City Council Needs to be Bold on Affordable Housing!

City Councillors and the Mayor are voting soon to build lots more affordable housing in new building developments. Join us in calling on City Council to push developers to designate a large percentage of all new condo units as affordable rental housing.

Use our tool to send a message to your local Councillor and the Mayor. Scroll down to learn more about how.

What is inclusionary zoning and why does Toronto need it?

COVID-19 has further exposed how unaffordable housing across our city is and it’s time that we take bold action to fix the housing crisis. Inclusionary zoning is a policy that would require new developments to include a certain percentage of units that are priced affordably. This means those with low or moderate incomes can afford to live in our city and more affordable housing is available for the City’s growing population.

If Toronto had strong inclusionary zoning 10 years ago we could have added over 30,000 new units of affordable housing - that's 8 times more than the 4,000 units we got in the same span of time.

Developers have gotten richer as housing in our city has become increasingly unaffordable. Today, the majority of newly built housing is being bought by investors and rented out at the least affordable rates in the city. This is an unfair and unsustainable approach to developing our city. It’s time to require new developments actually respond to local needs by implementing strong inclusionary zoning. 

Send your message to ensure the City of Toronto prioritizes affordable housing and not developer profits:

We are excited to be teaming up with ACORN Toronto, a tenant rights organization that has been fighting for inclusionary zoning for many years. Together we have joined up with Parkdale People’s economy and Social Planning Toronto as we continue to build a powerful coalition to fight for affordable housing.

Alongside our allies, we’re calling for strong inclusionary zoning and that includes:

  • A minimum 20-30% of all new residential developments with 60 or more units are set-aside for permanently affordable rental housing;

  • Affordable units be kept affordable forever, not for just 25 years;

  • For Inclusionary Zoning to include all parts of Toronto, not only near transit hubs.

Because of pressure from the province and developers, the City is currently proposing very low percentages of inclusionary zoning: Anywhere between 3%-5% for new rental developments and 5%-10% of new condo developments to be set aside as affordable. This will not help address our housing crisis and that’s why we are campaigning for at least 20% to 30% affordable housing in new developments.

Developers are making such massive profits that they could be made to heavily discount many units and still make a modest profit. It is time for our city to be built for all of us, not just the rich. Send your message to your City Councillor and Mayor Tory: 

Why asking for 20-30% of units to be affordable is feasible?

Our 20–30% ask is feasible and does not slow the production of new housing units. Cities including New York, London, and Montreal already have strong inclusionary zoning policies that range from 25–50% depending on the neighbourhood. And the City of Toronto’s own study suggests that developers will still gain a motivating 15% profit margin when developing in most of the areas of the city where highrises are going up.