Housing Anchor Agency Services and Supports

A new funding opportunity for Anchor Agency Services & Supports is available. The deadline for submissions will be Friday, May 31, 2024.

The City, in collaboration with housing provider partners, is seeking one or more community non-profit organizations to provide Anchor Agency Services & Supports in three or more rental housing buildings. The City will match selected buildings with successful applicants based on the organization’s stated service area(s).

Program Objectives

The objectives of the Anchor Agency Services & Supports program are to:

  • improve the housing stability of identified tenants living in the selected buildings who have been approved for one-on-one case management services;
  • provide community development and crisis management supports to the buildings to help meet community needs, support social cohesion and better coordinate services among existing community non-profit organizations supporting tenants in the selected buildings; and
  • support the implementation of a community safety program that supports the buildings and the broader local community, in select Anchor Agency locations determined by the City.

Buildings were selected by the City, in partnership with Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC), and are identified by the address, ward or ward grouping (multiple wards). Each site location has a building profile that outlines the number of units and unit composition of the building(s) located at that site.

The building profiles for the ward/ward groupings included in this round of funding are as follows:

  • Site Location #1: Ward 1 – Etobicoke North
    • Address: 101-121 Kendleton Drive, Etobicoke, ON, M9V 1V3
    • 415 units (312 bachelor, 103 one-bedroom)
    • Approximately 50% of tenants are seniors and approximately 50% of households are in receipt of OW/ODSP
  • Site Location #2: Ward 6 – York Centre
    • Address: 2195 Jane Street, Toronto, ON, M3M 1A3
    • 294 units (215 bachelor, 79 one-bedroom)
    • Approximately 60% of tenants are seniors and approximately 50% of households are in receipt of OW/ODSP
  • Site Location #3: Ward 24 – Scarborough-Guildwood and Ward 25 – Scarborough-Rouge Park
    • Address: 4175 and 4205 Lawrence Avenue East, Scarborough, ON M1E 4S6
    • 720 units (631 bachelor, 89 one-bedroom)
    • Approximately 40% of tenants are seniors and approximately 50% of households are in receipt of OW/ODSP

Service providers will engage with tenants who have difficultly remaining housed to provide time-specified case management that addresses a range of needs and facilitates ongoing housing stability. Services will be delivered on-site in large apartment buildings/complexes with approximately 300 units or more.  Additionally, service providers will engage with communities and will coordinate with other service providers to deliver programming that addresses community needs, which may include community safety concerns in select locations determined by the City.

The Housing Secretariat is seeking organizations with the following mandatory eligibility requirements:

  1. The organization is:
    1. located within the boundaries of the City of Toronto, or
    2. an urban off-reserve Indigenous-led organization located in the City of Toronto who may also provide culturally-based programming outside the boundaries of the City.
  2. The services funded through the Call for Applications take place within the boundaries of the City, with the exception of services being delivered by urban off-reserve Indigenous-led organizations, that yield direct benefits for the urban Indigenous communities of Toronto.
  3. The organization provided information which demonstrates that it does not, in the absence of the grant, have the financial resources necessary to undertake the activity for which the grant is requested.
  4. The organization has legal not-for-profit or charitable status or is an urban off-reserve Indigenous-led organization.
  5. The organization is not indebted to the City or in default of the terms and conditions of any agreement (including any previous grant agreement) with any division, agency, board of commission of the City of Toronto under the discretion of the Division Head.
  6. The organization has and will maintain, at its own expense, policies of insurance, which policies will be in a form with an insurer acceptable to the City. A certificate evidencing these policies signed by the insurer or an authorized agent of the insurer has been submitted to the City.
  7. The organization has secured and will maintain and pay all costs for Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) workers’ compensation coverage for its employees performing work on the Project pursuant this Agreement, where statutory required under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (WSIA).

Overarching Program Principles and Approach

Anchor Agency Services & Supports projects must:

  • provide non-judgemental, trauma-informed, strengths-based, culturally responsive and anti-racist and anti-oppressive services rooted in harm reduction, eviction prevention and Housing First approaches; and
  • be flexible to respond to fluctuating and episodic needs.

Organization Experience

Anchor Agency Services & Supports staff must have:

  • extensive knowledge of and experience in delivering housing support services, conflict resolution and mediation;
  • a strong understanding of community resources, referral pathways and community development; and
  • an understanding of the social determinants of health, crisis response, de-escalation and community safety approaches.

Core Program Components

Case Management:

Case management supports will be provided to identified tenants in the building who require housing stability support and who have been approved for case management. Possible tenants for case management within the building may be identified by a variety of sources, including the housing provider, the tenant, the Anchor Agency Services & Supports provider, an external service provider, etc. Acceptance into case management, however, will be based on a pre-determined referral process developed by the housing provider and the City in consultation with the Anchor Agency Services & Supports provider.

Anchor Agency Services & Supports projects must:

  • deliver services in person, on-site and, when needed, in tenant’s housing units and have the ability to provide services after hours and on weekends when necessary;
  • provide responsive and person-centered low-to medium-intensity case management services in large apartment buildings/complexes with approximately 300 units or more that meet each person’s unique needs and/or complex challenges;
  • deliver services with a case load capacity of 1:20-30 tenants per full time (1.0 FTE) staff member who provides case management services and have the ability to adjust the level of case management support provided to scale-up or down based on individual needs and to allow for new tenants to become part of the caseload;
  • provide client-directed, goal-oriented service planning that fosters developing independence, integrates appropriate referrals to health and wellness and other community-based supports and/or long-term case management and embeds comprehensive discharge processes;
  • provide services and strategies to stabilize housing for people at risk of homelessness, including landlord mediation with the housing provider, support with navigating the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) and arrears repayment; and
  • participate in case conferencing between service providers and the housing provider to coordinate care and supports for a tenant.

Community Development and Crisis Management:

Community development and crisis management programming will be applied to the entire building and available to all tenants in the building.

Anchor Agency Services & Supports projects must:

  • complete a needs assessment within the building to identify strengths, needs, issues and support gaps among tenants, as well as develop an inventory of existing services available to the building tenants;
  • develop and implement ongoing programming, either through direct service or partnerships, that responds to identified and fluctuating needs within the building;
  • coordinate services between other organizations providing supports to tenants in the building and help establish connections to additional supports as identified through needs assessments, including supporting connections to health and wellness services;
  • develop an on-site reference group that includes stakeholders, such as housing provider staff and building tenants, to ensure programming is responsive to community need and supporting project outcomes; and
  • provide/augment crisis response supports to the building should incidents arise.

Data Collection and Reporting Expectations

Anchor Agency Services & Supports projects must:

  • participate in City and housing provider committees and working groups, as required;
  • participate in an evaluation process of the Anchor Agency service model with the City and the housing provider;
  • compile, maintain and provide program statistics and submit activity data and program outcomes, as required; and
  • advance the City’s funding priorities, including:
    • strengthening our relationship with Indigenous communities and advancing the Reconciliation Action Plan;
    • strengthening our relationship with Black communities and advancing the Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism;
    • focusing on equity and strengthening our relationship with other equity-seeking communities;
    • delivering high-quality services;
    • reducing chronic homelessness;
    • developing integrated system responses; and
    • strengthening and modernizing the sector.

Community Safety Program Requirements (in select locations to be determined)

The City, in partnership with our housing provider partner(s), will identify Anchor Agency locations to support the implementation of a community safety program that will work to address the identified safety needs of the selected building(s) and broader local community. The City will contract a community ambassador safety team service through a separate procurement process.

Anchor Agency Services & Supports projects selected to provide this program must:

  • work with a designated City-funded service provider to deliver a community safety program through a community safety ambassador team approach to the site and surrounding area. The City will contract with a community safety ambassador team through a separate procurement process.

These service delivery requirements will form part of the funding agreement for successful applicants.

Detailed requirements on this program model will be provided in an information session. See the Key Dates and Information section below for details.

Organizations must apply to the Anchor Agency Services & Supports funding opportunity through the City’s online grants system, the Toronto Grants, Rebates and Incentives Portal (TGRIP).

Organizations must create a TGRIP account to apply to the funding opportunity. If an organization has a TGRIP account, the organization can log in and download the Anchor Agency Services & Supports (2024-2026) Application Guide for more detailed instructions on how to apply to the funding opportunity, the program model and the terms and conditions.

Creating a TGRIP account (if one does not already exist)

  • Navigate to TGRIP
  • Select the “Register Here” button under – New to the System?
  • Complete the required information and click “Submit”
  • A confirmation email will be sent from TGRIPNoReply@smartsimple.com. The email will provide instructions on how to complete the registration

Downloading the Anchor Agency Services & Supports (2024-2026) Application Guide

  • Log in to TGRIP
  • Click on “My Funding Opportunities”
  • Locate the application for Anchor Agency Services & Supports (2024-2026) and click on “View Details/Apply”
  • Under Program Information, navigate to the Program Guidelines section and click “View Guidelines” to download and save a copy of the Anchor Agency Services & Supports (2024-2026) Application Guide
  • Follow the instructions in the Anchor Agency Services and Supports (2024-2026) Application Guide carefully to complete and submit an application

Information Session

Information Session WebEx Recording

Information Session Presentation Slides

 

Helpdesk Sessions

The City will host two (2) drop in application helpdesk sessions for service providers seeking additional support with their application. Interested applicants can drop in and out of the sessions at any time to ask questions and receive live support.

Session 1:

Session 2:

Application period

  • Funding opportunity opens: Monday, April 8, 2024
  • Deadline for written questions: Friday, May 10, 2024, 11:59 p.m. (EST)
  • Deadline for submissions: Friday, May 31, 2024, 11:59 p.m. (EST)
    • Late submissions will not be accepted

Funding term:

  • August 1, 2024 to March 31, 2026

 

 

 

Building Profile and Site Specific – Addenda And FAQ #1