Items

“Toronto is a growing city with at least 700,000 new Torontonians expected by 2051.” Ensuring sustainable environments for new and current residents “requires a city-wide policy and regulatory environment that is supportive of local businesses and services locating within communities. Despite smallscale retail, service and office uses historically playing an important role in many of Toronto's Neighbourhoods, these types of uses were strictly limited by policies and zoning provisions established in the mid-20th century, many of which remain today. As a result, many of Toronto's current residents have never had these amenities close to their homes, and others have seen them decline over the decades as existing establishments closed, and new ones did not take their place [...] Compact, well-connected Neighbourhoods reduce car dependency and enable people to live carlight or car free, which helps cut carbon pollution. The increased availability of goods nearby to where people live may also contribute to the reduction in online shopping and delivery of goods which generates carbon emissions and packaging waste.”

“Toronto residents across a range of incomes are facing an unaffordable housing market decades in the making, with over 10,000 residents experiencing homelessness, over 100,000 households waiting for a rent-geared-to-income (RGI) home, and low- and middle-income households struggling to afford their homes amidst the rising cost of living in the city.”

This report discusses the “Homelessness Services Capital Infrastructure Strategy (HSCIS)”, which supports the development of “six municipal shelters, containing approximately 420 new shelter beds.” This strategy also proposes the addition of “1,600 new long-term and permanent shelters spaces in the base shelter system” and creating shelters that are “purpose-built,” that are created to provide solutions to many components of the difficulties experienced with shelter systems including “increasing permanency across the shelter system, and a gradual transition out of temporary shelter hotels,” and reducing long-term costs.

The Willowdale home will soon be the home of Toronto's first city-run Indigenous shelter for women and children. The creation of this shelter is an important step towards reconciliation. In order to make sure Indigenous voices are at the center of planning, the recommendations were created by working closely with the Native Women's Resource Center of Toronto.

“Toronto's housing affordability crisis is impacting residents across the housing continuum, from low-income, marginalized residents in need of a deeply affordable, rent-geared-to-income home to middle income earners, key workers, and families trying to afford to live in the city. Toronto’s housing crisis and lack of sufficient rental housing has been decades in the making and requires concerted tri-government action to correct. Despite a rise in the purpose-built rental vacancy rate in 2024 to 2.3%, Toronto’s rental housing market remains unaffordable to many. New tenants looking for a rental home continue to face high asking rents, increasing 15% from 2023 to 2024. In 2024, asking rent for a vacant two-bedroom unit was $2,744 a month, putting this home out of reach for the median two-person renter households earning approximately $87,900. In Toronto, about 48% of households (557,970 households) are renters with 40% of them living in unaffordable housing.”

Academic institutions play an important role in climate research and it is crucial for students from around the world to be part the academic research environment in Toronto. International students also help bring a global perspective and new solutions to addressing the climate crisis. For context, “Toronto’s post-secondary institutions are leading contributors to the City’s economy and important sources of job creation, skills training, and research and innovation, [including research on climate]...In Toronto, it is estimated that over 350,000 students are enrolled in public academic institutions. In recent years, an increasing number of post-secondary students have been struggling to meet their basic needs for housing, food, and other life necessities…As a result, more post-secondary students are relying on food banks and homelessness services; they are more likely to experience precarious housing situations and live in over-crowded homes; and are increasingly more vulnerable to housing scams and fraud.” In addition, one of the guiding principles of Academic Housing Strategy released is to that “Housing should be sustainable, financially, environmentally, and socially”.

“In Fall 2024, City Council advanced the new Purpose-Built Rental Housing Incentives program, an important new initiative to unlock new rental supply and affordable rental housing. This program provides eligible projects with relief on property taxes and development charges to bring down the cost of building, and help new rental and affordable units break ground at a time when many are stalled due to economic conditions.”

Ensuring that all types of housing along the housing spectrum are available, especially affordable and supportive housing, is crucial as the impacts of the climate crisis worsen. People experiencing homelessness are at a higher risk of getting heat stroke in the summer and worsening air quality from forest fires coming in from the north. These climate events can negatively impact the physical and mental health impacts of Torontonians, particularly people experiencing homelessness. For this reason, we need affordable and supportive housing now. In recent years “the City of Toronto has taken an increased role in the creation of new supportive and rent-geared-to-income (RGI) homes for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, particularly since the adoption of the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan (HousingTO Plan) and as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite increased action and investments, Toronto’s housing and homelessness crises have worsened. Deeply affordable rental housing is at risk of being lost, and difficult and volatile economic conditions have made the construction of new housing, particularly RGI, supportive, rental homes, more challenging. The shortage of supportive homes, inadequacy of social assistance rates, and need for greater mental health and social supports is illustrated most starkly by the rising number of encampments in Toronto.”

“Toronto is facing two housing crises – one where there is a lack of deeply affordable and supportive homes for low-income, marginalized, and vulnerable residents, as well as those experiencing homelessness; and a more recent one in which rising rents have made it increasingly unaffordable for middle income earners, key workers and professionals to live in the city…An adequate supply of purpose-built rental homes is central to a well-functioning housing system that can meet the housing needs of current and future residents.”

10,795 individuals in Toronto are actively experiencing homelessness at the end of May, 2024. As the effects of extreme heat and the elements exacerbate risks for unhoused communities, Toronto has considered it imperative to supply more affordable housing amidst its housing crisis. In particular, the Housing Secretariat emphasizes the importance of addressing not just housing overall, but particular plans to create housing for low-income and vulnerable communities.

“Demand for shelter services has increased significantly over the past few years and is projected to continue throughout 2024 [...] Many people remain unable to access shelter beds each night. In 2023, there were, on average, 202 callers per day not matched to a shelter space. Data show these averages have almost doubled since 2022; this figure continues to trend upward.” Worsening effects of climate change have already manifested themselves in Toronto through extreme weather events including heat waves and extreme cold, leaving unhoused people particularly vulnerable. 

As extreme weather becomes increasingly common, maintaining adequate and affordable housing is crucial to guarantee people's health and safety. “[T]here are currently over 200 Community Housing Providers in Toronto that operate over 40,000 subsidized Rent-Geared-To-Income (RGI) and affordable homes. About 75% of this stock was built prior to 1987 utilizing federal and provincial funding programs. Action from all orders of government is urgently needed to preserve and modernize these aging homes.”

The city of Toronto is in desperate need of expanding shelter services for refugees. Shelter systems in Toronto, including the designated system for refugees, are at capacity and “over 300 people are turned away” every night which includes “upwards of 100 refugees and refugee claimants are waiting and sleeping outside the Streets to Homes Assessment and Referral Centre.” In collaboration with funding from both provincial and federal governments, Mayor Olivia Chow, Deputy Mayor McKelvie, and other staff have worked to develop a “long-term, sustainable plan to make sure people have dignified shelter and housing.” The city vows to continue investing in the “Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit” to “open up more spaces in the shelter system as more people are securely housed.” This also involves a match by the provincial government to support the creation of “approximately 1,350 households.” Current costs “to shelter and support the existing 3,100 refugees in the shelter system” are around $157 million, so the city is still requesting additional funding from the federal government and for assistance with the creation of “a refugee reception area”