Making Toronto More Affordable

Whether I am hearing from families stretching their budgets at the grocery store, seniors weighing the cost of staying in their homes, or small business owners on our local main streets trying to keep the lights on, the message is consistent: the cost of living is pressing hard on our community. Don Valley North is a wonderfully diverse ward, home to longtime residents and newcomers, renters and homeowners, young families and seniors, and the decisions we make at Toronto City Hall ripple through all of those lives.

I know many of you are feeling the financial strain and wondering what the City is doing to help. The honest answer is: quite a lot, and I want to make sure you know about it. Many of these programs and services go unnoticed, and that means people who qualify are leaving real money on the table. So let me walk you through some of what is available right now.

Getting Around the City

Freezing TTC fares for the last three years is one of the most direct affordability measures the City has delivered — saving regular riders hundreds of dollars a year while continuing to invest in safety measures and added services. And with gas prices climbing, transit is becoming an increasingly attractive alternative for Torontonians who might not have considered it before. Ditching the car for even a few trips a week can add up to real savings at a time when every dollar counts.

But even if you never set foot on a bus or subway, this affects you too. Every person we move onto transit is one fewer car on our congested roads, and a city that moves efficiently is a city where businesses thrive and costs stay down for everyone. The more Torontonians choose transit, the better it is for all of us, including drivers. A well-funded, well-run transit system is not just a convenience; it is a cornerstone of an affordable, functioning city. 

The City also offers a Fair Pass Transit Discount Program. Eligible residents between the ages of 20 and 64 who live in Toronto and meet the income threshold can access a 36% discount on TTC single ride fares and a 21% discount on monthly passes — loaded directly onto their PRESTO card for 12 months. If you are struggling with the cost of transit, I encourage you to look into whether you qualify.

Keeping a Roof Over Your Head

The Toronto Rent Bank helps residents facing short-term financial hardship stay stably housed through grants and loans. This year it is supporting 2,800 households. Keeping people in their homes is not only the right thing to do, it saves significant Provincial and Municipal dollars that would otherwise go toward far more costly emergency shelter services. If you or someone you know is at risk of losing their housing, the Rent Bank is worth exploring.

On the ownership side, property tax relief programs are available for eligible low-income seniors and people with disabilities, supporting an anticipated 11,500 households this year. There is also a lesser-known program specifically for seniors falling behind on utility bills. If you or someone you know is struggling to afford homeownership in your senior years, please look into these programs. Full details are available on the City's Tax and Utility Relief webpage.

Making Homes More Energy Efficient

If you are a homeowner looking to reduce your energy bills, the City's Home Renovation Savings Program offers rebates of up to $12,000 for the installation of cold-climate air-source or ground-source heat pumps. These are a genuine game-changer for home heating and cooling. If your central air conditioner is nearing the end of its life, heat pump options are well worth exploring — I looked into it last summer and I am glad I did.

For larger projects, the City of Toronto Home Energy Loan Program (HELP) allows homeowners to borrow up to $125,000 to cover the cost of home energy improvements. Before starting any renovation, check out the full list of energy efficiency grants and incentives available to Toronto homeowners on the City's website.

Building More Affordable Rental Housing

Housing is one of the biggest drivers of affordability in our city, and the City is taking direct action to bring costs down. We are pushing hard on multiple fronts to increase supply, reduce development costs, and protect renters — because more homes means more choices, and more choices means more competitive prices.

When you see all three levels of government together at housing announcement events, it is because all three are at the table — and the City and its corporations are doing the heavy lifting to bring it all to life. Two measures in particular are making a real difference right now. The City is continuing its 15% property tax discount for new multi-residential properties, actively encouraging the construction of 27,000 new rental homes, including 9,700 rent-controlled and affordable units. And by introducing discounts on development charges, we are getting shovels in the ground faster — directly reducing the cost of building new homes and making renting and homeownership more attainable for a whole new generation of Torontonians. 

Despite the Province limiting the City's ability to require affordable units in new developments, I have been personally negotiating with developers on new, large site development applications that comes through Don Valley North to secure additional affordable units. As you see new developments take shape across our ward — at Bayview Village Mall, Tyndale, Fairview, and in the Consumers Road area — affordable units will be part of those communities.

Keeping Your Home Cool This Summer

Toronto summers are getting hotter, and for residents living in apartments without air conditioning, extreme heat is a serious health risk. That is why the City is expanding its free portable air conditioner program this year, making 1,000 units available to residents who need them most. The program has two streams: one for seniors aged 65 and older with a health-related need for air conditioning, and one for pregnant individuals and parents or legal guardians of infants under one year old. Eligible participants will be selected through a randomized draw, with notifications going out in May. If you or someone you know may qualify, I encourage you to apply, this program could make a real difference this summer.

This summer, as we did last year, the City will be extending pool season and daily operating hours so that select pools open in mid-June and remain open into September. For families looking for affordable ways to keep kids active and cool all summer long, this is a welcome relief.

Feeding Our Kids

North York Harvest Food Bank serves more than 30,000 people in our community every single month, and the City is stepping up to help them grow. This past December, City Council exempted their new space at 4050 Chesswood Drive from property taxes, directing more resources toward food access and community programming. I also moved an amendment to secure a City loan guarantee to help North York Harvest unlock financing for an expanded food distribution facility, reducing their borrowing costs and helping get this critical project off the ground.

Through the Student Nutrition Program, the City and its partners now provide nutritious food to 330,000 students per day across 841 schools, and this year, that support has been extended to City-run summer camps, reaching approximately 115,000 children per day at 185 locations across the city. Together, these programs save families with children at least $1,000 a year. For a single parent, that is transformative, and as I heard recently from a seniors group, those savings ripple through the whole family tree, all the way up to grandparents who are stretching to help their kids and grandkids make ends meet.

On the broader question of food affordability, a proposal for municipally run grocery stores has been making the rounds at City Hall. I have heard from many of you who are skeptical — and I share that concern. My preferred approach is to make it easier to get grocery stores into new developments from the ground up, and to remove the barriers that prevent community-run food co-ops from taking root. Food co-ops are member-owned, not-for-profit grocery stores that offer ethically sourced, fairly priced food — and they have a strong track record right here in Toronto and around the world.

Support for Small Business

Small businesses are the heartbeat of our neighbourhoods, and I am proud to have led the charge to expand the small business property tax sub-class. This category delivers a meaningful property tax discount directly to qualifying small business owners. If you own a small business or know someone who does, I encourage you to look into whether you qualify. Thriving main streets benefit everyone — and this is one more tool to help keep them that way.

A Wide Range of Additional Benefits

If you or someone you know receives Ontario Works or ODSP payments, or if you are feeling the financial pinch and are not sure what help is out there, the City delivers a wide range of benefits on behalf of all three orders of government. These go well beyond monthly payments and are designed to extend affordability and improve quality of life. Visit the Programs and Benefits page on the City's website to see everything available, organized by category. You will find options ranging from tax relief to free recreation programs for qualifying children. I wish that page had existed when my kids were little.

The Bottom Line

When I was a young mom with a special needs toddler and a kindergartener, "It's the economy, stupid" was the catchphrase of the age. We felt it at the gas pump and in the grocery store, and my husband and I put our dream of buying a house on hold. It feels very much like that today — especially for young adults just starting out.

But here is what I want you to take away: you do not have to navigate this alone. The City of Toronto has tools and programs in place to help, and I am here to make sure you can access them. 

Please share this with anyone in Don Valley North who could use a hand — and as always, my office is here if you need help finding the right program for your situation.

Read the Full E-Blast