Residents at 500 Dawes Rd. received a glimmer of hope after Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow introduced the “Cracking Down on Bad Landlords” motion at council’s executive committee meeting Tuesday afternoon.
Amid a litany of neglected maintenance issues at the apartment building, Chow’s motion now directs city staff to pursue remedial action at 500 Dawes and seek assistance from city partners “including TCHC and CUPE 416,” both of which have extensive resources the city can utilize for repairs.
Though Chow revealed that the city asked for a list of contractors last May, she says that she has not seen that list, urging officials to “get on with it.”
“We have to send a message to these slumlords that we will not tolerate their behaviour,” Chow said. “We have to act now.”
The motion also seeks to “put in place a previously contemplated but never implemented” cross-divisional database that tracks investigation and enforcement activity at problematic rental properties. This publicly available data, which will be introduced by July, will enable all city divisions, agencies, boards and commissions to coordinate activity.
This, Chow emphasized, is especially important for fire fighters and police who need to know the conditions of a building before entering, highlighting the precarious nature of balconies at 500 Dawes, which past inspections have found to need repairs.
“For safety reasons…we need to consolidate a lot of the problems we are receiving, and hearing, from tenants at each of these buildings,” she explained.
With many landlords owning multiple properties across the city, Chow’s motion requests that the city investigate all properties operated by the same individual or company that have failed to address repair backlogs. These buildings will be identified as “problem buildings” and placed under heightened scrutiny.
In the case of Carolyn Krebs, the landlord at 500 Dawes, the city’s new policy, if implemented by council, would trigger an investigation into her other properties at 608 Dawes Rd., 210 Oak St., and 171 St. Clair Ave. East.
“If there’s a pest infestation, for example, it’s not easy to deal with,” Chow said. “If you have landlords that are negligent…if people have to put all their belongings into plastic bags to keep them away from bedbugs or cockroaches…it’s just a horrific way to live.”
The mayor’s motion noted that RentSafeTO will soon implement colour-coded signage on apartment buildings with the goal of holding landlords accountable.
During a media scrum at City Hall on Tuesday, Councillor Gord Perks, Chair of the Planning and Housing Committee, highlighted what he believes to be the real cause of inaction at buildings like 500 Dawes.
“The Rental Tenancies Act might as well be called the Landlord Protection Act,” he said. “The regulations and rules of the province of Ontario tilt the scales so that landlords can get away with this horrible treatment of tenants.”
Perks told reporters that councillors are “fed up” and “want to see some concrete actions,” adding that he is confident city staff will be successful in seeking justice for tenants across the city.
Ryan Endoh, a tenant at 500 Dawes, showed gratitude for what he described as “phenominal recommendations” in the motion. A long-time resident at the building, Endoh told councillors that the motion has his full support.
“It’s not only affecting residents at 500 Dawes Rd., but it’s really a city wide issue,” Endoh said.
“We need a process in place that ensures that every single actor within the enforcement system is trained on what enforcement actually is.”
According to Chow’s motion, remedial action at 500 Dawes will be used to inform the policy framework being introduced to council in April. That same spring report will include updates to the city’s RentSafeTO program, including a roster of contractors available to carry out emergency repairs.
At the upcoming council meeting on Mar. 25, councillors will discuss provincial regulatory or legislative changes needed to streamline remedial action “and increase penalties for bad landlords.”
Chow’s motion passed unanimously and will now be discussed at council.
