Some 1,000 units in single-family homes and rooming houses currently operated by Toronto Community Housing should be transferred to the not-for-profit sector, city staff say.And tenant representatives should continue to be appointed to the corporation’s board, “ensuring a tenant voice in the governance of TCHC,” a new staff report reads.Those recommendations are part of an ongoing transformation of the public housing corporation, the largest landlord in Canada. They will be considered by Mayor John Tory’s executive committee on Jan. 24.The staff report says the homes currently operated by TCH should be managed by agencies with experience working with vulnerable residents and with the supports needed to handle complex needs.A separate report on a new entity that will focus solely on seniors’ housing will be ready in the second quarter of 2018, staff say.There has long been a back-and-forth over what to do with TCH’s standalone properties, which are separate from the townhome and tower complexes that make up the bulk of the corporation’s portfolio.There are currently 1,170 units in what’s called the “scattered housing” category, including 26 buildings leased to outside agencies for housing purposes, 22 rooming houses operated by TCH and 660 single-family homes owned by the corporation.The city solicited expressions of interest from not-for-profits and heard back from current agency house operators interested in taking over the properties they currently lease, as well as supportive housing providers and community land trusts interested in obtaining properties.A plan outlined by staff would see, if council approves the strategy, the complete transfer of agency houses in 2020 and of rooming houses in 2021. It’s unclear by what date the city hopes to have transferred the single-family homes.Bryan Keshen, president and CEO of the charitable organization Reena, said they have for years been looking to tak ...
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