Toronto Council meets today! Tory has decided they’ll debate the Housing Now plan first, followed by the Richmond-Adelaide bike lanes. Streaming live here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOk4FSieJsg
Councillors are asking staff questions about the Housing Now plan. Councillor James Pasternak asks if staff considered alternative sites, because some of the selected sites may lead to confrontation when commuters find out they are losing parking lots. Housing vs Parking - fight!
Staff Qs are over. Councillors now making speeches and moving motions on the Housing Now plan. First up: Mayor Tory introduces a motion directing staff to give “greater consideration” to a bunch of things, including increasing the number of affordable units in plan.
This is a bit of pre-emptive mayoral strategy. Tory knows some councillors will be moving to change the Housing Now plan to add more units, add rent control, make units more affordable, etc. This gives him cover to vote against those motions.
Councilllor Joe Cressy is up with a motion. Language is similar to mayor’s motion. Similar goals to what mayor put forward, but more direct language. Semantics are going to be a big part of this Housing Now debate.
Councillor Mike Layton moves that the Housing Now plan be modified to increase target of affordable units on sites (from ~36% to 50%) and to designate 20% as “deeply affordable.”
Councillor Layton also wants to add a Green P lot at 19 Spadina Road to the list of Housing Now sites for affordable housing development. (That’s Spadina ROAD, not Avenue, FYI.)
(There are too many streets named Spadina nowadays. Please eliminate one. I am NOT a crackpot.)
Council is now on lunch. Back at 2 p.m. for more housing talk.
Council has returned. They have voted to award a contract to a company that will have planes spray chemicals in these areas to contain an expected European Gypsy Moth outbreak this spring. http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2019.IE1.3
Potential news brewing: Councillor Paula Fletcher, seconded by Mayor John Tory, has introduced a motion to this council meeting about a potential acquisition of the Hearn Generating Station. More details to come, hopefully.
Back to Housing Now for, uh, now. Mayor John Tory has revised his motion from before lunch to contain these items from Joe Cressy’s motion. Cressy has withdrawn his original motion, and says he’ll support mayor. Peace in the land.
Councillor John Filion introduces a motion to prevent purchasers of this city-owned land from trying to get more density without council approval.
Councillor Gord Perks moves that staff ensure there’s at least one public sector bid for at least one of the Housing Now sites.
Big motion from Councillor Josh Matlow: - Rent control for all rental units in Housing Now developments. - Requirement that all Housing Now units be rentals. (Current plan is 71% of total residential units be rental.)
The dividing line in this debate: some councillors believe affordable housing is such a crisis that city should be pushing for more. Other councillors believe that adding more affordable unit requirements or other restrictions will mean nobody bids to develop/operate these sites.
Damn this calculator is cool and fun. https://x.com/HousingNowTO/status/1090703940063088640
(Cheat code: eliminate all parking spaces right away. Just like in real life!)
Council is voting on Housing Now now. Mayor Tory’s motion to have staff give greater consideration to development proposals with more affordable housing, deeper affordability, supportive housing, etc. CARRIES, 26-0.
Second part of Tory’s motion, directing that staff shoot for at least four of the 11 sites to be operated by non-profits, CARRIES 23-3.
Councillor Layton’s motion that 50% of units in Housing Now sites be affordable, and 20% be deeply affordable, FAILS 7-19.
Layton’s motion to add 19 Spadina Road (not Avenue!) to list of Housing Now sites CARRIES 19-7.
Layton’s motion that staff consider using “refundable debt” to pay for affordable housing projects CARRIES 16-10.
Councillor Filion’s motion to have staff ensure that purchasers of city-owned sites can’t try to get more density without council approval FAILS 12-14.
Councillor Perks’ motion that staff ensure there’s at least one public sector bid as part of Housing Now process FAILS 11-15.
Councillor Carroll’s motion that staff report on a process for giving out affordable housing units that isn’t just a one-time lottery CARRIES 22-4.
Councillor Matlow’s motion that staff report to council on land sales before they’re approved FAILS 10-16.
Matlow’s motion to basically implement rent control for the Housing Now sites (and make all units rentals) FAILS 12-14. (Tory in favour!)
Councillor Mike Colle’s motion requesting that the feds provide a list of all surplus federal land in Toronto CARRIES 24-2. Please DM me the list, @JustinTrudeau.
And now we’re quickly on to the Richmond-Adelaide bike lane debate. Streaming live here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZFy-8HPEHc
And that was fast. Toronto City Council votes 22-0 to make the Richmond-Adelaide bike lanes permanent. (Adelaide lane will be moved to north side of the street.)
Up now: council will decide whether to declare homelessness “a human rights disaster akin to a Municipal Emergency or a national emergency and an urgent human rights crisis, and seek assistance from the Province under the Emergency Response and Civil Protection Act.”
There’s a new staff report on what declaring homelessness an emergency would mean, in technical terms. Staff note that the premier has the unilateral power to terminate any state of emergency declared by Toronto. https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2019/cc/bgrd/backgroundfile-124111.pdf (PDF)
Staff are not recommending an emergency declaration, because homelessness is basically a long-term foreseeable issue. Formal emergency declaration would see all powers of council delegated to the mayor, which probably wouldn’t help much here.
But council can vote to declare homelessness “a human rights disaster akin to a Municipal Emergency or a national emergency, and an urgent human rights crisis” without formally triggering a Declaration of Emergency.
Councillor Paul Fletcher’s motion, seconded by Mayor John Tory, is for the city to enter into negotiations to BUY the Hearn Generation Station site at market value. This will be debated at this week’s council meeting. http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2019.MM2.21
OPG (via a sale approved by Doug Ford’s government) just sold the Hearn to private developers for $16 million last fall. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ndp-calls-for-review-of-hearn-plant-sale-1.4918640
I wasn’t aware the Hearn was on the market again. Think the city can get it for the same price?
There’s also a second motion by Fletcher (seconded by Tory) about the Hearn. This one would have it evaluated as a heritage property. http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2019.MM2.20
Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam introduces a motion on homelessness: - Declare homelessness human rights disaster “akin to an emergency.” - Affirm housing as a human right - Establish intergovernmental group to address housing/homelessness in Toronto
Councillor Wong-Tam’s motion to declare homelessness a “human rights disaster akin to a municipal emergency” FAILS 7-18.
Wong-Tam’s motion to establish an intergovernmental group to establish a 6-month strategy for housing and homelessness in Toronto FAILS 9-16. There’s some procedural confusion on this one.
Wong-Tam motion to identify unaddressed low-income housing support gaps, including mental health and addiction, CARRIES 18-7.
Procedural confusion continues. Basically, Wong-Tam’s motion should not have been separated into individual votes like it was, so Nunziata decides it all lost on the 9-16 vote. Councillor Perks isn’t happy about the speaker’s decision, but her ruling is upheld, 19-6.
Councillor Bailao’s motion to hold an urgent meeting with supportive housing providers and request the feds and province provide funds to create 1,800 new units of supportive housing annually CARRIES 25-0.
Councillor Bailao’s motion to invite reps from Sistering and Fred Victor women’s drop-in shelters for a meeting re: increasing their capacity CARRIES 24-1.
Cressy motion to have staff report on a plan to build supportive and transitional housing CARRIES 24-1.
Council is done for the day. They’re back tomorrow at 9:30 a.m.
If you found this thread of Toronto Council meeting coverage useful and informative, subscribe to @cityhallwatcher — just five bucks a month. Post-council info and analysis can be in YOUR Inbox on Monday. https://graphicmatt.substack.com
Day two of City Council. These staff-recommended left-turn restrictions along the Eglinton LRT route have sparked concern among suburban councillors. Any changes would slow down the surface LRT through this area.
Councillor Gord Perks got staff to point out that the changes to Eglinton with addition of LRT & Eglinton Connects will double the total mobility capacity of the street, but concerns about cars continue.
None of the concerned-about-cars councillors move to change the traffic plan for Eglinton, however. Those permanent Eglinton left-turn restrictions are approved, unanimously.
Toronto Council votes 20-2 to oppose sections 3, 5, 9 and 10 of the provincial government’s Bill 66. http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2019.MM2.10
Toronto Council will not be debating term limits at this meeting. Vote to debate the item immediately was 12-12, and it needed a two-thirds majority. It’ll be referred to the Special Committee on Governance for consideration.
Councillor Fletcher’s motion calling for a heritage evaluation of the Hearn CARRIES 22-2.
Councillor Fletcher’s motion that the city initiate negotiations about BUYING the Hearn is held by Councillor Holyday. Will be debated later.
Council now debating Community Environment Days, where people can get compost and recycle old stuff. There used to be 44. There are now 25. Paula Fletcher has moved to make it so that councillors can opt to hold a second environment day in their ward.
Councillor Jim Karygiannis to Ward 2 Councillor Stephen Holyday: “In order to save money, why don’t we just cancel Ward 2?”
Deputy Mayor Minnan-Wong tries to end the debate by calling the question. That fails, 9-12. The debate over Environment Days rolls on.
Councillor Pasternak wants to give councillors the option to hold Community Environment Days on weekdays, not just weekends.
Councillor Fletcher’s motion to allow councillors to opt-in to having a second Environment Day in their ward (subject to budget process) CARRIES 21-3. More compost for everyone.
Fletcher’s motion to look at funding a shuttle service at Leslie Spit as part of the budget process CARRIES 20-4.
Council now debating acquisition of the Hearn. Stephen Holyday showing aerial photos, suggesting the Hearn’s tall smokestack interferes with island airport operations, and may limit with future airport expansion plans. Uh, I was not expecting the debate to go this way.
Holyday’s what-if-the-smokestack-interferes-with-the-island-airport argument holds little sway. Council votes 20-2 to enter negotiations about the City of Toronto buying the Hearn.
