Item - 2025.PH25.5

The Planning and Housing Committee: 

1. Referred the item to the Executive Director, Housing Secretariat for further consideration.

The former Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto (City of Toronto) entered into an agreement (municipal agreement) on October 22, 1965, for the development and operation of 160 social housing units for low-income seniors at 444 Logan Avenue, Ray McCleary Towers, a project owned and operated by WoodGreen Community Housing Incorporated (WoodGreen).

The project was funded under a former federal social housing Operating Agreement which expired on July 1, 2017, when the original Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) mortgage was discharged. The municipal agreement provided that upon mortgage expiry, the property is to be reconveyed to the City of Toronto (City). City Council has approved the extension of the municipal agreement and right to reconvey to August 2026 to allow more time for WoodGreen and the City to negotiate the terms and conditions for WoodGreen's continued long term use of the property.

The report recommends that City Council extend the date at which the reconveyance obligation comes into force to a date that is 40 years following the registration of a new Social Housing Agreement between the City and WoodGreen. The obligation will be set forth in a Social Housing Agreement authorized by Section 453.1 of the City of Toronto Act, 2006 (COTA) (a "Social Housing Agreement"). The Social Housing Agreement will amend the reconveyance obligation and address the requirements to operate 444 Logan Avenue as a social housing program designed to provide housing accommodations primarily for persons with low to moderate incomes, on a non-profit basis. Notice of the Social Housing Agreement will be registered on title together with notices of restrictions requiring City consent to transfer, mortgage or long-term lease, all as authorization under City of Toronto Act (COTA).

Further, to support the project's operational needs and ensure the ongoing affordability for the social housing units and potentially deepening the level of affordability provided to households, the report recommends WoodGreen enter a Municipal Housing Project Facility Agreement to provide an exemption from the obligation to pay property taxes for a period of 40 years, subject to the requirements of Chapter 513 of the Toronto Municipal Code. A site-specific property tax exemption will help maintain units at an affordable rent and provide financial relief to help maintain the project in a state of good repair.