Response to the Mayor's Homelessness

Action Task Force Final Report

The Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee recommends:

(1)the adoption of the report (February 17, 1999) from the Chief Administrative Officer, subject to:

(a)amending Recommendation No. (5) (a) to include the Task Force request that GST be waived on new low-income housing; and

(b)amending the report to provide that the full supply of supportive housing recommended by the Task Force be supported; and that the Task Force call for supportive housing across the province also be supported;

(2)that the Provincial Government be urged to adopt the recommendations of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force which outline the need for Provincial Action in partnership with the City;

(3)that the City of Toronto particularly urge the Province to:

(a)support the request for $52 million per year to adjust the shelter component of welfare to reflect local rents province-wide;

(b)support the request for $178 million a year for a new shelter allowance for working, low-income singles and families, province-wide; and

(c)support $32 million a year in Capital costs to develop new supportive housing;

(4)that the Task Force's Recommendation No. (101) concerning evictions, as it pertains to High-rise and multi-residential buildings, be referred to the Council Strategy Committee for People Without Homes with a request that the Committee work with staff and the public to review the City's eviction prevention strategy and the impact of the new provincial legislation concerning evictions;

(5)that the Council Strategy Committee for People Without Homes be requested to meet with the Board of the Toronto Housing Company to discuss its eviction policies and practices;

(6)that the Mayor be requested to present a report card directly to City Council every six months, commencing at the April, 1999, meeting of Toronto City Council, as to:

(a)the status of homelessness in Toronto; and

(b)what action has been taken by the City of Toronto and the Federal and Provincial Government to alleviate the problem;

(7)that the City of Toronto request the Provincial Government to assist communities outside of the City of Toronto to provide appropriate programming to deal with homelessness in their respective cities.

The Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee reports, for the information of Council, having:

(1)referred the following motion to the Chief Administrative Officer for report thereon to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee:

Moved by Councillor Layton:

"That the Chief Administrative Officer's report (February 17, 1999) be amended to provide for support of the full funding of the rent bank proposed by the Task Force, raising the proposed funding from the Chief Administrative Officer's recommended funding of $200,000.00 to $500,000.00.";

(2)requested the Chief Administrative Officer to submit a report directly to Council, for its meeting scheduled to be held on March 2, 1999, on public expectations as it relates to the visibility of panhandling and homelessness on the streets and whether this expectation can be met by the implementation of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force report;

(3)requested the Medical Officer of Health and other appropriate staff to report to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee, on extending the provisions/powers contained in the "Extreme Weather Alert" year round; and

(4)requested the appropriate staff to report on how social/street workers other than the police could be given the authority to relocate homeless persons to a safe housing alternative; and on how this could be implemented and funded.

The Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee submits the following report (February17,1999) from the Chief Administrative Officer:

Purpose:

To provide an overview of policy directions and preliminary analysis of financial implications for the City of Toronto arising from recommendations of the final report of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force, "Taking Responsibility for Homelessness: An Action Plan for the City of Toronto."

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

A total of $6.8 million from the National Child Benefit Savings, if approved by Council, will be used to provide first and last months rent and other support for families with children on social assistance. The City is currently negotiating with the Province for an amount of up to $6.9 million which represents full 80 percent cost-sharing on Toronto's hostels. Currently, Toronto receives only about 73 percent due to the higher per diems paid to hostel operators in the city. Consideration should be given to redirect these savings to diversion and prevention programs such as hostel follow-up program, to develop a feasibility plan prior to the establishment of a Homeless Services Information Line and to conduct a comprehensive health and safety audit of the drop-in sector. Funding for the rent bank and community economic development initiatives are included in the 1999 budget.

In terms of capital costs, the City has established a $10.9 million Capital Revolving Fund to be used to promote the development of new affordable rental housing.

It is recommended that Provincial funding be sought for a $1.5 million (annual) capital replacement fund for emergency shelters, the expansion of the current Health and Safety grants program for drop-in capital expenditures and for $14 million in funding to add 1,000 supportive housing units each year for the next five years in Toronto.

It is recommended that the City urge the Federal Government to establish a $300 million capital support fund for new low-income rental housing development. In addition, funding of at least $150,000.00 will be sought from Human Resources and Development Canada for implementation of the Homeless Services Information System.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1)Council endorse, in principle, the general directions outlined in the final report of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force, "Taking Responsibility for Homelessness: An Action Plan for the City of Toronto";

(2)in recognition of the need for all three levels of government to be involved in responding to the homeless crisis, the Mayor convene a meeting with officials of the Provincial and Federal governments to determine the appropriate resources and structure required to coordinate a tri-level action plan;

(3)in order to exercise a leadership role, as recommended by the Task Force, and to ensure the City of Toronto is best able to utilize the policy and planning tools available to it to respond to the homeless crisis, Council direct the following Commissioners to submit their respective reports to their representative standing committees by April 1999:

(a)the Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services to report to Urban Environment and Development Committee on recommendations contained in the Homelessness Action Task Force report relating to the housing policies of the Official Plan including second suites, rooming houses, main streets development, density incentives and inclusionary zoning;

(b)the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services to report to Community and Neighbourhood Services on recommendations contained in the Homelessness Action Task Force report relating to service coordination and planning, emergency shelter, social assistance, health and mental health, housing help, supportive and affordable housing, aboriginal peoples and immigrants and refugees;

(c)the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Service, in consultation with the Commissioner of Corporate Services to report to Corporate Services Committee, on recommendations contained in the Homelessness Action Task Force report relating to land management issues and a "housing first" policy for the City of Toronto; and

(d)the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, in her review of the City's development charges by-law, in consultation with Urban Planning and Development Services, to report to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee on recommendations contained in the Homelessness Action Task Force report relating to development charges;

(4)once the detailed policy reviews, described in Recommendation No. (3), have been brought forward to the standing committees, the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, in consultation with the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services, report to the Budget Committee with a detailed financial analysis of the implications of the recommendations from the policy reviews for the City's operating and capital budgets;

(5)in recognition of the need for all three levels of government to take ownership of the problem of homelessness and responsibility for solving it, Council encourage the involvement of the other levels of government in areas that fall within their jurisdictions by:

(a)urging the Federal Government to establish a $300 million capital support fund in recognition of the critical need for this type of financing assistance to encourage the development of new low-income rental housing;

(b)seeking funding support from Human Resources and Development Canada to implement the Homeless Services Information Line consistent with their expression of interest in projects which enhance community access to existing supports and services, in particular community information;

(c)seeking approval from the Province to fund Toronto hostels at the full 80 percent level resulting in savings of up to $6.9 million for 1999 for the City;

(d)urging the Province to establish a $1.5 million (annual) capital replacement fund for emergency shelters in the City of Toronto;

(e)urging the Province to expand the criteria for health and safety grants to include all capital expenditures, including food preparation equipment, and to dedicate an additional $400,000.00 specifically for the drop-in sector, for 1999 to respond to the most pressing needs of drop-ins as identified through the City's facilities audit; and

(f)again urging the Province to fund all supportive housing units, including those in mixed social housing portfolios, in recognition of provincial responsibility for this type of housing;

(6)contingent upon provincial commitment to fund Toronto hostels at the full 80 percent, Council consider reinvesting the resulting savings to the Shelter, Housing and Support Division budget into diversion and prevention strategies which would include, but not be limited to:

(a)a hostel follow-up program to assist people to leave the hostel system and to maintain housing to reduce recidivism;

(b)a comprehensive service audit of the community-based social service sector to determine the scope and capacity of the service system to be involved in a Homeless Services Information System; and

(c)a comprehensive health and safety audit of the drop-in sector to identify capital cost requirements to bring them to code;

(7)pending the final evaluation of the City's $50,000.00 rent bank pilot project, consideration be given to increasing the fund to $200,000.00 as part of the 1999 allocations of the Provincial Homelessness Initiatives Fund;

(8)the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services be authorized to receive and administer a $50,000.00 grant from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to organize a national symposium on homelessness in March 1999; and

(9)the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto.

Background:

In January 1998, the Mayor created the Homelessness Action Task Force in response to public concern about the growth of homelessness in Toronto. The four member task force included Elizabeth Greaves, William Currie, John Latimer and Anne Golden (Chairperson).

The Task Force had a mandate to develop both short-term proposals for emergency services and long-term solutions for health and mental health services, housing support, housing supply and housing affordability. Each area was to include an analysis of the problem, a review of existing programs, an identification of service gaps, recommended changes, a definition of roles and responsibilities for each level of government and of the private and community-based sector. The homeless population included not only the "visible" homeless evident on the streets or in our hostels, but also the "hidden" homeless, people who live in illegal or temporary housing; and those at significant risk of becoming homeless.

On January 14, 1999, the Task Force presented the Mayor with its final report entitled "Taking Responsibility for Homelessness: An Action Plan for the City of Toronto." The Mayor requested the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services Department to prepare an action oriented response to this report within 60 days. As the recommendations contained in the report have implications for several of the City's departments, an inter-departmental team has been established, co-ordinated by the Shelter, Housing and Support Division of Community and Neighbourhood Services Department.

This report to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee provides a brief overview of the key policy directions outlined in the Task Force report. The main purpose is to provide a preliminary analysis of main financial implications for the City resulting from the Task Force recommendations. Financing options are discussed within the context of a two to three year implementation plan.

A detailed analysis of the Task Force report is underway. Separate reports on the policy and financial implications of the Task Force recommendations will be submitted to the relevant standing committee during March and early April. The Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services department will report to Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee on the recommendations relating to service coordination and planning, emergency shelter, social assistance, health and mental health, supportive and affordable housing, aboriginal peoples and immigrants and refugees. The Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services will report to the Urban Environment and Development Committee on recommendations relating to the housing policies of the Official Plan including second suites, rooming houses, main streets development, density incentives and inclusionary zoning. The Commissioners of Community and Neighbourhood Services and Corporate Services will jointly report to Corporate Services Committee on land management issues and a "housing first" policy for the City. The Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer will report to the Budget Committee with a detailed financial analysis of the recommendations and to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee on the development charges issue.

A comprehensive report consolidating the feedback from the standing committees and the February 23, 1999, Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee will then be submitted to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee in the Spring.

The Commissioners of Community and Neighbourhood Services, Urban Planning and Development Services, Corporate Services and the Chief Financial Officer, were consulted in the preparation of this report and concur with the recommendations.

Overview of the Task Force Report:

The Task Force report contains 105 recommendations directed to all levels of government and the community-based service sector (see Appendix D for a list of these recommendations).

Barriers to Solving the Homeless Crisis:

The Task Force identified six barriers to solving the problem of homelessness:

(1) growing poverty;

(2) a shrinking supply of affordable housing;

(3)a service system that is biased to short-term emergency assistance rather than long-term solutions;

(4)jurisdictional gridlock where different levels of government and government departments squabble over areas of responsibility;

(5)inadequate supports for people with serious mental illness and addictions problem; and

(6)no capacity for service co-ordination or capacity to address the different needs of the different sub-groups of the homeless population.

The Task Force Action Plan to Address Homelessness:

To overcome the barriers, as described above, the Task Force recommends changes on several fronts. The Task Force proposes that the shelter component of social assistance be adjusted to reflect local market conditions. Because rents in Toronto are so high, many social assistance recipients use all of the shelter component and part of their basic needs allowance to pay rent, often resulting in food bank usage, loss of their housing or simply going without. Setting the shelter component of social assistance at 85 percent of median market rents would put social assistance recipients in Toronto on an equal footing with those in other areas of the province and in a better position to secure an affordable unit. At the same time the Task Force proposes establishing a shelter allowance program for the working poor. This program would supplement the income of very low income people who pay more than 50 percent of their income on rent, thereby enabling them to keep their housing.

The Task Force proposes the creation of 5,000 additional supportive housing units (i.e. housing with supports) in Toronto, to meet the needs of homeless people suffering from mental illness and/or addictions. These units should be built over five years with an additional 8,500 units built throughout the rest of the province. At the same time, the Task Force proposes a City-initiated housing development strategy to increase the supply of affordable rental housing by 2,000 units a year. The recommendations call for a layered approach since no single mechanism can bring rents down to affordable levels. Governments are asked to subsidize land costs, waive certain fees, development charges and taxes, modify property taxes, provide rent supplements and assist with mortgage insurance, and capital grants. At the same time, extensive efforts should be placed on preserving existing housing, placing controls on demolition and conversion of affordable apartments and legalizing second suites and rooming houses in selected areas under certain conditions.

At the service level, the Task Force proposes that service planning be organized around three sub-groups: youth, families and singles in order to address the different needs. By bringing together all the services that affect a particular group, agencies would be able to plan effectively and co-ordinate their efforts. The Task Force recommends the establishment of a Homeless Services Information System to provide a comprehensive database on social, health and housing services for homeless people, as well as a central hostels bed registry.

In addition, there are a number of recommendations aimed at preventing homelessness. These include: a rent bank to help people in short-term arrears; more systematic housing help services and one-on-one support to help people move from shelters to stable housing; and to keep people housed. Institutions should establish discharge policies to ensure no-one is discharged from an institution to the street or to a hostel without prior arrangement and follow-up.

The Task Force outlines a comprehensive health strategy to address the health and mental health needs of the homeless population. A number of recommendations address ways to remove barriers to accessing comprehensive health care. The Task Force also suggests that the Ministry of Health combine its community health and community mental health funding for homeless people into one single Homelessness Health Fund to enable systematic priority setting and efficient utilization of existing resources.

While emphasizing long-term solutions and prevention, the Task Force recognizes that some measures are required to reduce street homelessness. They suggest a number of improvements to hostel conditions aimed at inducing more people to come in off the streets. In addition, they recommend establishing harm reduction facilities which accept the use of drugs and alcohol on site (under controlled conditions) to help the "hardest to serve" population, often people with both mental illness and addictions, obtain the help they need to get off the streets.

Government Roles and Responsibilities:

The Task Force emphasizes that all levels of government have a role to play and each must take its share of responsibility. Because homelessness is tied to issues of housing, health, welfare, education, employment and community services, and straddles all levels of government and geographic boundaries, no-one is currently "in charge". To address this, the Task Force is recommending the appointment of a Facilitator for Action on Homelessness to address jurisdictional issues, work with all levels of government and overcome barriers to change.

As discussed, the Task Force identifies jurisdictional squabbling as a key barrier to solving the homeless crisis thus far. In an effort to disentangle who does what, the Task Force articulates clear roles and responsibilities for each level of government.

The Federal Government is charged with renewing its commitment in the area of social housing by financing the construction of new affordable housing and the rehabilitation of existing affordable housing. In addition, the Federal Government is asked to finance projects which prevent and reduce homelessness among Aboriginal people and immigrants and refugees, groups for which the federal government has primary responsibility.

As the Province is responsible for health and income maintenance, the Task Force recommends that the Province adjust the shelter component of welfare to reflect local rents, establish a new shelter allowance program for the working poor, fund supportive housing and treatment programs and, continue to enhance access to health care for homeless people.

The City of Toronto is charged with the responsibility to plan and manage local homeless programs. In addition, the City is called upon to use the existing planning tools at its disposal and to seek additional powers to provide a framework for the development and preservation of affordable housing, encouraging the involvement of all levels of government.

The Greater Toronto Services Board is given the task of ensuring the equitable distribution of affordable housing, supports and services throughout the GTA.

Discussion:

The key directions proposed by the Task Force emphasize the need to move from short-term emergency responses to prevention and long-term solutions. The Task Force report also stresses the need for concerted effort and commitment from all levels of government and the community. These approaches provide a sensible framework to guide government action. Its recommended that Council endorse, in principle, the general directions outlined in the final report of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force.

The City's Role in Responding to the Task Force Recommendations:

The City has a major role to play in facilitating affordable housing development both through new construction and preservation of existing stock. The City can be the catalyst for affordable housing development and establish a framework to seek specific resources from senior levels of government and the private sector. Consideration can be given to waiving development charges for affordable rental housing construction and make land available for low-cost housing development. At the same time, the City has a number of planning mechanisms at its disposal to preserve existing stock. These include restricting condominium conversions and demolitions, liberalizing policies related to the legalization of second suites and rooming houses under certain land use criteria, and utilizing the provisions of the Planning Act (section 37) addressing density incentives. In addition, the City as manager of a large number of social housing units, is in a position to leverage resources for regeneration and redevelopment of existing social housing stock from senior levels of government.

As planner, manager and funder of the City's hostels system as well as major funder of a range of community based services for the homeless population, the City is well positioned to play a leadership role in ensuring that the root causes of homelessness are addressed. This requires all levels of government to work together, in collaboration with private sector and community partners, to maximize limited resources and coordinate efforts.

The action plan proposed by the Task Force is premised on the belief that homelessness is solvable. Homelessness is an issue which reflects the social well being of our whole community. The choices made by each level of government in responding to this growing social problem will reflect its "vision" of a healthy and thriving community. The newly amalgamated City of Toronto is currently embarking on its own visioning exercise as part of its strategic planning process and therefore has an opportunity to affirm its commitment to addressing poverty and homelessness in our city. The importance of housing as a fundamental human need and as a key factor in maintaining a healthy community means it will also be included as a basic building block of the new Official Plan.

What the City is Currently Doing to Address Homelessness:

Where the City of Toronto has control it is already engaged in a number of initiatives that address the issue of homelessness. The municipality, through its Community and Neighbourhood Services Department and Urban Planning and Development Services Department plays a wide range of policy, planning, research, service delivery and funding roles. Support is provided for emergency shelter, day shelter, street health, public health, mental health, outreach, social assistance, community economic development, employment initiatives and transitional, supportive and long term housing initiatives. The majority of programs and services are targeted toward people who are already homeless, however, consistent with the approach recommended by the Task Force, the City has begun to channel some of its resources into prevention. (See Appendix A for a summary of the current municipal expenditures for homeless services).

Some recent City initiatives which correspond with a number of the Task Force recommendations include the following:

(a)approval by Council of a $10.9 million Capital Revolving Fund for housing development (using a social housing reserve fund established by the former City of Toronto);

(b)approval of a strategy to create affordable housing which capitalizes on the various "tools" available to the municipality, for example, making city-owned land available for demonstration projects;

(c)on February 8, 1999, the Urban Environment and Development Committee approved the report recommending control of condominium conversion and demolition of rental housing;

(d)the establishment of a special property tax class for new multi-residential rental housing. The tax rate for the new class will be set this Spring;

(e)a $155,000.00 eviction prevention program delivered through community-based services. The program includes a $50,000.00 rent bank for women with children, who were in arrears, paying market rent and at risk of eviction. In addition, funding was provided to establish an eviction information hotline, to strengthen local landlord/tenant education efforts and to increase tenant advocacy programs; and

(f)allocations for the new Provincial Homeless Initiatives Fund ($1.02 million, 100 percent funded by the Province) have been targeted to community agencies to support aboriginal programs, housing support for refugees, eviction prevention strategies, housing for chronic hostel users, skills development and community economic development strategies. These allocations are in accordance with the directions outlined in the Task Force action plan.

The Need for a Coordinated Response by all Levels of Government:

Although the City has initiated a number of strategies to address homelessness, it is clear from the growing number of people using our hostels, in particular families and youth, and the increasing number of people who are living rough on the streets, that much more needs to be done. The Task Force proposed that the City should take a leadership role in implementing the action plan and accordingly it recommended the City appoint a Facilitator for Action on Homelessness.

While the City is playing a leadership role in using the policy and planning resource available to it, it is essential to recognize that the key to successfully addressing the homeless crisis lies in the securing the involvement of the provincial and federal governments as well. In recognition of the need for all three levels of government to be involved in developing and implementing a coordinated response to the homeless crisis, it is recommended that the Mayor convene a meeting with officials of the provincial and federal governments to determine the resources and structure required to coordinate a tri-level action plan.

Key Policy Directions with Financial Implications for the City:

The following section discusses the key policy directions of the Task Force report which impact the City's budget. A preliminary financial analysis is included along with recommendations on how the City should respond identifying possible revenue sources.

(1)Co-ordinating the Service System:

The Task Force identifies the need for improved co-ordination and service planning in the homeless service sector in Toronto to ensure homeless people have access to available supports and services and to increase service efficiency.

(a)A Homeless Services Information System:

A 24-hour telephone Homeless Services Information line is recommended by the Task Force to provide a comprehensive database of social, health, and housing services along with a central bed registry. All agencies that serve homeless people, including hostels, drop-ins and hospitals would have on-line computer access to this information system.

The City should support this type of initiative as it could go a long way to ensuring homeless people have access to the resources available to them. There is an additional benefit for the City from a research and planning perspective to be able to access consolidated and current data.

Community Information Toronto currently operates a general information line and a street help line with partial funding from the City. The Task Force estimates an annual cost of $300,000.00 to operate the proposed information system. This amount is not budgeted for in the City's 1999 budget and therefore would need to be considered in the year 2000 consolidated Municipal Grants budget.

Prior to implementation, a comprehensive feasibility study should be conducted to determine the size and scope of the service system to be involved, the current capacity of agencies to interface with such a system and requirements for designing a new system or modifying the existing system. To implement this initiative, the City should seek funding support from Human Resources and Development Canada (HRDC) who have expressed interest in investing in projects which enhance community access to existing supports and services, in particular community information.

Funding for the estimated $50,000.00 needed to develop the feasibility plan should be considered under the anticipated savings to the Shelter, Housing and Support Division budget contingent upon approval by the Province to pay the full 80 percent of hostel costs to the City.

(b)Physical Upgrades for Hostels:

The Task Force recommends that the City establish a $2.5 million fund for hostel capital expenditures ($500,000.00 a year for five years). The fund would be used to upgrade hostel facilities to ensure they all provide a safe, clean environment with single beds not dormitory bunks, lockers and sufficient showers and toilets.

Capital upgrades are needed to avoid deterioration of hostel facilities as well as the possibility of operating dollars being redirected to support capital expenditures. However, it should be noted that changes such as eliminating bunk beds will reduce the capacity of the system. Current demands on the hostel system continue to rise resulting in pressures to expand the system, especially over the winter period. Significant numbers of supportive and affordable rental housing units are required to offset the demand for emergency shelter before hostels can begin to be downsized.

While most shelters are in fairly good shape, there is considerable variety in the quality of the physical facilities across the system. Significant funds are required to both maintain and upgrade these buildings and the City does not currently have a capital fund for this purpose. Hostel Services administers Health and Safety grants for the Province (the 1998 budget was $168,656.00). These grants are 100 percent provincial dollars. However, these funds are directed to support health and safety improvements for hostels and drop-in's and are not available for capital expenditures, other than for minor capital items such as fire safety, refrigeration equipment and accessibility.

Given the provincial role to date in providing some capital support, it is recommended that the City ask the Province to establish a capital replacement fund for emergency shelters. It is estimates that the funds required for this type of capital program are closer to $1.5 million annually.

(c)Physical Upgrades for Drop-in Centres:

The Task Force calls for the City to provide $300,000.00 (annual over 3 to 5 years) in capital funds for upgrading drop-in centres and $100,000.00 (annual over 3 to 5 years) for food preparation and equipment.

The City is aware of the range of health and safety issues in drop-ins both from a physical plant point of view and in terms of staff to client ratios and staff capacity. It is impossible to estimate the specific capital costs required to bring drop-ins to code and ensure fire, safety and public health standards are in effect. The City estimates that $50,000.00 is required to conduct a comprehensive facilities audit for the drop-in sector to identify capital cost requirements to bring them to code. Funding for the audit should be considered under the anticipated savings to the Shelter, Housing and Support Division budget contingent upon approval by the Province to pay the full 80 percent of hostel costs to the City.

While the Task Force recommends that the City absorb the costs for this capital funding, historically the Province has funded health and safety grants for this sector, as discussed above. It is therefore, recommended that the City ask the Province to expand the criteria for health and safety grants to include all capital expenditures and to dedicate an additional $400,000.00 to respond to the most pressing needs of drop-ins as identified by the City's audit. And further, in recognition of the important role drop-ins play in providing meals for people with low-incomes, it is recommended that funding for food preparation equipment also be available through this provincial fund.

(2) A Focus on Prevention:

The Task Force urges the City to use its funds to encourage the shift from emergency response to prevention strategies. This direction was also reinforced in the report of the Provincial Task Force on Homelessness released in November 1998. The City agrees with this service shift away from a "crisis" response and has already begun to channel resources into prevention and long-term strategies. However, it is clear that more targeted action is needed to help people get out of the hostel system and into permanent housing, to help prevent people from becoming homeless in the first place and to help lever the development of rental housing to ensure people have appropriate and affordable housing to live in.

(a)A Shelter Allowance Program for the Working Poor:

The Task Force proposes the creation of a new shelter allowance program, targeted to working poor families as a first priority and to working adults if feasible. The aim of this program, which would require annual re-application, is to reduce the risk of homelessness and to ensure that the transition from welfare to employment does not increase the risk of homelessness. The program, as set out by the Task Force, should reduce the share of income low-income people spend on housing to between 35 and 40 percent from an unsustainable 50 percent or more. This recommendation is directed to the Province for full funding as shelter allowances are consistent with the articulated goals of the provincial government's "common sense revolution."

Implementation of this type of program would have no financial implications for the City and would make a significant difference for the working poor in terms of their ability to maintain their housing. Further review of this recommendation will be included in the detailed policy report from the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services to the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee in March 1999.

(b)Increasing the Shelter Component of Social Assistance:The Task Force documents an increase in both the incidence and depth of poverty in Toronto over the last decade. Their analysis clearly links this rise to labour market changes as well as to recent policy changes in the areas of social assistance such as the 22 percent reduction in benefits in 1996, changes in employment insurance and the lack of affordable housing. To address the critical issue of housing affordability from a prevention perspective, the Task Force recommends that the Province adjust the shelter component of social assistance to better reflect local market conditions thereby recognizing the differential housing costs across the province.

The maximum shelter component of social assistance, which is the same throughout the province, is too small to cover rents in Toronto, which are higher than elsewhere in the province. Raising the shelter component by an average of 20 percent as recommended by the Task Force would put social assistance recipients on equal footing with the rest of the province. At the same time, because the assistance would remain below median market rents people would still have an incentive to find housing below average cost.

Further review of this recommendation, along with associated financial implications for the City of Toronto, will be included in the detailed policy report from the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services to the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee in March 1999.

(c)First and Last Month's Rent for Ontario Works Recipients:

The ability to pay a landlord first and last month's rent provides tenants a distinct advantage in the current housing market. In this regard, the Task Force recommends that the City provide rapid payment of first and last months rent.

Under the Ontario Works legislation, last months rent can be accessed once a year through Community Start Up Benefits (CSUB). These costs are covered under the current program and are included in the 1999 budget. These benefits are available for people leaving hostels or institutions or who are fleeing an abusive situation. It should be noted however that, even at the maximum benefit level, the Community Start Up Allowance rarely covers the cost of last month's rent for families due to the high cost of rental housing in Toronto.

At its February 11, 1999, meeting, the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee adopted a report from the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services on options for the reinvestment of the National Child Benefit Savings. This report recommends the creation of a $6.8 million shelter fund which will provide more options for families who require financial assistance to secure, maintain or move to more affordable or suitable housing. The Task Force identifies families as one of the fastest growing group of homeless people in Toronto. This shelter fund will be a significant resource for preventing families from becoming homeless. It should be noted, however, that only families with children would be eligible for this fund. Extending this type of support for singles and couples would likely cost more than the $3 million cited by the Task Force.

(d)Housing Help at Welfare Offices:

The Task Force recommends that housing help services be provided at welfare offices by purchase-of-service contracts between Social Services and community-based agencies which provide housing help support. They estimate the annual cost for the City at $300,000.00. This direction is consistent with existing Social Services policy initiatives to use all available means to assist clients to find and maintain affordable and adequate housing. However, there is no mechanism to fund housing help services under the current legislation. Any funding for this purpose would be in addition to the 1999 base budget and would be subject to new service agreements with the Province.

The Shelter, Housing and Support Division will be allocating almost $350,000.00 in 1999 for community-based housing help services through the Provincial Homeless Initiatives Fund. This fund is 100 percent provincial dollars and was established by the Provincial Task Force on Homelessness in November 1998. While these community programs are not located in welfare offices they are targeted to people with low-incomes, many of whom are in receipt of social assistance. In an effort to explore the range of options, it is recommended that staff from the Social Services and Shelter, Housing and Support Divisions collaborate with agencies which provide housing-help support to determine the most appropriate mechanism for providing housing help to this population for the year 2000 and beyond.

(e)Hostel Follow-up Program:

The Task Force recommends that a percentage of all hostels budgets be used to purchase services from community agencies that help prepare people to leave hostels and provide follow-up support after they have left. This is in conjunction with a call for the Province to fund the full 80 percent of hostel costs.

The City of Toronto has an averaged per diem rate slightly above the provincial cap with the result that the Province funds only about 73 percent of the City's actual costs. Toronto provides per diems to some hostels which exceed the $34.50 provincial cap. This is in recognition of the need for support services over and above basic food and shelter. Toronto does not only see greater numbers of people who are homeless but also people with deeper needs. Therefore, additional programs are often required to assist people in resolving the issues which brought them to the hostel in the first place.

Requests have been made of the Province to provide full 80 percent cost-sharing on hostels. If an agreement is reached, the net savings to the City for 1998 are estimated at $6.9 million. It is recommended that consideration be given for these savings to be directed toward strategies which help people move out of the hostel system into appropriate housing as well as important follow up support to help people keep their housing. The Shelter, Housing and Support Division has already begun to make this shift but are limited in their response given the current budget constraints.

Hostel operators agree that follow up would make a tremendous difference in assisting people to maintain their housing. Because of the current high demand on the hostel system, staff are restricted in the time and support they can give. This kind of support would likely reduce recidivism and would therefore reduce the number of people who use hostels in a chronic way. This could make a significant difference in the long-term to the City's emergency shelter costs as the Task Force estimates that while only 17 percent of people staying in hostels are classified as "chronic" users, they use 46 percent of the hostel system resources. Some of these people have deeper needs and may require supportive or transitional housing. A hostel follow-up program would go a long way in assisting people with finding the best housing options available to them.

(f)A Rent Bank to Assist with Rental Arrears:

A number of eviction prevention strategies are proposed by the Task Force including a $500,000.00 rent bank.

In 1998, the City established a number of eviction prevention programs including a one-year $50,000.00 rent bank pilot project for women with children. In addition to providing loans for rental arrears, the rent bank project offers budgeting assistance and help with housing and social issues. Preliminary results indicate this program is successful in helping people with rental arrears avoid eviction.

Rather than increasing the fund ten-fold, as suggested by the Task Force, a multi-year, phase in approach may be more fiscally viable for the City. Pending the final evaluation of the rent bank pilot project in September 1999, it is recommended that consideration be given to increasing this fund to $200,000.00 as part of allocations under the Provincial Homelessness Initiatives Fund.

(g)Community Economic Development Initiatives:

The Task Force recommends that the City contribute $100,000.00 per year for three years to the newly established Productive Enterprises Fund. This $1.5 million fund was set up by the United Way with two other funding partners. Up to $500,000.00 is expected to be allocated annually across Toronto over the next three years for community economic development. Community economic development (CED) initiatives are business ventures initiated by a community group to create jobs for people with extremely low-incomes and social assistance recipients and are often targeted toward people who are consumers or survivors of the mental health system. This type of approach gives people more self-esteem and the ability to take more responsibility for their lives.

The City currently allocates about $150.000.00 for CED initiatives through its municipal grants programs. The City is reviewing its role with respect to CED initiatives and will be reporting out through the Municipal Grants Review Committee. An examination of the Task Force recommendation regarding the Productive Enterprises Fund will be done within the context of this review.

(3)Increasing Supportive Housing Units:

Supportive housing refers to housing plus support services to help the individual maintain their housing. Typically supportive housing is targeted for people with mental health problems, physical or developmental disabilities, HIV/AIDS, troubled youth, frail elderly, people with addictions and victims of family violence. A key recommendation of the Task Force is to increase the number of supportive housing units to address the needs of homeless people who require individual support and also in an effort to reduce the number chronic hostel users. This would have a significant impact on hostel use.

The Task Force estimates an annual provincial contribution of $14 million over five years for supportive housing in Toronto (to add 1,000 units per year). The Province downloaded its share of costs for social housing to municipalities beginning January 1, 1998. In July 1998, the Province then uploaded the cost of those supportive housing programs where 100 percent of units are dedicated to providing supportive housing. The City continues to fund supportive housing in mixed portfolios. In July 1998, Council communicated to the Province its position that providing housing for people who need support to live independently is a provincial concern and should be fully funded by the Province, which is consistent with the Task Force recommendations.

Municipal costs will be reduced if the Province agrees to "upload" the cost of supportive housing in mixed portfolios. These savings could then be used by the City to facilitate the development of additional affordable housing.

(4)The Development of an Affordable Housing Strategy:

Fundamental to the Task Force's action plan is the increased supply of affordable housing. Strategies aimed at preserving the existing stock are recommended along with strategies which lever the development of new housing. These strategies will not only benefit people who are currently homeless but also people who are at risk of becoming homeless. The Task Force report documents a sharp rise in the overall need for new affordable housing as low rent housing becomes more scarce while the numbers of households with low incomes are rising.

It costs more to build new rental housing than can be supported at market rents except at very high end rents. Investing municipal resources such as contributing city-owned land for housing development, waiving development charges and fees can be seen as ways to "lever" similar action by other levels of government to encourage private sector development. Many of the Task Force recommendations on housing are directed to the Province and the federal government who have considerably more resources to apply to housing development. However, the City is charged with taking a lead role not only in encouraging participation of other levels of government but also for promoting and supporting the development of affordable rental housing with the resources at its disposal.

(a)Developing New Affordable Housing:

In July 1998, the City approved and initiated a strategy for affordable housing to support private developers and community-based agencies to develop affordable housing. This and associated "housing demonstration projects" consist of many of the same components proposed in the Task Force action plan. In February 1999, Council approved a $10.9 million Capital Revolving Fund which answers the Task Force's call for a City "Homelessness Community Fund"for housing development.

The Task Force urges the City to develop a "housing first" policy for municipal lands while retaining long-term interest in such sites. This policy was adopted, in principle, by Council in July 1998. This is expected to have significant implications for the City in terms of foregone revenues (the Task Force estimates $3 million). The City could consider various levels of support in this regard as well as careful examination of what forms of housing development will be most cost-effective. The City is creating an interdepartmental Property Management Committee which could function as one forum for reviewing options pertaining to city-owned land for affordable housing.

The Task Force recommends that the City and its ABC's waive development charges, land use application fees, parks levies, hook-up fees and other charges for housing development that meets affordability criteria.

The City is in the process of creating a development charges by-law. The by-law will establish a set of charges against new development in the City. The charges are intended to fund improvements in the City's infrastructure needed to accommodate new development. As an incentive to promote the creation of new rental affordable housing, the by-law could contain provisions to exempt such housing from the payment of these charges. It is anticipated that the new development charges by-law will be tabled with the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee in April 1999. Preliminary discussions have begun between Finance and other departments regarding affordable housing aspects. It is therefore recommended that the Chief Financial Officer, in consultation with the Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services report to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee on this issue to coincide with final consolidated report on the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force.

The Task Force emphasizes the critical role the federal government has to play with respect to the development of new affordable rental housing. Key to a viable and sustainable affordable housing strategy is the provision of capital support. Financing assistance helps to bridge the gap between the cost of building new housing and what would be an affordable rent. A capital support program is intended to eliminate the need for ongoing operating subsidies or direct involvement in the administration of housing programs. Construction of new affordable housing has virtually stopped since cancellation of the federal social housing program in 1993 and the provincial social housing program in 1995. The Task Force recommendations are not intended to repeat these programs which based on both capital and operating subsidies.

The Task Force recommends that the federal government provide up to $300 million in capital support for new low-income housing. Three mechanisms for contributing this capital support are identified including an infrastructure program, local housing foundations, and also tax incentives to stimulate contributions to eligible housing funds.

The Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services will provide a more thorough analysis of the role and structure of a federal capital fund in the report to Community and Neighbourhood Services in March 1999. However, the City should urge the federal government to establish such a fund as soon as possible in recognition of the critical role it has to play in levering the development of new affordable rental housing.

(b)Preserving the Existing Housing Supply:

In order to preserve the affordable housing that still exists, the Task Force proposes that the City adopt a goal of "no net loss" by placing controls on demolition and conversion of affordable apartments.

At its meeting of February 8, 1999, the Urban Environment and Development Committee recommended that Council adopt new Official Plan policies and related by-laws regarding condominium conversion and demolition of rental housing. Additional authority is being sought from the Province in the area of demolition control.

The Task Force identifies several key planning mechanisms at the City's disposal aimed at preserving as well as increasing the affordable housing stock. Low vacancy levels and limited new affordable rental supply mean that more people are turning to second suites and rooming houses for permanent housing.

The Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services will be reporting on proposals regarding the implementation of policies related to second suites and rooming houses. These two issues will require interdepartmental consultations owing to the complexity of issues involved, including: building standards, health issues, Fire Code issues and public consultation requirements.

The Task Force also recommends that the City urge the federal government to expand its Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program funding and further, extend this funding to rooming houses and second suites.

The federal government recently announced an additional $50 million in one-time funds for this program. Subject to confirmation from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, it appears that Toronto will receive $6.5 million from this fund. Additional dollars may be forthcoming once an assessment of need for the rest of the province has been determined. The City will target these funds to rooming and boarding houses, high and low rise apartment buildings with affordable rents as well as some transitional housing projects for high risk groups. The Shelter, Housing and Support Division of Community and Neighbourhood Services is currently reviewing the RRAP program toward making decisions on how this federal program should be delivered at the municipal level.

( c)Rent Supplement for New Affordable Housing:

The Task Force recommends the use of rent supplements as one element of an overall supply strategy. The Task Force approach to affordable housing is first to reduce project costs to bridge the gap between a new project's break-even costs and actual market rents and then to use rent supplement to cover the gap between market and affordable rents.

Rent supplements represent an ongoing cost rather than a one-time capital cost. They are tied to a specific housing unit, are paid to the landlord and help with the cash flow and viability of a new rental project. Discussions among cities in the GTA are underway on the future costs and arrangements for the pooled social housing funding. The City is also urging and awaiting provincial decisions on the proposed reform of social housing programs to achieve "say for pay" and the related devolution to municipalities of housing program administration and of responsibility for housing authorities including MTHA.

This is not a 1999 budget issue as any new housing that may come on-stream would not be completed and receiving rent supplement during 1999. While the Task Force identifies rent supplement as a municipal cost, it also identifies several sources of federal and provincial money to cover these costs which could mean negligible net costs for the City in the short term. These options will be discussed in more detail in the policy report on the Task Force recommendations to Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee in March 1999. In addition, the issue of rent supplements funded 100 percent by the municipal tax base need to be considered as part of a larger discussion on cost-sharing arrangements with the Province and within the GTA. This review will be undertaken by the Shelter, Housing and Support Division as part of a system redesign process.

Financial Impact on the City as Estimated by the Task Force:

The Task Force estimates the financial costs to the City of Toronto to implement the recommendations directed at the municipality. The Task Force provided general estimates only and did not fully explore the range of possibilities for these costs to be covered off through provincial or federal funds. Therefore, City staff are in a better position to do more refined estimates and to identify alternate sources of funding. The Task Force estimates that implementation of these recommendations would result in additional annual operating costs of $18.3 million for the City (see Appendix B). This amount would be offset by an estimated $3 million if current negotiations with the Province result in a full cost-share of hostels at 80:20 percent. The City has an averaged per diem rate slightly above the provincial cap with the result that the Province funds only about 73 percent of the City's actual costs.

Capital costs to the City for the first year of a five year implementation plan are estimated by the Task Force to be $10.9 million, of which $10 million is attributed to a City "Homelessness Community Fund" for affordable rental housing development.

City Financing for Implementation of the Recommendations:

Implementation of the strategies as recommended by the City in this report are expected to unfold over a two to three year period. The City is already taking action on a number of fronts. Appendix A describes the municipal expenditures for homeless services for 1998 and 1999. Due to the increased numbers of people needing emergency shelter, there is a 17 percent increase to the City's gross expenditures for 1999 and a 33 percent increase in net expenditures. The higher net amount reflects the higher hostel per diem rates in Toronto which are, on average, above the provincial cap with the result that the Province funds only about 73 percent of the City's actual costs. Requests have been made of the Province to provide full 80:20 percent cost-sharing with the City. If an agreement is reached, the net savings to the City's 1999 operating budget for hostel services could be $6.9 million (this amount represents the reimbursement for the additional costs paid by the City for 1998).

The City has realized a 45 percent increase in the amount of grants available to community-based homeless service providers. This is due to the establishment of the new Provincial Homeless Initiatives Fund in late 1998 as recommended by the Provincial Task Force on Homelessness. Toronto's share of this fund is $1.02 million annually. These funds are currently being allocated and are targeted to aboriginal programs, housing support for refugees, eviction prevention strategies, housing for chronic hostel users, skills development and community economic development strategies. These allocations are in accordance with the directions outlined in the Task Force action plan.

(a)Funding for City Recommendations Impacting upon the 1999 Operating Budget:

Costs for two of the City recommendations are already covered in the 1999 operating budget, including $200,000.00 in funding for the rent bank and $150,000.00 for community economic development initiatives. The issue of a rent supplement program and purchasing housing help services for welfare offices have been deferred for review by the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services as part of the detailed policy review to Community and Neighbourhood Services in March.

The proposed shelter fund using the National Child Benefit Savings will total $6.8 million and, if approved by Council, it will be used to provide first and last months rent and other support to help people maintain their housing. However, only families with children can access this fund. Some of this support is available for singles and couples under the Community Start Up Allowance program through Ontario Works but the eligibility criteria is restricted. Extending funding for first and last months rent beyond what is now available would likely exceed the $3 million estimated by the Task Force.

It is recommended that consideration be given to use the savings to the Hostel Services budget to provide funding for the hostel follow up program and to conduct a feasibility study prior to the establishment of a Homeless Services Information Line and for a facilities audit of the drop-in sector.

(b)Funding for City Recommendations Impacting upon the 1999 Capital Budget:

In terms of capital costs to promote the development of new affordable housing, Council has established a $10.9 million Capital Revolving Fund. These funds were carried forward from a social housing reserve fund established by the former City of Toronto. This fund answers the call from the Task Force for a City "Homelessness Community Fund" to support the development of new affordable housing.

(c)Foregone Municipal Revenues:

In addition to operating and capital costs for the City, the Task Force estimates the City will forfeit potential revenue by providing land for affordable housing, reducing the effective tax rate for new multi-unit residential properties and waiving development charges, parks, levies, planning and other fees to permit the creation of affordable housing.

The cost of providing city-owned land for housing was estimated at $3 million by the Task Force (based on the portion of new housing supply that would be supported by donations of city-owned land). The City is creating an interdepartmental Property Management Committee which could function as one forum for reviewing options pertaining to city-owned land for affordable housing.

With respect to development charges, Finance staff are currently conducting a comprehensive review of the City's development charges by-law. The by-law is expected to be introduced for Council consideration in the Spring of 1999. The financial impact on the City of providing an exemption from the payment of development charges to affordable housing projects will be assessed as part of that review.

The Task Force also recommends that the City waive a variety of other development related charges and fees in order to provide financial incentive for the creation of affordable rental housing. These would typically include planning application fees, parks levies, hookup fees, building permit charges and other development related charges. These levies are based upon a variety of factors including size and construction value of the project, value of land to be developed, type of planning approval required and other site specific considerations. Financial implications for the City of waiving these charges and fees will be included as part of the detailed policy review of the Homelessness Action Task Force report by the Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services to the Urban Environment and Development Committee in March 1999.

(d)Funding Priorities for the City for the Year 2000:

Some preliminary items for consideration in the year 2000 City operating budget include: $300,000.00 to $500,000.00 for the operation of a Homeless Services Information Line and a total of $200,000.00 for the expansion of the City's rent bank to be considered as part of allocations from the Provincial Homelessness Initiatives Fund. Additional items will be discussed in more detail in the policy reports going forward to the standing committees in March 1999.

(e)Areas for Provincial Funding:

As discussed, the City has asked the Province to provide funding for Toronto's hostels at the full 80:20 cost-share level. Success in these negotiations has the potential of recovering $6.9 million in savings for hostel costs to the City in 1998.

In terms of capital funding, it is in the City's best interests to urge the provincial government to implement the following programs: a $1.5 million (annual) capital replacement fund for emergency shelters; the expansion of the current Health and Safety grants program by $400,000.00 to address priority capital expenditures, including food preparation equipment, for drop-in centres; and, to provide $14 million in funding to add 1,000 supportive housing units each year for the next five years in Toronto.

(f)Areas for Federal Funding:

The City should urge the federal government to establish a $300 million capital fund in recognition of the critical need for this type of financing assistance to encourage the development of new low-income housing, as recommended by the Task Force.

The City should also seek funding for at least $150,000.00 from Human Resources and Development Canada who have demonstrated an interest in funding community-base information systems such as the proposed Homeless Services Information System.

Potential Long-Term Savings for the City:

While estimates have not been calculated, it is clear that considerable savings for the City would result from the implementation of the Task Force recommendations. Investing resources into strategies which prevent people from becoming homeless in the first place can only result in long-savings to the City in terms of reduced hostel use and potentially lower welfare caseloads.

Homelessness is an issue that has immeasurable human costs, both for the individual experiencing homelessness and for the rest of our community. Until serious action is taken to solve this growing crisis in this city these human costs will continue to rise.

National Homelessness Symposium:

The City, with funding support from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation is co-hosting, with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, a national symposium on homelessness in the Spring of 1999. The symposium will provide an opportunity for community representatives, the private sector and all levels of government to come together to strategize about solutions to the national homeless crisis building on the work of the Homelessness Action Task Force and local initiatives in other cities.

Conclusions:

The report of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force, "Taking Responsibility for Homelessness: An Action Plan for the City of Toronto" provides a clear blueprint for action for the City to respond to the growing problem of homelessness at a time when public and political momentum is high to find viable and sustainable solutions.

The Task Force emphasizes that all levels of government have a role to play and each must take its share of the responsibility for solving the current homeless crisis. Homelessness is tied to issues of housing, health, welfare, education, employment and community services, and straddles all levels of government. The City of Toronto is charged with taking a leadership role, utilizing the planning and policy tools at its disposal to resolve homelessness in this city. However, the City cannot solve this problem alone. The provincial and federal governments must be involved in order to address the root causes of homelessness.

This report to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee is the first step in the City's review of the Task Force action plan. A detailed analysis of the policy and financial implications will be reported on through the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee, the Urban Environment and Development Committee, the Corporate Services Committee and the Budget Committee in March and early April.

A comprehensive report consolidating the feedback from each committee will then be brought forward to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee in the Spring.

Contact Names:

Shirley Hoy, Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services, phone: 392-8302

Virginia West, Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services, phone: 392-8793

Margaret Rodrigues, Commissioner of Corporate Services, phone: 397-4000

Wanda Liczyk, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, phone: 395-6700

--------

Appendix A

Municipal Operating Expenditures for Homeless Services

Municipal Capital Expenditures for Homeless Services

Capital Revolving Fund				$10,900,000	n/a	$0.00	$10,900,000	n/a
Provincial Health and Safety Grants	$ 168,656	$ 168,656 (province)	$0.00			not determined yet
Residential Rehab Assistance Program	$1,150,100 (federal grants)			$7,966,400 (federal grants) *
TOTALS	$1,318,756	$ 168,656	$ 0.00	$18,866,400			$10,900,000

* This number includes an estimated $6.5 million in one-time only additional RRAP funds for 1999 and $1,466,400.00 in regular RRAP grants for the former City of Toronto area.

--------

Appendix B

Recommendations which impact upon City of Toronto Operating Budget

*It is recommended that funding for this program be considered under potential savings for the City's Shelter, Housing and Support Division budget of $6.9 million if the Province agrees to provide Toronto with full 80 percent funding. The City has an averaged per diem rate slightly above the provincial cap with the result that the Province only funds about 73 percent of the City's actual costs.

--------

Appendix C

Recommendations which impact upon City of Toronto Capital Budget

*It is recommended that funding for these initiatives be considered under potential savings for the City's Shelter, Housing and Support Division budget of $6.9 million if the Province agrees to provide Toronto with full 80 percent funding. The City has an averaged per diem rate slightly above the provincial cap with the result that the Province only funds about 73 percent of the City's actual costs.

--------

Appendix D

"Taking Responsibility for Homelessness: An Action Plan for Toronto"

A report by the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force

List of Recommendations

(1)Appoint a Facilitator for Action on Homelessness for a five-year term who will report to the Mayor and Council.

(2)The Facilitator's primary mandate should be to ensure implementation of the recommendations of the Report of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force. The Facilitator should establish priorities, define action plans, and track progress on implementation. The Facilitator should proceed by way of projects to create systems change; second staff as required; seek incentive funding to leverage cooperative action; and make recommendations to improve planning and service delivery where appropriate.

(3)The Facilitator for Action on Homelessness should report regularly to City Council on progress in preventing and reducing homelessness and communicate in a clear and timely way with various stakeholder groups. The Facilitator should produce an annual report card that would gauge the performance of the City and all its partners in preventing and reducing homelessness and in dealing with the needs of people who become homeless.

(4)Establish a 24-hour Homeless Services Information System comprising a database and a Homeless Services Information Telephone Line that would include the existing Street Helpline. All staff in agencies that serve the homeless population (including hostels, drop-ins, and hospitals) should have access to the database through computers housed in each agency.

(5)Community Information Toronto, in collaboration with hostel operators, should establish a central hostels bed registry to provide up-to-date information on hostel bed availability on a 24-hour basis.

(6)Resources should be redirected from providing hostel spaces to helping people find and maintain permanent housing, on condition that a sufficient new supply of supportive and low-cost housing is created. This shift should be phased in by reducing the number of hostel spaces by 10 percent each year until the total is reduced to half the base number.

(7)Provincial cost-sharing for hostels should reflect the actual costs in Toronto. A percentage of all hostels' budgets should be allocated to purchasing services from community agencies to provide additional specialized supports for those who are preparing to leave and those who need follow-up after leaving the hostel.

(8)The City should upgrade hostels to ensure that they all provide a safe, clean environment with single beds (no dormitory bunks), lockers, and sufficient showers and toilets. Standards in temporary shelters should also be upgraded. All emergency hostels should implement a clear appeals process for people who have been "barred."

(9)The City should require hostels to establish a written "community partners policy" within six months to formalize links with agencies and institutions that currently or potentially provide services to their users to prepare them to move out of hostels. The City's Shelter, Housing, and Support Division should provide clear guidance in developing these policy statements.

(10)The drop-in sector should be rationalized. All drop-ins should provide core services (basic needs, crisis intervention, information and referral, personal supports, and basic recreation). Vital ancillary services (health care, financial and legal counselling, and community economic development) should be provided across the sector. Drop-ins need stable, core funding and key funders (the City of Toronto, the Province of Ontario, and United Way) need to collaborate. The City of Toronto should take the lead in implementing this initiative.

(11)The health and safety standards of drop-ins should be improved to include ventilated smoking rooms. City by-laws, which enable City staff to regularly inspect and maintain standards of hygiene, nutrition, and sanitation, should be applied to drop-ins to improve the health and safety standards for users and staff. Funders should also determine appropriate staff-to-client ratios for drop-ins. Capital costs to bring these facilities up to standard should be covered by the City.

(12)The principle of self-help should be promoted throughout the hostel and drop-in system by having service users assist in service operations on both a paid and unpaid basis.

(13)The City of Toronto and voluntary sector funders like United Way should provide supplementary funds for drop-ins to purchase and/or prepare nutritious food. They should also create a small pool of funds for physical upgrading of kitchens and equipment.

(14)As a long-term strategy, family hostels should be equitably distributed throughout the City.

(15)Reception and support programs should be established in Scarborough schools that serve the children of homeless families to enable these children to get the support they need with minimal disruption to the rest of the student body.

(16)Treatment programs should be available specifically for young parents with substance abuse problems. Such programs should include outreach services and childcare support.

(17)Dedicated supportive housing with appropriate supports should be established for young homeless mothers.

(18)The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health should partner with the new Satellite youth shelter in North York to develop and implement a harm reduction approach to serve youth with drug and alcohol addictions.

(19)The City should establish partnerships between youth shelters and landlords (including the City Housing Company) to create additional housing units for youth. The youth shelters would place their clients in designated units and provide transitional support services so that the youth can maintain stable housing and then remain in the units after they no longer need services.

(20)The Province should provide capital renovation funds for the Extended Youth Shelter Project at 11 Ordnance Street.

(21)The Ministry of Community and Social Services should reinstate funding for transitional housing supports for abused women and their children.

(22)Community-based agencies should be provided with sufficient resources to provide supports to abused women and children staying in the general hostel system. Hostels should make connections with these agencies through the new community partners policy.

(23)Additional supportive housing units, with special safety features, should be designated for abused women and their children.

(24)Establish a new Aboriginal shelter by expanding and strengthening Council Fire's operations so that it can operate its shelter year round.

(25)The federal government should carry responsibility for funding housing and supports to the Aboriginal homeless population in partnership with the provincial government.

(26)A supportive housing pilot project should be established in a suburban area of the City specifically for the Aboriginal population in Toronto. The capital costs should be covered by the federal government. Support services should be attached to appropriate Aboriginal-specific service providers. This project should establish formal linkages to the healing lodge recommended below.

(27)The Li'l Beavers/Eagles prevention program for Aboriginal children and youth, operated by Native Friendship Centres, should be reinstated by the Province.

(28)The federal government should establish an Urban Multi-Purpose Aboriginal Youth Centre in Toronto in cooperation with the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto, Council Fire, and other Aboriginal agencies.

(29)The Facilitator for Action on Homelessness should, as one of his or her special projects, create an Aboriginal Steering Committee to provide ongoing advice on an implementation plan to prevent and reduce Aboriginal homelessness and monitor and evaluate the results.

(30)An Aboriginal clinical detox centre, funded by the Ministry of Health, should be established, building upon the efforts of Anishnawbe Health and Pedahbun Lodge.

(31)Establish a rural-based healing lodge near Toronto to provide opportunities for healing and self-development of the Aboriginal homeless population in Toronto. This model should be similar to existing Aboriginal healing lodges in Ontario but with a focus on the homeless population.

(32)A focused strategy should be established for increasing training and job opportunities for Aboriginal youth based on a transitional housing model in which residents work to upgrade their skills and prepare for independent living. It should be led by Native Child and Family Services in collaboration with Nishnawbe Homes and the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto and other youth service providers.

(33)Expand the Biindgd Breakfast Club model.

(34)The federal government should provide the same orientation to refugee claimants on arrival to Canada as to government-sponsored refugees. Refugee claimants should be able to access settlement services including language orientation and help in finding housing.

(35)The federal government should provide the capital costs for an additional shelter for refugees. This shelter should have on-site settlement staff. Regular operating funds for this hostel should come from the provincial government and the municipality on an 80:20 basis.

(36)The federal government should work directly with the City of Toronto to address immigration and refugee policy and program issues faced by the municipality. The federal government should make arrangements with municipalities outside of Toronto to provide emergency shelter for some of the immigrants and refugees (including refugee claimants) to reduce the pressure on Toronto's hostel system.

(37)The shelter component maximum for social assistance should equal 85 percent of median market rent for each local housing market, based on annual surveys. In Greater Toronto, this would represent, on average, an increase of just over 20 percent on the current maximum shelter benefit.

(38)A new shelter allowance program should be created, targeted to working poor families as a first priority, and to working adults if feasible. The aim of this program, which would require annual re-application, is to reduce the risk of homelessness and to ensure that the transition from welfare to employment does not increase the risk of homelessness. The shelter allowance program should reduce the share of income that low-income people spend on housing to between 35 and 40 percent of income.

(39)The shelter allowance program should be paid by the Province, consistent with the articulated goals of the provincial government.

(40)The City of Toronto should fund and administer a City-wide rent bank with a $500,000.00 annual budget, to help individuals and families deal with short-term rent arrears. Access to the rent bank should be through designated multi-service agencies.

(41)Housing help programs should be more systematic, adequately resourced, and linked to other services. Provincial funding for housing help should be maintained.

(42)Housing help to social assistance recipients should be provided by purchase-of- service contracts between welfare offices and housing help services.

(43)The Provincial legal aid plan and its successor should ensure adequate funding for community legal clinics for tenant assistance, and maintain its funding for tenant duty counsels.

(44)The City should ensure sufficient funding for the Federation of Metro Tenants' Association Tenant Hot Line to ensure that callers can get through to receive information.

(45)To ensure that social assistance recipients can rent affordable apartments, rapid payment of first and last months' rent should be provided by the City when requested, and Proof of Address procedures should be expedited.

(46)The use of outreach workers should be expanded to move chronic hostel users into stable housing. This can be done by either expanding the Hostel Outreach Program (HOP) or through specific projects similar to the Housing Match Maker Project.

(47)Institutions should establish and implement discharge protocols for all persons with no fixed address. No one should be discharged from an institution to the street. If a person is discharged to a hostel, it must be one with 24-hour access. When a homeless person is discharged from an institution to a hostel or unstable situation, arrangements for follow-up by hospital staff or an agency contracted by the hospital (such as Community Care Access Centres or Public Health) must occur within 24 hours after discharge.

(48)The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and the Canadian Mental Health Association of Toronto should take responsibility for defining discharge protocols for homeless people with mental health problems and/or addictions. These two organizations should meet within the next 90 days to define discharge protocols in consultation with other key organizations.

(49)The Facilitator for Action on Homelessness should set up an inter-agency/hospital information network to monitor the effectiveness of the protocols for homeless people who are discharged from institutions.

(50)The City of Toronto should invest an additional $300,000.00 in community economic development over the next three years through the newly established Productive Enterprises Fund.

(51)The Ministry of Health should establish a permanent OHIP kiosk in an appropriate location in downtown Toronto on a full-time basis to enable homeless people to register for health cards. In addition, governments, social service agencies, and banks should accept legally certified, notarized copies of identification documents, held by approved community agencies, as identification when homeless people apply for social assistance, shelter, or bank accounts.

(52)The Ministry of Health should continue to fund Community Care Access Centres (CCACs) to provide Home Care for people with mental illness.

(53)Toronto Public Health should continue to invest in programs which address the overall health needs of the homeless population.

(54)A staff person skilled in working with homeless people should be available to hospital emergency rooms, as required.

(55)The Ministry of Health should establish a pharmacy pilot project where homeless people can obtain prescription drugs free of charge. The effectiveness of this project should be monitored and evaluated.

(56)Toronto Public Health, in collaboration with the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Toronto, George Brown College School of Dental Hygiene, and selected Community Health Centres across the City of Toronto should establish a three-year pilot project to improve the oral health needs of Toronto's homeless population.

(57)The Ministry of Health should declare Toronto an "Underserviced Area" for homeless people to enable new doctors to work with the homeless population at the full OHIP rate. In addition, the Ministry of Health should make additional sessional dollars available for physicians to work with homeless people in hostels and drop-ins.

(58)The Ministry of Health should fund infirmary beds in appropriate locations for homeless people recovering from illness or surgery. These beds should be coordinated by hospitals in collaboration with the Community Care Access Centres and appropriate community agencies.

(59)Long-term care funding should be allocated by the Ministry of Health to designated facilities equipped to address the long-term care needs of elderly chronic hostel users.

(60)The Ministry of Health should combine its current community mental health and community health funding for homeless people into one single Homelessness Health Fund which would be administered by the City of Toronto.

(61)Fifty psychiatric beds should be added to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Queen Street Division.

(62)A harm-reduction facility should be established on a pilot basis to accommodate up to 30 homeless people who cannot participate in programs that require total abstinence. The facility should be staffed by health care professionals, supported by peer counsellors, who would ensure that the harm of alcohol and substance use is minimized and that the person is linked to other health and social supports.

(63)An addictions and mental health outreach team should be established, coordinated by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, in collaboration with Toronto Public Health, Community Health Centres, Shared Care teams, and other community agencies, to connect homeless people who have severe addictions or concurrent disorders to the harm-reduction facility. This team would use its expertise to provide consultation and training to other outreach and community support initiatives.

(64)At least 5,000 additional supportive housing units should be built in the City of Toronto over the next five years at the rate of 1,000 units per year. Although the high-need districts of the City should receive new units corresponding to their population profile, the majority of new units should be built in all areas of the City.

(65)New supportive housing units should be built throughout the province to ensure that people can be served in their own communities.

(66)New supportive housing units should provide a range of housing types and management approaches to meet the different needs of different homeless groups. The range should include new construction and acquisition and conversion of existing residential and non-residential buildings.

(67)The Province should continue to expand the Habitat program for boarding houses and extend the program to other types of accommodation such as rooming houses.

(68)A high-support residential program for people with severe mental illness should be established on site at a hospital. An unused ward of the Queen Street Division of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) could be immediately converted to supportive housing for people with serious mental illness who would find it extremely difficult to find and maintain housing elsewhere.

(69)The Ministry of Health, the Ontario Realty Corporation, and the City of Toronto should pursue an agreement with CAMH to make land within the Queen Street Division of CAMH and the former Lakeshore Psychiatric Hospital immediately available for the development of supportive housing for persons with serious mental illness or concurrent disorders. At least half the units should be dedicated for persons with concurrent disorders.

(70)The Province should fund 100 percent of supportive housing and reassume the costs of any supportive housing devolved to municipalities. It should fund all capital costs, rents supplements, and support services of supportive housing.

(71)An overall provincial policy on supportive housing should ensure that definitions of special need and eligibility for supportive housing are broad enough to include "hard to house" homeless people.

(72)The Ministry of Health should interpret its criteria for support flexibly to include chronically homeless people who may not have a formal psychiatric diagnosis. Priority should, however, still be given to the seriously mentally ill.

(73)The City should contribute developing supportive housing through advocacy, policy development, coordination, strategic top-up funding, and facilitating new supply.

(74)There should be a coordinated access system for supportive housing linked to the proposed Homeless Services Information System and to Toronto Social Housing Connections. The coordinated access system should have a "user friendly" centralized database of information on all supportive housing providers, including waiting lists and related programs like housing help. The system should be centrally administered but accessible through multiple entry points.

(75)Regular monitoring and evaluation should be done to determine what supportive housing programs are most effective at meeting the diverse needs of the homeless population.

(76)The City should develop a "housing first" policy for municipal lands to make suitable sites available for affordable housing, while retaining long-term City interest in the sites.

(77)The City should convert the Social Housing Reserve Fund into a Homelessness Community Fund for affordable housing. The annual allocation to the Fund should be $10 million derived in part from the City capital budget and in part from cash-in-lieu receipts from bonusing agreements.

(78)The City should implement a tax rate for the new multi-residential property tax class at a level comparable to that for single family dwellings.

(79)The City and its Agencies, Boards, and Commissions should waive development charges, land use application fees, parks levies, hook-up fees, and other charges for housing developments that meet affordability criteria.

(80)The City should create a private sector roundtable to work with the Facilitator for Action on Homelessness to advise on strategies to create affordable housing.

(81)Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) should provide direct mortgage loans for new affordable rental projects. CMHC should develop rules and norms for mortgage insurance on not-for-profit projects using more favourable criteria than currently apply to private-sector projects.

(82)The federal and provincial governments should develop policies to make suitable government sites available for affordable housing, while retaining long-term public interest in such sites.

(83)The federal and provincial governments should rebate fully GST and PST respectively to the developers or builders of affordable housing projects.

(84)The federal government should provide up to $300 million in capital support for new low-income housing. The federal government should also reinvest in housing each year the savings to be realized following devolution to the provinces.

(85)The federal government should channel federal capital to new affordable housing by way of an Infrastructure program for housing, local foundations for affordable housing, and/or a tax incentive for contributions to eligible foundations or projects.

(86)The Province should assume responsibility for building supportive housing either by funding capital subsidies and/or rent supplement, or by guaranteeing an income stream that private and non-profit developers can use to get financing to build or renovate the housing.

(87)Upon signing a housing devolution agreement with CMHC, the Province should ensure that the annual federal housing funds that are not required for existing projects (estimated at $60 million annually) be used as a capital and rent supplement fund to support new projects.

(88)The current pooling of resources for social housing (about $350 million annually) should be extended to include resources for new affordable housing. In accordance with the principle of "pay for say," the GTSB (rather than the Province) should allocate rent supplement funds for new affordable housing across the GTA.

(89)The City should implement the Main Streets Intensification program and explore other strategies for promoting the supply of affordable rental housing such as conversion of non-residential buildings and the purchase of condominiums.

(90)As part of its affordable housing strategy, the City of Toronto should pursue the Single Room Occupancy (SRO) option for housing with supports to house homeless singles. The City and the Province should make zoning and regulatory changes to facilitate renovation and new construction of SROs. These would include density maximums, unit sizes, parking requirements and building and fire code regulations. The City should initiate at least three SRO pilots. These should vary according to acquisition or new construction, location, number and sizes of units, financing, and management techniques.

(91)The Official Plan should incorporate the goal of preventing homelessness and support the use of planning tools that contribute to the preservation of existing housing and the construction of new affordable housing.

(92)Contributions toward the provision of low-income housing should be a high priority among the public benefits secured by the City in exchange for increases in height and density. These should be realized under existing policies and under the policy framework in the new Official Plan.

(93)The City of Toronto should request and the Province of Ontario should approve amendments to the City of Toronto Act to permit the City to require the inclusion of affordable housing in new residential developments.

(94)The City should reduce the time it takes to grant development approvals or building permits by streamlining the operation of all relevant departments.

(95)Federal Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program (RRAP) funding for the City of Toronto should be expanded to $7 million a year to include rental apartment buildings, rooming houses, and second suites.

(96)Council should harmonize condominium conversion policies across the new City of Toronto. The new policy should attach conditions to approval of plans of condominium to ensure the replacement of lost low-cost rental units, consistent with the City "no net loss" policy.

(97)The Province should grant appropriate authority to the City of Toronto to control demolition of affordable rental properties.

(98)The City's housing development strategy should give priority to non-profit acquisition and rehabilitation of existing private apartments, as well as new construction.

(99)All three levels of government should commit to the regeneration and redevelopment of public housing where appropriate.

(100)The City of Toronto should permit, as-of-right, second suites wherever large- scale new residential developments are being approved. The City of Toronto should permit, as-of-right, second suites in areas in which multi-unit residential buildings (including semi-detached houses, duplexes, and triplexes) already exist, as well as in any residential zones that directly abut arterial roads that are well served by public transit.

(101)In conjunction with legalization of second suites, a "fast-track" eviction procedure should be established at the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal, applying to tenants renting suites in owner-occupied properties with only one rented unit.

(102)Regardless of current zoning, existing second suites in single family homes that comply with health and safety standards should be legalized. There needs to be an appropriate public hearing and appeal process for neighbours who object. The onus should be on the owner to come forward with an application for relief from the zoning by-law.

(103)Council should permit rooming houses as-of-right in commercial zones and multiple-unit residential zones on arterial roads throughout the City. Existing rooming houses that comply with health and safety standards should be legalized.

(104)CMHC should assist rooming house owners to access mortgage financing.

(105)The City should explore ways to reduce or mitigate the impact of the new property tax burden on rooming houses.

________

The Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee reports, for the information of Council, having also had before it, during the consideration of the foregoing matter, the following communications, a copy of which is on file in the office of the City Clerk:

(a)(February 10, 1999) from the Scarborough Homelessness Committee supporting the recommendations of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force; and requesting that the Scarborough Homelessness Committee and its partners in Scarborough, The Caring Alliance and the Scarborough East Community Analysis Group, be consulted thereon;

(b)(February 10, 1999) from Ms. Susan Nwosu, Coalition of Toronto Housing Help Centres, supporting the recommendations of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force; and advising that Housing Help Centres are directly affected by Recommendations Nos. 41 and 42 of the Final Report; and

(c)(February 23, 1999) from Mr. Fred Avery expressing concerns with regard to the effects that the implementation of the Task Force recommendations will have on communities with vast amounts of social housing and suggesting that the strategy on this issue should include the rehabilitation of those individuals affected so that they can restart a new life apart from the constant reliance on the vast social safety net which Canadians are so proud of.

The following persons appeared before the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committee in connection with the foregoing matter:

-Mr. Phillip Dufresne, Houselink Community Homes, and filed a written submission in regard thereto;

-Ms. Nancy Farmer, Toronto Non-Profit Housing Providers Network, and filed a written submission in regard thereto;

-Mr. Howard Tessler, Federation of Metro Tenants;

-Ms. Ann Fitzpatrick, Children's Aid Society of Toronto, and filed a written submission in regard thereto;

-Mr. Michael Shapcott, Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, Ontario Region Office, and filed a written submission in regard thereto;

-Ms. Tracey Nesbitt, The Central Ontario Branch of the Ontario Association of Social Workers, and filed a written submission in regard thereto;

-Mr. Vance Latchford, Latchford Associates;

-Ms. Brenda Cohen, and filed a written submission in regard thereto;

-Mr. John Harstone, Co-operative Housing Federation of Toronto; and

-Councillor Jack Layton, Don River.