Date: September 1, 1999

To: Administration Committee

From: Chief Executive Officer

Subject: PROPERTY HOUSES TRANSFER

RECOMMENDATIONS:

It is recommended that:

(1) Recommendations Nos. 2, 4, 5, and 6 of the Report (June 21, 1999) from the Chief Executive Officer of Toronto Housing Company Inc., entitled Property House Transfer as adopted by the Board of Directors of the Toronto Housing Company Inc., on June 24, 1999, be adopted;

(2) Recommendations Nos. 1 and 3 therein be deleted and the following substituted there for:

A(1) that City Council grant approval to the changes to the transaction outlined in the report (June 21, 1999) of the Chief Executive Officer of the Toronto Housing Company Inc., and declare the Property Houses surplus, and that all steps necessary to comply with By-law No. 551-1998 be taken;@

A(3) that the sale of the four single unit properties located at 125 Roxborough Street, 213 Crawford Street, 217 Crawford Street and 13 Hubbard Boulevard be administered by the Toronto Housing Company Inc., on the City=s behalf, and that the Chief Executive Officer of the Toronto Housing Company Inc., report to the October 5, 1999 meeting of the Administration Committee on a disposal strategy respecting the remaining eleven properties to be sold, A and,

(3) the appropriate City and Toronto Housing Company officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary actions to give effect to the foregoing.

BACKGROUND:

The Toronto Housing Company Board of Directors forwarded to the Administration Committee of July 13, 1999 resolutions based on a THC report dated June 24, 1999 for Council approval. These resolutions recommended approval of some changes to the transfer of the 60 property houses as originally approved by Council. These changes were proposed to facilitate a process by which the 15 Sale Properties could be disposed. The essence of the proposed changes on the June 24, 1999 report is twofold. First; that the City retain the title of the 15 properties approved for sale and any other adjacent property to facilitate the severance consent for each individual transaction; and, in keeping with Council=s original intention, that the Housing Company sell the properties acting on behalf of the City and receive the net proceeds of the sales. Second; that the first right of purchase by tenants be modified to so that in the case of multiple-unit properties that right can be exercised by all interested tenants.

The Administration Committee deferred consideration on July 13 and may decide again to defer consideration of this matter on September 7, 1999 to a future meeting. The current deferral was requested by the local Councillor from Ward 26 to ensure that the needs of the current tenants, in the properties to be sold, that do not wish to purchase receive consideration. The Toronto Housing Company is in the process of discussing options for tenants in that situation. These options may result in the phasing of the sale of some of the multiple-unit properties. Therefore, this report proposes such amendment. It recommends the approval of the necessary modifications as described in the June 24, 1999, amending the approval to proceed with the sale of only the four single-unit properties. The details of the arrangement to proceed with the approved sale of the 11 remaining properties on the sale list will be the subject of a subsequent report at the next Administration Committee.

REASONS FOR AMENDMENT TO RECOMMENDATION No. 3:

Local councillors for Ward 26 (which includes the Wineva and Hubbard Properties) would like to ensure that the sale of the properties provides some protection for continuation of tenancy during an appropriate period of time for those seniors and long term tenants who are not interested in purchasing their properties. Therefore, the second phase of the sale, which includes the sale of the remaining 11 multiple-unit properties, will proceed after options for addressing these tenancy issues have been developed and discussed with both the tenants and the local councillors.

UPDATE AND NEXT STEPS:

We expect that some adjustments will be required to the sale process. The Toronto Housing Company staff has been meeting with all tenants to discuss their interest toward purchase, relocation or other tenancy arrangements. Based on these discussions, it is proposed to go ahead with the sale of the 4 single-unit properties and defer the sale of the remaining multi-unit properties. The intention is to discuss with the local councilors and, the affected tenants of the multi-unit properties, an approach to sales, relocations and other tenancy arrangements that will be acceptable for the majority of the tenants in them. Staff will prepare a disposal strategy to ensure the Toronto Housing Company=s interests are protected and present these recommendations at the next Administration Committee of October 5, 1999.

Completing the real estate transaction and the disposal process requires several steps by the Toronto Housing Company and the City. A revised schedule describing the Phase 1 Sale (4 properties) is described below.