Tenant Service Committee (TSC) Meeting - December 5, 2019

Minutes

The Tenant Services Committee (“TSC”) of Toronto Community Housing Corporation (“TCHC”) held a public meeting on October 7, 2019, in the Main Floor Conference Room, 931 Yonge Street, Toronto, and via teleconference, commencing at 9:06 a.m.

TSC Directors Present:
Linda Jackson, Chair
John Campbell
Amanda Coombs
Debbie Douglas 
Ubah Farah (by teleconference)
Councillor Paula Fletcher 
Councillor Michael Ford (by teleconference, disconnected at 10:11 a.m.)

Management Present:
Scott Kirkham, Acting Director, Strategic Planning and Stakeholder Relations 
Jaipreet Kohli, Manager, Seniors Housing Unit
Darragh Meagher, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary
Kevin Marshman, President and Chief Executive Officer 
Patricia Narine, Director, Program Services (Operational Initiatives)
Sheila Penny, Chief Operating Officer
Ceilidh Wilson, Assistant Corporate Secretary (Acting)
 

Also Present:

Office of the Commissioner of Housing Equity
Cynthia Summers, Commissioner of Housing Equity
City of Toronto Andrea Austen, Manager, Seniors Transition Office

A quorum being present, the Chair called the meeting to order and Ms. Sonia Fung served as recording secretary.

ITEM 1 CHAIR’S REMARKS 

The Chair welcomed everyone to the TSC meeting. The Chair acknowledged that the meeting was taking place on the traditional land of many nations and provided a brief report.

The Chair that during the brief In-Camera session, the following were considered:

• Certain human resources issues; and
• The Ombudsman Report.
  • It was noted that TSC is considering whether some of the information contained in the Ombudsman report can be made available to the public, at a future meeting. 

ITEM 2 CONSENT AGENDA 

The following items were not held:

The following items were not held:
Item 2A – Approval of Public Meeting Agenda
Item 2C – Confirmation of Public Meeting Minutes of October 7, 2019 

The following item was held:
Item 2D – Business Arising from In Camera Meeting Minutes and Action Items Update

ITEM 2A APPROVAL OF PUBLIC MEETING AGENDA 

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Ms.Douglas, seconded by Ms. Farah and carried, TSC approved the public meeting agenda. 

ITEM 2B DECLARATION OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The Chair requested members of TSC to indicate any agenda item in which they had a conflict of interest, together with the nature of the conflict. None was declared.

ITEM 2C CONFIRMATION OF THE OCTOBER 7, 2019 PUBLIC MEETING MINUTES 

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Ms. Douglas, seconded by Ms. Farah and carried, TSC confirmed the above-captioned minutes without amendment.

ITEM 2D BUSINESS ARISING FROM THE PUBLIC MEETING MINUTES AND ACTION ITEM LIST 
The above captioned report was circulated prior to the meeting.

Highlights of discussion:

• It was suggested that the above noted report be listed on future meeting agendas as an independent item.
• Page 2, Item 5 – it was noted that the Vacant Unit Action Plan for Q1 2020 is on track

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Councillor Fletcher, seconded by Mr. Campbell and carried, TSC resolved to receive the above-captioned report for information.

ITEM 3 OCHE 2020 WORK PLAN
Catherine Wilkinson and Cheryl Duggan deputed on these items. 
It was decided that reports for item 3 and item 4 be jointly discussed. The Commissioner of Housing Equity (“CHE”) was available to answer questions from TSC members.

Highlights of discussion:

• It was noted that the CHE’s 2020 Work Plan was considered in the In-Camera session, as this is a human resources matter.
• The 2020 goals of the OCHE are divided in three areas to ensure protection and avoid eviction where possible:
  • Supporting vulnerable and senior tenancies;
  • Ensuring accountability; and
  • Working with the new seniors housing model.

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Ms. Farah, seconded by Ms. Coombs and carried, TSC resolved to receive the above-caption report for information and recommend that the said report be forwarded to the Board of Directors for information.

ITEM 4 ARREARS COLLECTION - UPDATE TSC:2019-40
Catherine Wilkinson deputed on this item.
The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting.
    
Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE Ms. Farah, seconded by Ms. Coombs and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.

ITEM 5 Q3 2019 SENIORS HOUSING UNIT TSC:2019-41R
Bill Lohman, Anita Dressler and Cheryl Duggan deputed on this item. Copies of the written deputation from Mr. Lohman and Ms. Dressler were distributed to members of TSC at the meeting.

The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The President and Chief Executive Office presented a PowerPoint presentation on the Integrated Service Model (“ISM”) and was available to answer questions. 

TSC members, management and the Manager, Seniors Transition Office of the City of Toronto discussed the report. 

Highlights of the discussion:

• It was noted that the ISM will be implemented in a phased approach, with Phase 1 beginning in 2020.  The rationale for this approach was discussed. The ISM will be monitored and evaluated by TCHC and the City of Toronto.
• Prior to selecting the buildings to be included in Phase 1, staff reviewed health and housing data to classify buildings as high, moderate and low need, looked for data correlations, and reviewed stakeholder concerns.
• Need level classifications:
  • Low need – had fewer than average calls for pest, 911, CSU, etc. 
  • Medium need - had usual challenges and in average range. 
  • High need - had higher than average pests, safety related events, 911 calls, emergency room visits, etc.
• It is anticipated that Phase 1 will be in place for one year while details of the next phases will be developed in an implementation plan. Lessons learned from Phase 1 will inform how the ISM is rolled out across the portfolio, with an aim to implement portfolio-wide.
• Demographic data was collected, organized and used for development of services to meet specific needs.
• It was noted ISM is part of Tenants First program, and the overall lead is the Deputy City Manager. It was suggested that the Deputy City Manager be invited to a future TSC meeting when the Senior Housing Unit (“SHU”) report is on the meeting agenda.
• It was suggested that the above captioned report be used as an anchor document for future SHU reports, with aggregated, updated data, and a more detailed regional map.
• It was clarified that pest issues were a factor in assessing the level of building need, and it was suggested that future reports include this information.

 Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Mr. Campbell, seconded by Ms. Coombs and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.

ITEM 6 TENANT ENGAGEMENT REFRESH UPDATE TSC:2019-42
Janet McLeod provided written deputation on this item. Copies of the written deputation from Ms. McLeod were distributed to members of TSC at the meeting.

The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The Chief Operating Officer was available to answer questions.

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Ms. Douglas, seconded by Ms.  Farah and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.

ITEM 7 APPROACHES TO CCTV CAMERAS TSC:2019-43
Catherine Wilkinson deputed on this item.

The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The Chief Operating Officer was available to answer questions.

Highlights of discussion:

• It was noted that the CCTV cameras are often vandalized due to low ceiling heights. Building superintendents track the cameras through daily inspections and any vandalized or defective cameras are repaired.

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Mr. Campbell, seconded by Ms. Coombs and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.
 

ITEM 8 TCH VIOLENCE REDUCTION PROGRAM: PROGRESS REPORT AN PERFROMANCE MEASUREMENTTSC:2019-46

The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The Director, Community Safety Unit was available to answer questions from TSC.

Highlights of the discussion:

• Question was raised regarding the funding from 2019 budget. Management noted that $40K for each pilot for total of $120K, with additional $35K for the program. This has also been integrated into the 2020 budget.
• At Dan Harrison, prior to implementation of the program, serious acts of violence took place, but were not reported. Since security presence was reinforced CSU engagement activities were tripled, and there was significant increase of calls given that the community now feels that action will be taken if they call.
• CSU is keeping track of data from security incidents.

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Mr. Campbell, seconded by Ms. Coombs and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.

ITEM 9 VACANT UNIT ACTION PLAN UPATE TSC:2019-47
Catherine Wilkinson deputed on this item.

The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The Chief Operating Officer was available to answer questions from TSC.

Highlights of the discussion:

• As a result of the vacancy program established in August, the RGI vacancy rate continued to decrease in October 2019 to 2.01%, while the market vacancy rate increased slightly to 1.01%.
• The number of rentable vacant units declined in October to 1,078 units. 
• Staff is focussing on bachelor units while working with SSHA on strategy to ensure those units have the right supports when offered to tenants.
• It was noted that discussions with City staff were held regarding movement towards choice based letting program which is expected to be in process mid-2020.
• It was noted that in terms of publishing the availability of vacant units, the number of available units should be broken down into RGI units and market units.
• It was suggested that future reports on vacant unit action plan should include 
  • Information on non-rentable units and lost revenue.
  • Actions taken on renting of vacant market units. 

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Councillor Fletcher, seconded by Mr. Campbell and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.

ITEM 10 UPDATE ON TENANTS FIRST TSC:2019-44
The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The Acting Director, Strategic Planning and Stakeholder Relations was available to answer questions from TSC.

Highlights of the discussion:

• It was noted that Tenants First Program and Seniors Housing Unit are related, and was suggested that reports on these two subjects be aligned in future meeting agendas.

Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Mr. Campbell, seconded by Councillor Fletcher and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.

ITEM 11 USE OF SPACE UPDATE TSC:2019-37
Bill Lohman and Catherine Wilkinson deputed on this item. 

The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The Acting Director, Strategic Planning and Stakeholder Relations (“SPSR”) was available to answer questions from TSC.

Highlights of the discussion:

• SPSR will conduct a review of the use of space policies and accompanying procedures in early 2020 to determine where revisions are required to ensure that community spaces can be more easily accessed by tenants and agency partners, and to ensure the policies are aligned with TCHC’s new decentralized structure.
• It was noted that the rules and policy on insurance requirement for use of the spaces would be evaluated. Management will come back with further information.

    
Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Mr. Campbell, seconded by Ms. Douglas and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.

ITEM 12  AGREEMENTS UPDATE TSC:2019-38
Catherine Wilkinson deputed on this item.

The above-captioned report was circulated to TSC members prior to the meeting. The Acting Director, Strategic Planning and Stakeholder Relations was available to answer questions from TSC.
Highlights of the discussion:

• It was noted that the majority of TCHC’s referral agreements are expired and require renegotiation with agency partners.
• TCHC does not currently have a consistent policy for the creation, evaluation, renewal, or conclusion of referral agreements.
• SPSR team is in process of renegotiating expired agreements; and developing a Referral Agreements Policy and operating procedures.
• TCHC will not enter into new referral agreements or renegotiate expired agreements until the policy and procedures are in place. In the interim, TCHC will continue to work with partners to fill vacancies for existing units under existing agreements as they become available.
• TSC asked to be kept updated on the referral agreements.

    
Motion carried ON MOTION DULY MADE by Mr. Campbell, seconded by Ms. Douglas and carried, TSC resolved to receive the report for information.
 

TERMINATION
TSC resolved to terminate the public meeting at 11:43 a.m.