Release: Toronto Organizations Call on Council to Build a Bold, Green, & Just Recovery from COVID-19

For Immediate Release

April 29, 2020

TORONTO ORGANIZATIONS CALL ON CITY COUNCIL TO BUILD A BOLD, GREEN AND JUST RECOVERY FROM COVID-19

Toronto - As the Mayor, Councillors and Toronto’s new Office of Recovery and Rebuild begin their work on Toronto’s recovery, local organizations, representing tens of thousands of people from across the city, have submitted a letter to the Mayor and City Council that outlines ten principles for a bold, green, and just recovery. 

“We’re calling on City Council to be bold and seize this historic moment to create a new future for our city as part of any COVID-19 recovery and rebuilding package — a future that leaves no one behind. It’s clear that we can’t afford to rebuild Toronto as it was.” said Michal Hay, Executive Director of Progress Toronto. “We’re also asking City Council to commit to powerfully advocate for Toronto, in a push united with civil society, at the Federal and Provincial level to secure a New Deal for our city to help us in this rebuilding.”

The groups are urging City Council to unite and push the federal and provincial governments to step up their support of vital services including transit, child care, public health, and affordable housing. 

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Toronto was already struggling with an affordability crisis, mounting inequality and racial injustice, a massively underfunded transit system, and a worsening climate crisis. Much of this is because Toronto has been starved of resources from other levels of government over the last decades and has had vital services downloaded without adequate funding or revenue sources. Now, the impacts of the pandemic are deepening these cracks in our city and exposing them as public health risks.

"Mayor Tory and City Council should publicly commit to ensuring that Toronto's economic recovery plan aligns with and fast-tracks existing City commitments to climate action and poverty reduction," said Heather Marshall, Campaigns Director at the Toronto Environmental Alliance. "Toronto can do this by focusing investment on low carbon, job-intensive projects like affordable housing, transit and local food which improve health, equity and climate resilience."

And, the groups are calling on City Council to take immediate steps now to ensure a bold, green, and just recovery for Toronto that doesn’t leave anyone behind, including the collection of race-based data and supporting a community-led recovery through transparency and public consultation.

"We know that because of the existing systemic and structural inequalities in our city, the impacts of this pandemic are being experienced by racialized communities at disproportionately higher levels," said Neethan Shan, Executive Director of the Urban Alliance on Race Relations. "The recovery plans must be evidence-based, using disaggregated race-based data so that the City understands the extent and nature of this impact and then responds with the appropriate and targeted resources”

For best results in recovery and rebuilding city council must ensure plans are community-led with public consultation and engagement centred in their design and delivery. This will make sure plans reflect the diversity of needs and interests of Toronto residents, and that there is widespread support for their implementation A successful response, recovery and rebuilding can’t afford for front-line organizations, communities, renters, and workers to be on the sidelines, when we know what a just and green recovery looks like. 

“The people most affected by COVID-19 will be low and moderate income tenants in this city; laid off workers, essential workers, and vulnerable people. Any recovery plan needs to not leave renters behind,” said Alejandra Ruiz Vargas, Toronto ACORN. “ACORN will continue to push for real affordable housing across the city so workers and families can afford to live in Toronto and fuel its recovery.”

The letter and ten recommendations to City Council are available at https://www.progresstoronto.ca/letter-bold-green-just-recovery

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Signatories:
Parkdale Activity-Recreation Centre, Parkdale People’s Economy, Progress Toronto, Social Planning Toronto, Toronto ACORN, Toronto Community Benefits Network, Toronto Environmental Alliance, Toronto & York Region Labour Council, TTCriders, Urban Alliance on Race Relations

Media Contact:
Erica Woods
Progress Toronto
erica@progresstoronto.ca

See a PDF of our letter.

Quotes from Participating Organizations:

"Over the last month, through mutual aid networks and grassroots support systems, communities who have been historically and persistently marginalized have shared critical tools and knowledge about how to respond to the gaping inequities of existing food, income, housing, health, technology, and education systems that have been brought to a breaking point by the COVID-19 pandemic. The new Toronto Office of Recovery and Rebuild should leverage the work of community-based groups and grassroots initiatives that have already played a strong role in the COVID-19 response by establishing participatory and democratic mechanisms that enable sustained direct engagement, partnerships and support for these groups so they can continue to play a lead role in building economically vibrant, sustainable, and resilient neighbourhoods." - said Ana Teresa Portillo, Community Benefits Organizer with Parkdale People's Economy

The Parkdale People’s Economy, also known as Parkdale Community Economic Development (PCED) Project, is a network of over 30 community-based organizations and hundreds of community members collaborating to build decent work, shared wealth, and equitable development in Parkdale.

“We’re calling on City Council to be bold and seize this historic moment to create a new future for our city as part of any COVID-19 recovery and rebuilding package — a future that leaves no one behind. It’s clear that we can’t afford to rebuild Toronto as it was. We’re also asking City Council to commit to powerfully advocate for Toronto, in a push united with civil society, at the Federal and Provincial level to secure a New Deal for our city to help us in this rebuilding.” 

- said Michal Hay, Executive Director, Progress Toronto

Progress Toronto is a not-for-profit organization that advocates and organizes for a more democratic, socially just, and progressive city. 

“This pandemic is bringing to the surface the importance of strengthening our social safety net and social capital, valuing public services, addressing deep inequality of all types, prioritizing collectivism instead of individualism, and recognizing the true value of frontline and essential workers. It has also birthed an unprecedented cooperative and collaborative spirit among individuals and groups that sometimes have adversarial relationships. As a city, we need to build on this shift and begin to work together in new and better ways.” - Devika Shah, Executive Director, Social Planning Toronto

Social Planning Toronto is a non-profit, charitable community organization that works to improve equity, social justice and quality of life in Toronto through community capacity building, community education and advocacy, policy research and analysis, and social reporting.

 “The people most affected by COVID-19 will be low and moderate income tenants in this city; laid off workers, essential workers, and vulnerable people. Any recovery plan needs to not leave renters behind. ACORN will continue to push for real affordable housing across the city so workers and families can afford to live in Toronto and fuel its recovery.” - Alejandra Ruiz Vargas, Toronto ACORN

ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) Canada is an independent national organization of low- and moderate-income families. Toronto ACORN was founded in 2004, working in every part of the city leading the fight and winning significant victories including raising the minimum wage; strengthening of the enforcement of apartment building standards; regulating the payday loan industry in Canada; and countless improvements in our neighbourhoods.

"Every year, the City of Toronto spends billions of dollars in public investments to purchase goods and services, to repair aging infrastructure and to retrofit and expand our building stock to accommodate rapid growth. We must ensure that this public spending prioritizes local job creation, equitable hiring and minority owned businesses. With COVID19, many communities are facing complex social, economic and environmental challenges. We need to ensure that those communities who are being most impacted by COVID19 can be prioritized in the City of Toronto's recovery plans." - Rosemarie Powell, Executive Director, Toronto Community Benefits Network 

The Toronto Community Benefits Network has built a strong community-labour partnership with a support base of workforce development agencies, learning institutions and funders. We believe that all Torontonians should have access to opportunities for good jobs and economic growth stemming from infrastructure investments.

"Mayor Tory and City Council should publicly commit to ensuring that Toronto's economic recovery plan aligns with and fast-tracks existing City commitments to climate action and poverty reduction. Toronto can do this by focusing investment on low carbon, job-intensive projects like affordable housing, transit and local food which improve health, equity and climate resilience." -  Heather Marshall, Campaigns Director, Toronto Environmental Alliance. 

For over 30 years, the Toronto Environmental Alliance has campaigned locally to find solutions to Toronto's urban environmental problems. As a not-for-profit organization, we advocate on behalf of all Torontonians for a green, healthy and equitable city. We rely on our supporters to help us work with communities and we act as an environmental watchdog at City Hall.

"COVID-19’s disruption to work has exposed deep economic inequality within our city. Workers and their unions, as well as worker advocacy organizations, have been at the frontlines identifying solutions to assist in tackling this pandemic. It is of pivotal importance that the City ensure workers are at the heart of Toronto’s recovery and rebuilding strategy." - Mohammed Hashim, Senior Organizer, Toronto & York Region Labour Council. 

Since 1871, the Toronto & York Region Labour Council has championed principles which improve the lives of its members and their communities. Today, we work for justice in our workplaces, in our politics, in our communities, and in our world.

"It's time to fund public transit like the lifeline that it is. City Council must advocate for permanent transit operations funding from the provincial government. The TTC continues to move essential workers during the pandemic and will play a vital role in our city's recovery, but already faces cuts because it depends on fares to fund the majority of its operating budget." - Shelagh Pizey-Allen, Executive Director, TTCriders

TTCriders is a grassroots, membership-based advocacy group of TTC users.  We advocate for an affordable world-class public transit system for Toronto.

"We know that because of the existing systemic and structural inequalities in our city, the impacts of this pandemic are being experienced by racialized communities at disproportionately higher levels. The recovery plans must be evidence-based, using disaggregated race-based data so that the City understands the extent and nature of this impact and then responds with the appropriate and targeted resources.” - Neethan Shan, Executive Director, Urban Alliance on Race Relations

The Urban Alliance on Race Relations is a non-profit charitable organization that works primarily and proactively with the community, public and private sectors to provide educational programs and research, which are critical in addressing racism in society.