City wins years-long fight to build supportive housing project in Willowdale

The City of Toronto is ringing in the new year with a win on housing after the Ontario Land Tribunal sided with the city on a planned supportive housing development in Willowdale.

The 60-unit development, meant for people leaving homelessness, was long contested by a group of community members.

The Bayview Cummer Neighbourhood Association, LiVante Holdings (Cummer) Inc. and a local group called Voices of Willowdale submitted an appeal to the tribunal. It said the development could not exist at 175 Cummer Ave. on the same property as Willowdale Manor, a four-storey Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) apartment building, housing approximately 600 seniors.

The appellants argued in a three-day hearing held in November that the addition of modular housing to the site would "fundamentally change the character" of the property. They also argued it would make it harder for residents or visitors of Willowdale Manor to find parking and enjoy local green space.

In a decision released Tuesday, the tribunal says the planned complex is "capable of existing together in harmony" with Willowdale Manor.

Meeting the community's needs

The city's Planning and Housing Committee unanimously approved a plan to build modular housing on the property early in 2021 under Toronto's Modular Housing Initiative. Since then, it's been a rocky road to even get shovels in the ground.

The lawyer representing Willowdale residents opposed to the project says the community's needs are not being met.

"Our clients at the hearing said they would be 100 per cent behind this if it had the same parameters of the site right next door at Willowdale Manor," said legal counsel Eric Gillespie.

Gillespie said the appellants were told during the hearing that approximately 1,800 seniors are experiencing homelessness in Toronto. He wants assurances that they would be given priority at the new supportive housing complex.

"If you apply at Willowdale Manor as a senior, you'll be given some protection. Unfortunately at this new facility you'll have to compete with everyone else," he added.

The city said in a statement that seniors experiencing homelessness would be one eligible population to be supported at the site and they may be prioritized.

'It could have been housing people over a year ago'

Some housing advocates say they are happy with the tribunal's decision, but say the process has taken too long.

Mark Richardson with the group HousingNowTO says another supportive housing project in East York that was announced at the same time as the one in Willowdale has had people living in it for more than a year now.

"We are very happy to see that this appeal process has finally come to a reasonable conclusion," he said. "It just took us way too long to get there. We've wasted years and we've wasted time when people could have been indoors living in this project."

Housing advocates argue residents who need supportive housing could have been living in complex at 175 Cummer Ave. more than a year ago if the project was approved sooner. (Rob Krbavac/CBC)

In June 2021, the city asked the province to speed up the project by issuing a ministerial zoning order (MZO). The MZO was never granted, despite close to 10 other supportive housing projects in the city getting one.

The local MPP, Progressive Conservative Stan Cho, asked then-housing minister Steve Clark to hold off granting the MZO. In a letter to Clark, he wrote the initiative was designed to "build affordable housing extremely quickly, without any consideration given to adequate public consultation."

An artist's rendition of the City of Toronto's proposed supportive housing project in Willowdale. (City of Toronto)

The tribunal noted in its decision that Clark directed the city to "undertake further public engagement", which it did that August, holding a public engagement session that was attended by 125 community members.

Consultation with the community

Etobicoke Centre Coun. Stephen Holyday agreed that there was an initial lack of consultation with the community. He said he didn't support the way the city presented the project at the time, but has now changed his tune.

"People may ultimately disagree with the changes that are made in that location," he said. "But at least I think people can be confident that a process was followed and that everybody was considered fairly."

"It was an attempt to put it through a ministerial zoning order that was ultimately changed, and it went through a full and proper rezoning process," Holyday added.

Gillespie says he believes there are still appeal routes available for his clients disappointed by the tribunal's decision. He says the group will meet this week to discuss its options.

For its part, the city said in a statement to CBC News that it is working to restart on-site construction as soon as possible, and that it will issue a request for proposals to select a not-for-profit housing provider to lease and operate the project once it is completed. A completion date is not known yet.