Our Community Welcomes Canada’s First Social Medicine Supportive House

Friends,

I would like to celebrate with you today’s official opening of Dunn House – Canada’s first-ever social medicine supportive housing site.

Located in Ward 4’s Parkdale neighbourhood at 90 Dunn Ave., this new four-storey modular housing building will provide 51 new rent-geared-to-income and supportive homes for people experiencing homelessness. The new homes will include fully furnished studio apartments with a bathroom and a kitchen in each unit, shared laundry, a commercial kitchen, a dining area, a communal area, and a programming space.

Tenants will benefit from wrap-around social and health services provided by Fred Victor and University Health Network (UHN). This social medicine-led approach – centred on integrating the social determinants of health such as housing and food security and social connection into healthcare delivery – will help tenants attain improved well-being and better health outcomes. In short, Dunn House is not about providing temporary reprieve from homelessness; Dunn House is about providing permanent homes to people experiencing homelessness and a community that enables their recovery journey.

This is a historic moment for our City’s realization of housing as a human right. Recognizing that housing is healthcare, for the first time in Canada housing will be prescribed to individuals who are unhoused and are frequently admitted to the hospital through the UHN emergency departments. As tenants progress in rebuilding their lives, the broader community in turn will benefit from their social and economic contributions and the reduced demand on the city’s shelter and healthcare systems.

I am proud of our community for continuing to be at the forefront of proving what is possible when we choose to prioritize the health and dignity of all our residents. Decades from now when the provision of social medicine is the norm in every community in Canada, people will remember that this model of housing first blossomed here in Parkdale High-Park. 

We are incredibly lucky to be welcoming our 51 new neighbours, who will contribute to us building our best lives, our best community. I am so thankful to all of you who have worked tirelessly to make sure our new neighbours have the best welcome and start, and will continue to work collaboratively to scale the Dunn House model across our city and country.

Sincerely,


In This Week's Newsletter

City-Wide

  • 2025 Budget Consultations
  • City of Toronto hosts Town Hall to discuss 10-Year Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism
  • 63 Ossington Bus Reroute

Ward 4 

  • Opening of Romero House

Developments

  • 2280 Dundas St W – Loblaws Site, Oct 7
  • 138 Dowling Ave Pre-Application Meeting, Oct 8

City Wide Updates

2025 Budget Consultations

As the 2025 budget process begins, Mayor Olivia Chow is once again launching public consultations. Share what matters to you in our online survey (available in 12 languages) and at one of six in-person and virtual meetings until October 31. Together, we can build a safe, caring and affordable City where everyone belongs.

Learn more at toronto.ca/Budget 


City of Toronto hosts Town Hall to discuss 10-Year Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism

Today, Mayor Olivia Chow and Deputy Mayor Amber Morley were joined by residents and City of Toronto staff at a public Town Hall to discuss and enhance the priority areas that will inform Toronto’s next Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism. The priority areas are based on community conversations and online survey responses.

A renewed 10-Year Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism (to be presented to Toronto City Council in 2025) will build on the achievements of the inaugural Five-Year Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism. Extensive public consultations to inform the development of the action plan have been conducted since April of this year and culminated at the Town Hall on October 3.

More information on the City’s work to confront anti-Black racism is available at: https://www.toronto.ca/cabr


63 Ossington bus to provide service on King St. W. (Atlantic to Dufferin) - Sept 16 - Oct 5, 2024

The City’s contractor has completed watermain/streetcar track renewal work on King Street West from Dufferin Street to Shaw Street. TTC crews are restoring power to the overhead streetcar wiring. Following this, TTC crews will commission and test the new tracks to ensure the safe operation of streetcars once service is restored.

The completion of road work allows the 63 Ossington bus to be rerouted via Atlantic Avenue and King Street West until October 5.

On October 6, service on the 63 Ossington, 501 Queen, 504 King and 508 Lakeshore routes will be restored to regular service.

More information on this project can be found here:

https://www.ttc.ca/about-the-ttc/projects-and-plans/King-Street-West-Track-Renewal


Ward 4 Updates

Romero House Opening

Romero House has begun leasing the small apartment building at 2387 Dundas Street West, which backs onto the laneway between Edan and Chelsea. 

Romero House has been welcoming refugee claimants to the West Bend neighbourhood since 1991. They own four homes in the neighbourhood and offer transitional housing, immigration and settlement support to families fleeing persecution from around the world. One of the unique features of Romero House is that they have staff and volunteers who live in their housing alongside the families they serve. You may know Mary Jo Leddy, who has been living on Wanda Road for the last 30 years, supporting neighbourly connection.

Romero House is excited to be adding 2387 Dundas to our group of homes. The building will house nine refugee claimant families and three house coordinators and is set to open in mid-October. The house coordinators, Carmen Bezner-Kerr, Mercy Kiplagat, and Marisol Larrea-Clark, have already moved into the building and are excited to get to know you.

Romero House is humbled by the support of countless neighbours over the years. Some welcome people to our community centre, help residents find jobs, or run our weekly food bank. It is exciting to continue to develop these relationships through this new building. They are working hard to maintain a community-centred approach, both within the building and at Romero House as a whole.

Read more: 2387 Dundas Project – Romero House

Get involved: Be a Volunteer – Romero House


Developments

2280 Dundas St W – Loblaws Site

Following the resubmission of the application for 2280 Dundas St West in 2022 and recent reworking of the application, Councillor Perks, City Planning, and the applicant feel it’s appropriate to schedule another virtual Community Consultation Meeting for the evening of October 7th at 6pm, so that the community can become acquainted with the latest iteration of the development of this site.

The current proposal includes seven mixed-use and residential buildings (including five residential towers) on four development blocks. It will offer both ownership and rental housing options, with a new central public park and new street system. It includes approximately 1,923 residential units in a range of unit sizes and includes 735 rental units within 3 rental buildings. Previous community meetings were held for this site in 2018 and 2022.

The meeting on Octobers 7th will consist of short presentations of the development from City Planning and the applicant’s team, followed by a Q&A session. This will be a great opportunity to allow you to view the proposal and share your thoughts.

Councillor Perks, City Planning staff, and the applicant will be in attendance to help answer any questions that may arise. Information on how to register for the meeting will be available shortly and shared in a future newsletter.

Further information on the project and what is being proposed can be found on the City's Application Information Centre website here: https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/planning-development/application-details/?id=5134035&pid=161892.

Looking forward to seeing you there.


138 Dowling Ave Pre-Application 

Please join the applicant and owner of 138 Dowling Avenue for a pre-application community consultation meeting to learn more about their plans for the site, provide comments, and ask questions. Councillor Perks and Development Review staff will also be attendance.

Tuesday, October 8 at 6:00pm

Join here.


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