excellence, creating a transparent and accountable government, reducing the size and cost of government and building a transportation city. For information on non-emergency City services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and visitors can dial 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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