On December 14, 2016 the city of Toronto voted for Landlord Licensing after a long battle between tenants and landlords.For twelve years, the Association of Community Organization for Reform Now (ACORN) has been knocking on doors in low to moderate income neighbourhoods asking residents what issues they faced in their community.One problem quickly revealed itself to be an epidemic across the metropolitan: Toronto has a slumlord crisis. Tenants are paying high market rent to live in increasingly worsening conditions. In multi-residential buildings across the city, tenants face ongoing substandard housing issues, include: bursting old pipes (leading to repeated flooding), rising floors, caving ceilings and other water damage as well as mold which is a health hazard, among other things.Chronic infestations of cockroaches, vermin and bedbugs are another huge problem. Many buildings also have continuous elevator issues resulting in frustratingly unreasonable long wait times going up and down in the mornings and evenings. Uneven heating is also an issue during the cold winter months.ACORN, currently boasting 83,000 members, Canada-wide, has been calling for Landlord Licensing since 2008. Landlord Licensing is a cost recovery program that charges the landlord approximately $12 per unit to cover the expansion of a city run Multi Residential Apartment Building (MRAB) inspection program. MRAB was, until now, a reactive inspection program which responds to complaints made by a tenant to the city either by a direct call to the city councillor or by calling 311. Unfortunately, few renters are aware of this option and are left without enough adequate information. Some tenants even mention being afraid of repercussions from landlords if they complain.Landlord Licensing will expand to the MRAB program, in a last minute amendment from Councillor Glenn De Baeremaeker, Ward 38. Six more inspectors were added to the proposed addition to tackle the large task of annual proactive inspections of every building with a minimum of three stories and no less than ten units.The inspection program will be similar to the Dine Safe program, where buildings would have to maintain a set of standards and if caught in violation of these standards would have to pay a fine if the issue is not brought up to standard in the set time. Landlord Licensing will implement a grading system that will be displayed at the front of each building so prospective renters can see the buildings grade before signing the lease.This is a win/win for landlords and tenants as good landlords can boast a good grade, bringing more prospective renters and reducing vacancies. Until now, there was only a self-certification that buildings awarded themselves and is entirely meaningless, a mere advertising stunt. Certification must come from the city so that tenants can trust it has value.Many landlords have fought Landlord Licensing, claiming that there is no need and there are only a few bad apples. Extensive documented research done by ACORN and confirmed by MRAB reveal that the reality is an epidemic of substandard market housing that urgently needs to be rectified. Landlords have distributed flyers using fear tactics as a way to scare tenants to act against their own interests, leading tenants to believe Landlord Licensing would cost them money, calling it an apartment tax. Josh Matlow, City Councillor, Ward 22 has repeatedly stated that the claim is absolutely false. Matlow has been a leader in the fight to protect tenants.One of the first city councillors to join ACORN’s fight for tenants inside city hall, is Janet Davis, Ward 31, who has been a strong and diligent champion for almost one decade. Listening closely to the needs of the people, Davis has helped lay the foundation and together overcome the years of hurdles that have brought ACORN’s Landlord Licensing to this victory. “I want to applaud tenant organizations across the city who have spoken out and are demanding the city take action" said Davis, who wanted to extend her appreciation.
No Plans for Parking Lot at New Downsview Park GO Station
This new station is an important development for our neighbourhood. It will improve access to jobs located downtown, improve quality of life for commuters, and enhance the value of our neighbourhood.The ride on the GO train from the new Downsview Park station to Union station will only take 15 minutes, significantly less than the time it currently takes to commute the same distance on the subway (40-50 minutes, based on my daily experience over the past three years).This (Barrie) train line has been identified for track upgrades (in progress) and electrification (over 10 years) that will eventually provide 15-minute all-day service.Unfortunately, the station has no plans for a parking lot. I sent several emails to Metrolinx to request a parking lot, and the responses were:1. The land adjacent to the station is not available.2. The land around the station is owned by Downsview Park, which is managed by the Federal Government.3. "We are not considering the addition of parking spaces at this station, as Downsview GO will be an urban station with excellent connections to the subway," and4. "We will not be considering adding parking to this station once construction is complete as there will be a number of bus routes available to connect commuters to the TTC’s subway system."While these are valid points, why not include a small parking lot to give people in the neighbourhood another way to get to the train?Our community needs to convince Downsview Park to allow a small portion of the land around the station to be used for GO Train parking. Today, there are unpaved parking lots beside the new station used by contractors working on the station. These existing lots could simply be paved over to be used by commuters once the station opens. GO and the TTC could charge parking fees to recover the cost of the parking lot over time.Further, I spoke with the TTC, who told me the only bus routes to the new station will be the 101 Downsview Park, the 107 Keele, and the 84 Sheppard. Those routes do not cover all of the areas in the surrounding community.Adding a parking lot to Downsview Park Station is a simple proposal that will maximize the impact of the Province's investments on the Barrie GO line and in Downsview Park. It will get people where they need to go sooner, and will allow commuters to spend less time on transit and more time with their families. If you agree that you would like at least a small parking lot at the new Downsview Station, contact the following people:Bruce McCuaig, President & CEO, MetrolinxCEO@metrolinx.com416-202-5908Toronto-York Spadina Subway ExtensionTYSSE@ttc.caMonte Kwinter, MPPmkwinter.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org416-630-0080Maria Augimeri, City Councillorcouncillor_augimeri@toronto.ca(416) 392-4021
Cutting grass or shoveling snow: What would you prefer?
One of the most frequent comments I received as a councillor was: “I cut my lawn and maintain my property…why should I have to cut the grass on the boulevard in front of my house? It belongs to the city.”That boulevard is there to make life easier for you. In the early years on North York Council, whenever it snowed heavily I had a strong urge to hide under the bed and not go to work. That’s because I knew I would get at least 30 telephone calls that went something like this:“I spent two hours shovelling my *@#% driveway yesterday and last night your &%#@+ snow plough came along and filled it up again. It froze and I can’t get to work this morning.”The pile of snow that obstructs your driveway is known as a “windrow.” Until I was elected to office I didn’t know the meaning of the word “windrow” let alone that I had to find a way to deal with them.In the 1980s North York invented the “snow rid.” It was a gate at the end of the plough, a sort of a short blade or scoop that the operator lowered when he came to one side of a driveway and raised it after he had pushed the windrow to the other side.Streets downtown don’t have a grassy boulevard -the sidewalks are built to the curb. The city doesn’t even plough the streets downtown. Suburban areas, on the other hand, have boulevards as a place to store ploughed snow. In North York, not only are the streets ploughed but so are the sidewalks.For downtown residents, there is a bylaw that requires every homeowner to shovel their sidewalk clear within 12 hours after a snowfall or face a fine of $125. There is no bylaw that requires North York residents to cut the grass on the boulevard. Most people, because they care about the appearance of their neighbourhoods, do it by unwritten convention. More importantly, if we didn’t have the boulevards the City couldn’t provide the great snow clearing services that they do.When amalgamation arrived in 1998, those of us from North York knew that we would have the fight of our lives to keep both sidewalk ploughing and driveway opening. Downtown councillors were chomping at the bit to save money by cutting these services. Why not? Their residents didn’t get them. Same went for Scarborough and Etobicoke councillors who were only too happy to make the budget cuts. Neither of these municipalities had them. We knew that the only way to keep them was to spread these, what some called “cadillac” services, to Scarborough and Etobicoke. Once established, we knew that their councillors would never vote to take them away.When my neighbour moved to Downsview from downtown he spent his first winter shovelling the sidewalk in front of his house until he learned that he didn’t have to. So next time, when you are out there cutting the grass on the city boulevard, think about how lucky you are. You could be shovelling snow instead.
Provincial Liberals Selling Off Hydro One Despite Public Opposition
Despite 80% of Ontarians being against the sale of Hydro One, the provincial Liberal government is moving ahead with its selloff to private investors.The independent Provincial Financial Accountability Office has even warned about the loss of provincial revenue that would result from the sale. The provincial ombudsman and other watchdogs have also warned against the secretive manner of the sale.Shortly after the provincial election, the Liberal government surprised the public by selling off 60% of Hydro One. To date, 30% has been sold meaning the public still currently owns the majority of shares.The sale has been a hotly debated topic at Queen's Park. This October, Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath moved a motion to end any further sale of this important public asset. “We need to make crucial changes to stop the rising cost of hydro and stop the privatization that’s driving those cost increases,” said Horwath.“The priority of our hydro system shouldn’t be generating big profits for investors. It should be to provide affordable electricity that keeps people’s bills as low as possible.”The motion did not pass due to the opposition of Liberal and Conservative MPPs.Downsview residents continue to see rising hydro bills, a cost many simply cannot afford. The rising costs particularly affect properties with electrical heating for the colder months.Bibi Ali, a local Condominium Board President, represents one such property where some residents face $1000 bills during the winters. She was surprised to hear about the hydro sell-off when it started and fears that privatization will only make the situation worse."It's not fair that our hydro bills are so high," said Bibi. "The government should have asked people instead of just going ahead and selling things off."A number of organizations opposed to the selloff of Hydro One, have put together a website (www.keephydropublic.ca) with a lot of great information and opportunities to take a stand against the sale.If the government continues in its sell-off plan, the public will lose the majority say on the future of hydro. The provincial Liberal government should listen to the will of the public and stop any further sale before they make a bad situation only worse.
Local Trustee in “Hot Water” over Alleged Breach in Code of Conduct
Toronto District School Board Trustee, Tiffany Ford, is in “hot water” according to a Toronto Star article.The article published on October 1st disclosed two separate incidents: one, where she allegedly used her title as a school board trustee to sell water from a company she owned called “Smarty Pants Water” and a second one related to a local student award she organized in her role as Trustee.The Star published a copy of the press release in question where the following title is read as a headline “Toronto School Board Trustee Launches Innovative Product to Increase Children’s Water Consumption: Smarty Pants Water.” The article goes on to describe that the use of her title to promote her personal business was allegedly in violation of the code of conduct that guides Trustees on the Board. They also quote a TDSB spokesperson stating that Ford had breached the code of conduct.Tiffany Ford denies that a breach in the code of conduct has occurred and has since demanded and received an apology from TDSB staff. In a statement published on social media on October 3rd, she says that according to the code of conduct “the board of trustees are required to conduct an inquiry and with that make a determination. This process has not occurred and has not been initiated by any Trustee of the board”. She also states that “I hold myself to high ethical standards and principles. With that, I have never used my Trustee office, resources, or taxpayers dollars to promote my personal business ventures.” She goes on further to demand a retraction from The Star and an apology from the TDSB spokesperson.The Advocate reached out to Ford to get a statement for the local community. She referred our inquiries to the same published statement, for which we have included links at the bottom of the article.The Toronto Star published a follow up article titled: “TDSB apologizes to trustee Tiffany Ford after saying she violated the code of conduct.” The article published in late October details that the TDSB spokesperson now states that only its integrity commissioner, not board staff, can determine when its code of conduct has been violated. John Malloy, TDSB director of education, wrote, in a letter to Ford, dated Friday, October 21st “I incorrectly instructed staff to confirm that your actions were in violation of the TDSB Member Code of Conduct.”Trustee Tiffany Ford has accepted John Malloy’s apology and has asked the integrity commissioner to confirm what “she can, and cannot, put her title on.”In their own voices:The Toronto Star article:https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2016/10/01/toronto-school-trustee-used-her-title-to-promote-her-own-business.htmlTiffany Ford statement: https://www.scribd.com/document/326235763/Statement-by-TDSB-Trustee-Tiffany-FordThe Toronto Star follow up article: https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2016/10/24/tdsb-apologizes-to-trustee-tiffany-ford-after-saying-she-violated-code-of-conduct.html
Humber River Regional Hospital: New Site, Same Problems
Part 1“The union filed a complaint,” the nurse said to her colleague. “They don’t want us porting patients. But I don’t know how to use the new computerized porter booking system, so I just do it myself.” By her own account, she has more than 20 years’ experience in nursing, including at the old Humber River Regional Hospital.During my previous chemotherapy session, she was the “senior” nurse who had angrily and confrontationally increased the drip rate of the drug I was receiving, overruling a younger, more recently educated nurse, whose patient I was. The “senior” felt that I was “wasting their time” by insisting they follow the chemotherapy protocol laid out in my file by my oncologist.When I had an entirely preventable rigors reaction (intense sweating and uncontrollable shaking) to the drug minutes later, the “experienced” nurse shrugged it off, casually saying, “well, that has never happened before.”Except similar events have happened before. Frequently.The “old” Humber River Regional Hospital (at its site on Finch Avenue West) had frequent problems with patient care. The first problem I heard was from my 19-year-old neighbour who went to emergency with unexplained continuous bleeding from his nose. He bled for 36 hours at the hospital while doctors found “nothing wrong with him”. “It felt like the doctors and nurses didn’t take me seriously because there was no obvious bullet wound causing the bleeding,” he told me. He believes that he would have died if his terrified parents hadn’t taken him out of the Humber River and checked him in to Sunnybrook hospital. “The University Health Network (UHN) was completely different”, he recounted. “They actually cared about me and took my condition seriously. They put me on a new drug and it saved my life.”His story and many similar ones were used to justify the massive cost of the new Humber River site, with claims of the latest technology improving patient care. And plenty new technology is being used, like the pneumatic tubes that deliver blood samples to the lab at such high speed that they shatter the blood cells, leading to faulty test results. “They promised us when they installed the system that it wouldn’t harm the blood samples,” another nurse told me. But that didn’t prevent my being admitted to emergency due to a bad test result. “You are standing and talking to me, so this result can’t be correct. You would be dead,” the ER doctor told me looking at my blood test result after I waited 60 minutes to be admitted (imagine if it had been a correct result!). A couple of days later it was, “the system would have beeped to warn me, don’t worry!” said casually by a nurse who almost gave me the wrong type of blood transfusion (which could have killed me).Technology is neither the problem nor the solution in these cases. The underlying cause is a lack of critical thought, patience, and listening to patients by burned out, jaded health care professionals. And the patient experiences that I have heard about at the “new” Humber River while researching this story are exactly like the old ones: Medication screw ups, sending elderly patients to non-OHIP-covered offsite clinics they can’t afford, uncompassionate and confrontational medical professionals, and long wait times, including in emergency cases.Stay tuned for Part 2 of this article in the next edition.
Memorial Fund Raises Money for Boost Child & Youth Advocacy Centre
I do not want to spend too much time on the sickening details I heard in a downtown courtroom.Melonie Biddersingh was 17 years old when she died. Prior to her death, Melonie endured starvation and horrific abuse at the hands of her father Everton Biddersingh and stepmother Elaine Biddersingh. In September 1994, Melonie’s body was found in a burning suitcase; her autopsy revealed that she had suffered several fractures and weighed only 50 pounds.Two years earlier, Melonie’s 13 year old brother Dwayne, fell to his death from the balcony of the Biddersingh’s apartment. His tragic death continues to be surrounded by suspicion; many wonder why a generally happy boy from Jamaica would jump to his death.Earlier this year both Everton and Elaine Biddersingh were found guilty of murder in Melonie’s death; Everton of first-degree and Elaine second-degree.I am not related to this family but this tragedy affected me. I attended the criminal proceedings against Everton and Elaine and sought out Opal Austin, mother of Melonie and Dwayne, at the trial. I learned that in an effort to give her precious children a better life she entrusted them to their father and stepmother with the hopes that they could fulfill her wish. I saw a light in Opal’s eye when she shared how Melonie loved children and wanted to be a nurse and how Dwayne loved singing and wanted to be a rapper. The light in Opal’s eye has been snuffed out along with the hopes and dreams of Melonie and Dwayne.As I got to know Opal, I suggested honouring Melonie and Dwayne’s life in the hopes that the innocence and purity of these children would prevail over evil. Opal and her daughter Raquel agreed and chose Boost Child & Youth Advocacy Centre (CYAC) as the beneficiary of these efforts – The Dwayne and Melonie Memorial Fund will support Boost CYAC’s Child Victim Witness Support Program (CVWSP). This program provides court preparation for children and youth who are called to testify. Children learn what their role is as a witness and what they can expect while on the stand. The program helps children and families understand verdicts and helps to explain what specific judgments mean.My prayer is that through this fund, Melonie and Dwayne will be able to support other victims of abuse to fulfill their hopes and dreams. The goal is $5000.00. Any donation is appreciated.To make a donation to The Dwayne & Melonie Memorial Fund: www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=2240&AID=3011&PID=575273To learn more about Boost CYAC:www.boostforkids.orgMEDIA CONTACT:Lindsay Jolie | Director of Communications & Community Relationsjolie@boostforkids.rorg | (416) 560-7568
Modernizing Transit Need Not Create Social Class Divides
You may have noticed posters placed in some TTC stations advising riders that tokens will no longer be accepted at unmanned entrances. These ads represent a new, more aggressive push for adoption of the PRESTO card that has been in deployment for several years across the GTA. While there are useful qualities to tap cards, tokens have three important features that the Province of Ontario and City of Toronto overlooked when pressuring the TTC to phase out this alternative currency that has been used since the 1950s.The primary benefits of PRESTO cards stem from their ease of use in the digital era. You can “top-up” online with a credit card. That’s fine for many TTC riders. It’s not so easy for many others. Public transit is a fundamental social pillar used by some of the most vulnerable people in our society: the poor, elderly, sick, and young. For these riders, added complexity—even small levels of added complexity—are a barrier to access. Tokens are simple, well understood, easy to use, and ubiquitous. For those who cannot readily use the Internet, having to visit “select” TTC stations in person to “top-up” creates unnecessary hardship, not to mention that such money is not immediately available for use on their card. As a result, cash becomes the next simplest, viable alternative. And the cash fare is roughly 12% more, effectively the same as sales tax!Taxing the vulnerable is a practice we detest, but there are deeper issues such as identity. Not all TTC riders can easily establish and maintain a verifiable identity—something that is required to have a PRESTO card. Tokens are anonymous, untraceable, and that’s a good thing. Even assuming the best case of world-class technology and privacy law adherence, recent history repeatedly teaches us that it’s not enough. A support worker at a homeless shelter or food bank can hand a token to a visitor effortlessly—not so with a PRESTO card.It is true that transit users can currently still use the “main entrances” of TTC stations in order to pay with tokens. The overlooked result is a social-class divide, where vulnerable riders are no longer allowed to use the unmanned entrances they had used for decades with tokens & turnstiles. Instead, they must go wait in long lines with the other “people who refuse to modernize”, corralled into a place for that lower class of rider. Tokens do not draw lines across social class like PRESTO cards. Preventing the use of tokens to some entrances will not increase PRESTO card adoption. It simply separates people according to entrances in a manner that were decried in social movements of decades past, with no tangible benefit.I am not advocating against the PRESTO card. It has value. My concern rests with phasing out the token so aggressively. The TTC reassures us that it is a “transition period” and that a “network of vendors will eventually be established” to support single-ride anonymous card purchases. Yet, in the meantime, it is barrelling forward constraining token usage without viable alternatives in place. Why not simply delay token phase out until everything is ready? Modernizing transit need not create social class divides.
Temp Workers, Know Your Rights
Temporary staffing or temp agencies are companies that find and hire workers for other companies. Temporary workers, or ‘temps’, do not work directly for these companies. Instead, they still work for the agency; the client company pays the temp agency, which then takes a cut of the temp worker’s pay and passes on the remainder. Temp workers do not receive any benefits from the client company and do not receive the same pay as permanent employees who do the same work. This uneven power balance means that their position is very precarious and they can be easily fired by either the client or the temp agency.Originally intended to fill in for employees who needed a leave of absence (such as for a vacation or illness), temp work has now become semi-permanent, precarious positions that are under the constant threat of elimination due to fluctuations in a company’s staffing needs. Since the establishment of temp agencies, corporations quickly learned the benefits of having a workforce that was easily hired and fired; in addition, the fragmented and asynchronous nature of a temp worker’s employment means that he or she has very little chance to meet and develop relationships with other workers, temporary or permanent, thus limiting their ability to collectively demand better treatment from their workplace. Seeing the threat of replacement by temp workers, permanent employees have also learned not to demand better treatment at their workplace.A survey by Jane Finch Action Against Poverty (JFAAP), a local community group, found that over 200 temp agencies operated in the area. These companies are poorly regulated and employ tens of thousands in the Jane and Finch area alone, and many more across the city. These agencies are sometimes fined by the Ministry of Labour but the sum of the fines have often been so low that it barely affects the agency.On August 24th, York University’s legal clinic, Community Legal Aid Services Programme (CLASP), JFAAP, and the Jane Finch Community and Family Centre held a legal education workshop to inform temp workers of their rights. Although their position is precarious, temp agency workers are still protected by Ontario’s Employment Standards Act. Among other rights, they are due to no less than the minimum wage of $11.40/hr and this is after the agency has taken their cut. They also have the right to refuse unsafe work, and must have an eight hour rest period in between shifts. These and other important facts were outlined to the attendees during the workshop.Although attendance was small, there will be more workshops held by the partner groups. Food, tokens, and childcare will be provided. Those interested in learning more can contact Nicola from CLASP at 416-736-2100 ext. 30130.Future workshops will also be placed in the Downsview Advocate’s event calendar.
Mayor Tory talks Manufacturing in DUKE Heights
On the morning of Tuesday September 13th, approximately 250 people gathered at Teknion furniture headquarters for some breakfast and to hear Mayor John Tory speak. It was the Mayor’s Economic Update Breakfast and the purpose of the event was to remind everyone that manufacturing is an essential part of Toronto’s economy.The mayor’s message was clear: we need manufacturing in order to be a successful economy and there was no better neighborhood to deliver this message than in DUKE Heights. This is a neighborhood that provides many of the manufacturing jobs in the GTA, with manufacturing being the second largest source of employment for the 30,000 employees who work in the area.Mayor Tory emphasized that Toronto has a very competitive market for manufacturing. Toronto is home to some extremely innovative and intelligent individuals who create quality goods whose production is supported by good laws. The Mayor stated that because of these things, despite the economic downturn of 2008, manufacturing has grown in Toronto. In the last few years the GTA has added 1300 new jobs in manufacturing.Despite this growth, our local manufacturing sector is suffering. Canadian companies do not seem to have very strong exports and despite the Mayor’s claims that there are laws setup to support the manufacturing sector, there are many other road blocks from the city and local infrastructure that hinder development. The Mayor gave an example of a local company that wished to expand their food processing plant. For this addition they needed to receive new permits and hook up hydro to the new part of the building. It took so long to go through these official processes that the new addition of the plant was built and ready long before hydro was hooked up. Mayor Tory stated that he is aware of the roadblocks that manufacturers face when dealing with the City and city infrastructure and says he takes responsibility for these problems. “Time is money” says Tory “and we are working on that”. What form that work and responsibility will take remains unspecified at this juncture as this update seemed to serve mostly as a morale boost to the manufacturing sector.It is understandable since more than ever manufacturing is seen as a less viable career option. Part of the importance of holding his update at a factory like Teknion is to showcase what modern manufacturing can be. The products at Teknion are sleek and professionally engineered and the work is both craftsmanship and technology based. Teknion is a good example that to be successful in modern manufacturing requires intense training, education, trade skills and more.One thing to take from this economic update event is to try a little harder to support our local industry by buying local and supporting Canadian manufacturers.