Currently only 1.2% of Ontario’s apprentices are represented by racialized individuals in the construction industry. Through Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs) Black Youth are slowly being hired onto the construction sites of large Canadian infrastructure projects. CBAs are also opening opportunities for small to medium sized businesses interested in penetrating the Canadian construction supply chain.On Tuesday, December 12, the Toronto Community Benefits Network (TCBN) hosted a breakfast to officially launch their Black Youth Mentoring Program. The plan applies a 2-pronged approach to changing the narrative around Black Youth. The first piece will mentor qualified Black Youth construction workers apprenticing in the trades known as the “Next-Gen-Builders” program. The second part will enhance the skills of a Black Youth consultancy known as the BYD Team. The goal of BYD Team is to fulfil on current and grow future construction industry social procurement strategies.The Black Youth Mentoring Program Launch, which took place in the beautiful University of Toronto Faculty Club, was a fantastic experience. It was amazing to be in that room where high level representatives from the construction trades and industry professionals, mingled with equity seeking community members. It was especially refreshing to hear some of the Black Youth apprentices recently welcomed into the Canadian construction industry, speak of reluctance replaced by optimism through TCBN’s new mentoring program. Also interesting was hearing Pat Dillon, Business Manager and Secretary Treasurer of the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario, voice his support for TCBN and community efforts by recommending they approach the struggle “more aggressively”. With high profile support from the likes of Dillon, community must be optimistic that integrating the construction industry in the lifetime of today’s youth is a real possibility, right?Also inspiring were the words of Grover Johnson, Vice President of the American chapter of LiUNA’s African American Caucus. Grover’s words clearly indicated the American Community Benefits movement is far ahead of our own. In his home state of Washington, they have progressed beyond the need to negotiate a CBA for every capital project, it is now policy. They now move directly to Workforce Development Agreements. It really goes to show that what we hear so frequently in the news about our neighbours to the south may be the cries from a group of reactionaries who are in their final death throes. These are certainly exciting times for the Canadian community benefits movement.
North York Women’s Shelter's new facilities bring opportunities
In spring of 2019, North York Women’s Shelter (NYWS) will open the doors to its newly renovated facilities that are set to be kid friendly, culturally competent, and include a community hub. NYWS is nestled in between Downsview Park and Sheppard West station - making it connected to a local scene and accessible to the rest of the city’s resources.Established in 1984, NYWS continues to be a safe place for women and children impacted by violence. As research on how to best help survivors of gendered violence advanced, NYWS took federal funding opportunities to redesign and renovate the facility to better serve their residents. Executive Director, Mohini Datta-Ray, described the new shelter as “future oriented” with a focus on providing survivors a holistic approach to healing and giving women the tools they need to take the next steps in their lives. It will be a 24,000 square feet shelter with 17 bedrooms and 17 bathrooms with 30 beds, with the capacity for an additional 10 beds if their operational budget targets are met. This is a huge improvement from the 3,000 square feet shelter with only six bedrooms and three bathrooms for 30 beds that left residents crowded and prevented necessary programming. Traditionally, women’s shelters are at a confidential and discrete location. Shelters are usually intended to be outside the purview of the community and to exist in isolation of the neighbourhood.“It’s a new model - we’re breaking the paradigm. The model is that we are both a shelter and a community service hub,” Datta-Ray explained. The community hub will service not only those in the shelter but women within the community who need a safe space and cannot leave their situations. The shelter itself will be built to accommodate children, have a kennel for residents’ dogs, and a wood-burning oven for women of different cultures to bake bread. Its new community hub will have partnerships with different groups like the Black Creek Community Health Centre, Black Creek Community Farm, and other service groups to ensure that clients can access the resources they need. As Toronto becomes more expensive and funding for ending violence against women continues to be erratic and dependent on governments, it is important to not only give survivors the resources they need to survive but also to thrive.The new NYWS has a large 1000 square-foot multipurpose room that can be a space where women can self-organize and be political. Alongside providing services, NYWS aims to foster a peer-support system so women can be politically active and demand more from their politicians to enact lasting change.“We realized that you can build 40 thousand shelters but you will never address the issue because you are just continuing to address the symptom of the problem,” Datta-Ray explained. The new space will help empower residents to advocate for institutional changes to end violence against women.
Community responds to inadequate support for local shelter residents
On the morning of Saturday December 8th, around 23 volunteers gathered at the Black Creek Community Health Centre in Sheridan Mall. They convened in response to a call to action by Jill, a certified housing support worker committed to supporting and working with our most vulnerable populations on and off the clock. In mid-November, Jill’s volunteerism led her to the Toronto Plaza Hotel which is currently being used as an emergency shelter space by the City of Toronto. While she was only there for a brief visit to pick up donations, her observation of the hotel premises left her feeling disheartened. She was especially saddened as she realized that there was an overrepresentation of Black individuals and families seeking respite in the shelter space. This was compounded by the inadequate accommodations. “The common areas are filthy, the dining areas are unsanitary, the rooms are cold,” she recounts. Jill left the hotel reflecting on how the housing crisis plays out as yet another example of how one systemic inequity feeds into the next and asked herself, “In what ways can we make room for a holistic intervention?”Her call to action, which was shared with the Black Toronto Community Support Group that connects 25,000 of the Black community across the Greater Toronto Area via social media, urged members to check out the emergency shelter space, rent rooms to shelter residents and to donate goods such as clothing and sanitary napkins. The charge was taken up by Noella Charles, a local caterer. She visited the hotel to try to coordinate a drop-off donation space within the shelter. After learning that external groups were not allowed to distribute donations to shelter residents directly, she got in touch with the executive director of the Black Creek Community Health Centre who was very supportive of an initiative to support residents. The executive director provided staff to do outreach and offered space for community members to drop-off donations over the week long period before the clothing drive and even made the kitchen available for the Community Support Group to host a breakfast for shelter residents. "I donated about 80% of the food and one other volunteer provided a few dozen eggs and bagels," Noella mentioned. Up to 140 plates were provided to shelter residents who attended the clothing drive.The spirit of the gathering was one of infectious compassion. Noella connected with a resident that she was able to offer a casual employment opportunity. "I am in a position to help. I own my own business and can offer people a job if they need it." This was said as volunteers were huddled off into a corner planning their next steps- specifically how they could create a community pipeline to respond to the challenges that precarious housing poses to the community. Shelter residents expressed the exact sentiment of volunteers to maintain a connection to the community. One expectant mother, a newcomer from Nigeria, expressed the following, "With the accommodation problem in this city, the more information we can get, the better we are able to support ourselves and our families." She continued, "It is hard to live on the stipend from the government and also try to save for the new baby." She further shared her surprise that she was able to get a crib at the clothing drive.Jill was overwhelmed as she watched up to 150 families and individuals enjoy breakfast and leave with basic goods and then some. Still, more can be done. "A lot of men came in today seeking adequate winter gear such as boots and jackets. A lot of men left disappointed today." As she was checking in with those who attended the drive, she learned that many had come from across the city- even from as far as Scarborough. Noting the recent changes by the provincial government to freeze the minimum wage increase, coupled with the changes to Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program, which are made worse by the stoppage of rent control legislation, Jill is weary of the ways these instances of negligence will continue to strip community members of their agency. "Poverty is unfortunately a systemic experience and not an individual one," she mulled on this point. Shelter residents carry diverse narratives- they are parents, children, they are fleeing war, they have been trafficked, balancing mental health challenges, are seniors, or have learning disabilities. Jill does not believe that she has the right to speak on behalf of shelter residents but concludes that, "We have an obligation to look out for our most vulnerable."
Editorial: TEDxDownsviewWomen
On November 29th, our neighbourhood will host its own TEDx entitled, TEDxDownsviewWomen Conference “Showing Up.” It will showcase women who are change makers, creators, performers, and inspirational women from different walks of life right here in Toronto. 2018 has been informally deemed as the “Year of the Woman.” It is a year where the #MeToo movement has exposed the sexual violence and harassment in industries like Hollywood but also here in Canadian politics. It is a year where the dangerous and toxic “incel” culture (a culture that is deeply misogynistic) has been cited as an inspiration for the attacker in the Toronto Van Attack in North York that killed ten people including eight women. 2018 is also the year where a record number of women, nearly 40%, were elected into Queen’s Park as MPPs. Women have been spearheading change and on November 29th they will have the opportunity to present and explore the ways in which they have influenced change in their personal circles, fields, and local communities. Speakers and performers include women from diverse backgrounds like planetary science, gender and equity disciplines, medicine, entertainment, and business. This is the first TEDxDownsviewWomen event and the diversity of the participants reflects not only the different women who are enacting change but also reflects the strides that women right here in country and city are making.To learn more, check out the event at https://tedxdownsviewwomen.com.
More cuts: Ford scraps rent control leaving tenants vulnerable
The Ontario PC’s fall economic plan was released on November 15th and it has been received with much animosity. By removing rent control for newly built or converted units, Premier Ford has broken his campaign promise to leave the regulated system alone. Back on the campaign trail, on May 15thto be exact, the Ontario PC party website published Ford’s statement, which said, "I have listened to the people, and I won't take rent control away from anyone. Period," Ford continued, “When it comes to rent control, we're going to maintain the status quo.” It is clear that Ford concealed his motives from the get-go.The scrapping of this legislation is part of the new Housing Supply Action Plan, which protects existing tenancy agreements but puts potential ones at risk. In 2017, the former Liberal government expanded rent control to all units, including those built after 1991. This legislation ensured that annual rent increases would not surpass the rate of inflation. Rent control is a means to protect occupants from superfluous rent increases. Scrapping regulation legislation will only worsen this issue. Landlords and tenants both have responsibilities and neither party should be allowed to take advantage of each other financially.Increasing rental supply is just as important as ensuring that tenants can afford their rent in the first place. It is understandable why certain neighbourhoods and specific accommodations come with an expensive price tag, but the consensus is that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find affordable housing across the province, especially within the GTA. According to Citynews, 47 per cent of households in Toronto spend more than 30 per cent of their income on rent. Ideally, that number should be 25 per cent in order for people to afford other necessities of life. In the past, rent control exemptions have not been proven to increase rental supply. People need a place to live, a place that they can afford to call home for more than a few months at a time.Geordie Dent, Executive Director of the Federation of Metro Tenants Associations, said, "I'd like to congratulate our millionaire premier on signing the eviction orders on thousands of tenants going forward." Having no rent control in new units means that landlords hold the position of power and can potentially evict tenants who cannot afford their ever-increasing rents. Affordability is a key component of stabilizing our housing supply. Youth, seniors and those living on a fixed income are the most vulnerable when it comes to finding stable accommodations. The battle for affordable housing and tenant rights goes on, and advocates are ready to defend the cause. Ontario’s Housing Supply Action Plan is set to be unveiled in spring 2019.
Swapping Metropasses for Presto passes: TTC discontinuing Metropasses this December
TTC Metropass users will need make the switch over to Presto by the end of this year. The TTC will be discontinuing old Metropasses in favour of monthly Presto passes. The move marks a significant milestone in the TTC’s adoption of the fully cashless payment system operated by Metrolinx. According to the TTC’s website, the last day Metropasses will be accepted is December 31, 2018. Tickets and tokens however will be accepted until the end of 2019 when Presto has introduced single fare Presto passes to replace them.The TTC monthly pass on Presto works exactly the same way as the old TTC Metropass at the same cost. It provides unlimited travel for a month, the only difference being that you tap your Presto card on a card reader instead of swiping it or showing it to a fare collector. Those new to Presto will need to create an account on the Presto website and register their card if they want to automatically renew their monthly pass. The discounted Metropass rates for seniors, youth, and post-secondary students are carried over to Presto. However, “seniors, youths and post-secondary students must set a senior, youth or post-secondary fare type on their card at Shoppers Drug Mart locations or at the TTC’s Customer Service Centre above Davisville Station, before they can purchase a monthly pass” as indicated on the Transit Commission’s website. Users also have the option of purchasing a 12-month pass which serves as a replacement for the old Metropass Discount Plan.New users will need to be aware of some considerations as they switch over to Presto. Funds and monthly passes that are purchased online take up to 24 hours to be loaded to cards so these should be purchased ahead of time to ensure you can use your card. Additionally, the TTC monthly pass only applies to travel on the TTC. To pay YRT and Mi-Way fares, you will need to pay cash or load your Presto card will additional funds that are separate from your monthly pass.
NDP keeps pushing for auto insurance reform
Over 150 local residents packed an auto insurance town hall meeting I hosted in November to pressure this government to bring down the unfair auto insurance rates we pay in our community.
The community meeting was part of a series of auto insurance town halls Ontario's NDP is holding across the GTA, each packed with people demanding change.
Our community continues to pay some of the highest auto insurance rates in this country even though we do not have the highest number of accidents on our streets. In fact, there are even some in this community who are unable to drive because the insurance is simply unaffordable.
Ontario's NDP has been fighting against auto insurance postal code discrimination for years but the Liberals, and now Doug Ford’s Conservative government, sided with big auto insurance corporations over the people.
In 2012, former NDP MPP Jagmeet Singh (and current federal NDP leader) tabled a private member's bill that would have ended postal code discrimination, but both the Conservatives and the Liberals voted against it, and the bill failed. Later, the NDP extracted a promise from the provincial Liberals to reduce auto insurance rates by 15 per cent, but the Liberals simply broke their promise.
Most recently in October 2018, an NDP bill by MPP Gurratan Singh who attended our community meeting, called for auto insurance companies to treat the GTA as a single postal code when determining insurance rates.
Unfortunately, Doug Ford's Conservative government voted against this NDP bill that aimed to bring down insurance rates for drivers. What’s more, one of the first things the Ford government did when taking office was to pave the way for a nine per cent hike to auto insurance rates.
Our community is tired of being taken advantage of by auto insurance corporations and deserve to be treated fairly. I will continue to keep up the fight.
Teach2Learn in the Latinx Community
Teach2Learn (T2L) is a program focused on the Latinx community in Toronto. T2L began with a group of parents trying to encourage their children to pursue higher education. One problem our community faces is that as immigrants we work and focus on economic stability and this at times leads us to deprioritize our education. That is one of the reasons why the drop-out rate for the Latinx community is one of the highest in Toronto at 40%.Encouraging and working to ensure members from our community stay in school is a top priority for T2L. Together with the Conoser Scholarship Fund group, the charity organization that supports our organization and other valuable community programs, T2L is dedicated to finding funds for projects addressing the needs of our community.This year we managed to obtain funds from Trillium. We used this to fund programs in three different locations on a weekly basis helping youth and parents navigate the school system. One program provides newly arrived Latinx parents with workshops that provide assistance navigating the TDSB system. This series of workshops gives guidance and support to Spanish-speaking parents through new information and tools designed to effectively enrich their role as parents and build their capacity to teach other members of their community and give them tools to effectively parent in the TDSB school system.Another program T2L collaborates with is Academic Youth Success (ASY). It aims to bring high school students together with the goal of expanding youth’s community awareness and broadening their personal experiences. ASY focuses on character and leadership development, education and career development, health and life skills, art and cultural experiences, and most importantly, a secure space in which youth can feel a sense of belonging.Our programs are absolutely free of cost and we do our best to make them as accessible as possible to all youth. Youth who choose to be a part of our programs are able to network with like-minded individuals, meet community and business leaders, and are able to obtain recommendation letters for their commitments and efforts in the programs.The leaders of this program are also young members from our community who have experienced the needs as newcomers. These individuals lead the tutoring program where children practice their native language and receive help completing their homework. They benefit the community and we are always seeking volunteers. Reach out if you are interested - even if you are not a newcomer this is an opportunity to exchange knowledge and build a community that is united and strong.Learn more at teach2learn.ca.
Improvements coming to Ward 10 this summer
There is a common refrain that there are two seasons in Toronto – winter and construction. We are in store for a busy construction season in Ward 10 and while there may be some inconveniences, the work across Ward 10 and the city in general will bring enormous improvements and benefits to our neighbourhoods. Recreation is a vital part of any liveable city. And, it is with much excitement that we are now only weeks away from the re-opening of the Earl Bales Community Centre. Work has been happening over the past several months to add a new gym, new change rooms, a public lounge area and other improvements to the existing facility. This $4.5 million project is expected to be completed in late June to early July. Torontonians love their parks but great parks need regular improvements and investments. Construction of new playgrounds at Garthdale Park and Champlain Park will be starting shortly and we expect work on Phase II in Irving Chapley Park to be under way by the end of the summer. We just received word of another exciting addition that will be coming to Earl Bales Park. An announcement will be made shortly – keep an eye on www.JamesPasternak.ca for further details. After the major rain storms of 2013 and 2014, I promised that the City of Toronto would make the necessary investments to help prevent basement flooding. This is essential to protect the value in homes and keep our neighbourhoods healthy. This year $22.3 million of basement flooding protection work is scheduled to begin in Ward 10. In total, $178 million of improvements are planned for Ward 10 over the coming years.The City of Toronto is continuing to improve roads in our neighbourhood including repaving Finch Avenue West between Bathurst and Dufferin as well as along Wilson Heights Boulevard. Just outside Ward 10, The Ontario Ministry of Transportation is completely rebuilding the aging Avenue Road- Highway 401. This is a major project that will likely go into 2019.Toronto is a great place to live, work and raise a family. But to keep it that way we must make major investments in infrastructure. It will be messy and noisy and the traffic will be slower, but these investments will provide a great return for the good people of North York and Downsview. We thank you for your patience during the work and as always, I am available to speak at 416-392-1371 if you have any questions or concerns. You can also keep up with our progress and check back for regular updates at www.JamesPasternak.ca.
Amazing Love
William Ashley started his career as a graphic designer. When he switched to a career in the fine arts, it was a natural step. For many years, he worked with oil paint and much of his early work was wildlife drawings. He was also always interested in photography. William switched from oil to acrylic, believing that acrylic allowed for more versatility in his work. For a while, he found himself painting portraits. His reputation preceded him and commissions started coming. At one point, he was asked to paint a portrait of Mayor Mel Lastman. The Mayor was overwhelmed with the portrait, crying when he saw it for the first time.William has been working on an inspirational piece for the Jane-Finch community. William and his partner and Marketing Manager, Evadney, are long time residents and advocates in the community. For more than 18 years, William and Evadney ran a food-bank in Jane-Finch. They have also mentored many students and continue to advocate for the people of Jane-Finch. The piece that William has recently been working on will go on display at the Jane Finch Mall where community members can visit and receive inspiration from the positive message embedded in the work. The piece will incorporate some of the great minds that have come from the community, highlighting the accomplishments of the people of the Jane-Finch, including those of famous artists and professionals. In 2004, William found faith and started featuring Christian scripture into his work. Some of his works can be customized by clients with some even having their photos incorporated in the designs. His work can also be very high tech as he uses the latest digital technology to get the designs just right. On September 28, 2018, William and Evadney will be launching a new brand and are holding an exhibit at the De Runa Banquet Hall in Toronto. Currently, they have a gallery in the Jane-Finch community which is open by appointment. For more details, you can visit www.AmazingLove.ca.