HOUSINGAGAIN-L Housing Again Bulletin No 24

[Catherine Nasmith <cnasmith@sympatico.ca>]

HOUSING AGAIN - Bulletin Number 24
December 1, 2000

A twice-monthly electronic bulletin published on what people are doing
to put housing back on the public agenda in Ontario, across Canada and
around the world. Our web site is http://www.housingagain.web.net
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In this issue:
1. Bill 128: The Grinch Who Stole Christmas
2. National Day of Action
3. Tent City
4. Federal pressure for housing?
5. Check out our Alerts!
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1. Bill 128: The Grinch Who Stole Christmas

Everybody in the affordable housing business knows that  Bill 128, the
Social Housing Downloading Bill is a disaster in the making, just as
they know it is proceeding irrevocably towards approval in the Ontario
Legislature. The five short hours of public hearings are over. The
clause by clause review has been done. 

The results?  Because of amendments made in the committee, the bill will
not be quite as draconian as originally proposed. But it will still make
affordable, supportive and social housing drastically more difficult to
maintain, almost impossible to increase, and mire the previously sleek
efficient management of housing co-ops, for example, in multi-level
bureaucratic nightmares.

The social housing `boondoggle’ epithet was raised by Conservative
committee member Marcel Beaubien who pointed out the value of public
housing stock is $4.5 billion but the debt on it is $8.5 billion. He
also suggested Habitat for Humanity as a possible solution to housing
problems. John Sweeney former chairman of the Canadian Habitat for
Humanity board pointed out that Habitat managed to build 40 houses in
Kitchener-Waterloo (where he lives) where 4000 were needed.  Alan
Redway, former federal housing minister in  Brian Mulroney’s government
explained the debt largely arose from major land value decreases since
much housing land was purchased, and he cited a real estate deal he had
handled as a lawyer the previous week when the same thing had happened
in the private sector, yet no one called that a `boondoggle.’ 

At the public hearings, a number of tenants came with Ann Fitzpatrick,
housing advocate with the Children's Aid Society, representing the
Public Housing Fightback Campaign. Her economic case was strong. One
fifth of CAS admissions are due to homelessness. It costs CAS $1,700 per
month to keep a child in custody compared to the $200 per month subsidy
needed to keep a family in social housing.

Carolyn Flynn, President of the Greenbrae Residents Group, a disabled
senior who lives in a rent-geared-to-income MTHA project said, "Your
government reminds me of the Grinch who stole Christmas!" 

Now under private management, the Greenbrae apartments flood because of
holes in brick walls; mould grows and is repeatedly painted over and is
toxic. Other tenants spoke of drastic parking and utility price hikes
with little notice in MTHA housing. Another tenant pointed out that a
10% decrease in RGI units means 2, 900 fewer public housing units when
the social housing waiting list stands at more than 50,000 households in 
Toronto.

Cliff Martin, Chairman of the St. James Town Tenant Council started out
talking language the government would understand. "We pay 59% of the
operating costs of MTHA, a majority stake, a higher percentage than the
other two senior levels of government. But no tenant had any input in
the changes.
 
"We want a Statement of Purpose that spells out our government's
commitment to live up to international United Nations agreements to the
right to housing and the government's role to preserve and expand social
housing programmes to meet the needs of citizens."  Martin said.

In the amendment process, Bill 128 has only been softened slightly at
the edges and that is due in large part to the lengthy and effective
lobbying of ONPHA and the Co-Op Housing Federation. Fred Gloger,
researcher for the provincial NDP, says the Bill is now a little better
rather than worse, since a number of Liberal and NDP amendments were
passed. "Little words here and there were changed," Gloger says "to make
it less easy for municipalities to impose unfair rules on different
housing providers, for example."

Municipalities will not be allowed in any given year, to scoop off half
the surplus of a non profit housing provider without taking into account
things like on-going debt. Gloger hopes regulations may make rules about
reserve funds less damaging as well. 

A number of amendments draw the housing providers into discussion of
changed conditions, but really, reading the petitions brought before the
House Committee is reading a tragedy -- a housing system full of well
run, proud Co-ops and efficient Non Profit organisations being dragged
down to the lowest level of bureaucracy ridden old-fashioned public
housing. An even more Byzantine organisation is being created. And this
at a time when for a decade, Co-ops have been asking for government
reforms to establish a more business-like relationship with the
government where the co-ops would have paid back more of the operating funding.

Certainly doesn't seem to make any sense at all, common or not.

For full transcripts of the two days of hearings as well as of the
debate in the house go to http://www.housingagain.web.net, Resources and
search using Bill 128, or The Social Housing Reform Act. There are also
press releases in Alerts.

2. National Day of Action

Wednesday November 22 was bitterly cold and windy for the National Day
of Action- at least in Toronto. Nevertheless, nearly five hundred
gathered at Holy Trinity Church. (The irony of that social activist
church sitting in the shadow of the Eaton Centre, perfect symbol of the
God of Mammon, would be irresistible for a heavy handed film-maker.)
There was lunch for all at the church provided by the city, plus
speeches bringing word from other housing activist groups across the country.

At City Hall Square, where crowd estimates varied from two hundred to
five hundred, the weather cooled down enthusiasm, but Cathy Crowe of the
Toronto Disaster Relief Committee and Councillor Jack Layton both made
passionate addresses. Anglican Archbishop of Ontario Terrance Finlay
spoke strongly of the need for national action and concerted effort to
help the poor and homeless. Several groups intending to attend were
overwhelmed by work at their centres and shelters, but there was good
national press coverage. For further information, see the Alerts section.

3. Tent City

A shanty-town in downtown Toronto is distressing Mayor Mel Lastman. It
won't look good when the International Olympic Committee tours the
waterfront area later this winter. Between sixteen and thirty people
have made their own neighbourhood at the foot of Cherry Street at
Lakeshore Boulevard, near Parliament St., land partly owned by Home Depot.

While living in a tent down by the waterfront is not even imaginable for
most of us, for the people of Tent City it is a better, safer place than
sleeping over a hot air vent. For many, those who are "shelter
intolerant," it's preferable to the terrifying violence they fear, and
close proximity with strangers in the city's various overnight shelters.

Some of the shanty town's residents have been there sixteen months. A
number have built permanent looking structures with pieces of plywood
and re-used foundations while others use tarps and tents. 

Under pressure from the provincial Ministry of the Environment which
claims the land is polluted and might be harmful to people living there,
plans were afoot to evict the residents November 28, so the Toronto
Disaster Relief Committee and Ontario Coalition Against Poverty called a
press conference at Tent City that morning. TDRC organiser Kira Heineck
was pleased at the turnout of about 80 people including NDP MPP Marilyn
Churley, and a representative of Claudette Bradshaw, the federal
minister concerned with homelessness. There was also very good media
representation. 

"You could see the shift in the faces of the reporters when they
realised what it was like," Heineck said. "People living there are
afraid of being split up, not just couples, but people who have become
friends and support each other in their own community. The city is
scrambling to open more places, but many of the shelter intolerant
people would only be able to live in the privacy of proper supportive housing."

"I think it's important that people are finally seeing the link between
the lack of proper housing policy and this sort of result - Tent City.
And the cold always gets the homeless attention. The city has delayed
the eviction  until mid-December."

Heineck put in a strong plea to lobby Mayor Mel Lastman, while there is
still time. (Mayor's Office: phone 416-395-6464, fax 395-6440)
 
The old Princess Margaret Hospital should be soon opened up as a shelter
again this winter, but the homeless are still waiting. There are about
1000 still sleeping on the streets in Toronto.

4. Federal pressure for housing?

Even on the night of the election, after all the promises had been made,
the votes counted, and no necessity to keep promises, some victors were
talking housing. Former Metro Toronto chair Alan Tonks (elected for the
Liberals in York South-Weston) claimed that affordable housing and
transportation are two key issues he will address as a Member of
Parliament. John McKay (elected for the Liberals in Scarborough East)
also re-iterated his commitment to housing in a speech on election night.

TDRC has taken note and plans to launch a targeted lobby campaign to
make sure the ruling Liberals live up to their modest pledges to support
affordable housing, and perhaps go even further. 

5. Check out our Alerts section!

Check out the 'Alerts' section of HousingAgain for fresh news up-dated
daily and important and interesting information. Point your browser to
http://www.housingagain.web.net then click on "alerts". Make sure to
check regularly for new information. If you have a news release or other
news, you can post it to the site by clicking on "post".
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