The purchase price of a proposed New Toronto shelter will be close to $14 million and more than three times the going market price, according to a memo from the City of Toronto.
The June 5 Authorization Memo states “purchase of ‘The Property” that includes 2950 Lake Shore Blvd. W. and 2970 Lake Shore Blvd. W. is for use as a municipal shelter.”
The purchase price of the property is $13,250,000 with additional costs estimated to be $594,169, making it almost $14 million, it states under the memo’ s ‘Agreements and Key Terms’.
Sales documents for the property show that it was sold to the current owner — 2970 Lake Shore Group Inc. — for just slightly more than $4-million in 2017.The assessed value of the property in 2020 is $5.3-million.
Documents show the city is paying 3.5 times what the property was purchased for three years ago, 2.6 times its assessed value and $140,000 per client simply to purchase the property.
The memo, which was signed by Shelter, Support and Housing General Manager Mary-Anne Bedard, Director of Infrastructure Justin Lewis and Deputy City Manager Giuliana Carbone, states that the funding has been set aside as part of a 2018 directive to open 1,000 new shelter beds in Toronto.
“It’s appalling, who’s going to pay for this?” Vashti King, of the New Toronto Ratepayers Association, asks of the purchase price. “People are up in arms in our neighbourhood.”
King says a year ago the same owners proposed a zoning amendment to build a nine-storey building with 95-rental units and two floor of commercial space. That plan was rejected by the City.
Area councillor Mark Grimes, who was first briefed on the acquisitions last February 24, has been silent on the issue. He only mentioned the shelter in a recent posting on social media stating that he expects the deal to be closed by December or January.
Grimes is calling for the facility be used as a women’s shelter.
More than 1,500 people have signed an online petition against the proposed shelter, with more than 1,000 giving their support in a rival petition.
Grimes office has received hundreds and phone calls and emails from residents about the shelter.
“The opening of the property will follow the council-directed community engagement process,” according to the document. “This includes hiring a third party facilitator, working with the councillor’s office to identify key stakeholders and developing a site specific community engagement plan.”
The memo states the property has a high shelter service rating and ‘will be able to accommodate at least 100 beds while meeting shelter standards.”
Residents argue there are already a number of shelters and schools in the area.
A working group was created to determine the renovations required for living, office, dining and programming space to ensure the site meet all requirements as a shelter.
If approved, the building will be brought up to standards and begin accepting the homeless by early next year.
The City says there are some 8,715 people in Toronto who are homeless, with some 533 sleeping outdoors, according to a 2018 assessment.
This is compounded by the opiod crisis with the highest recorded deaths in July and ‘pressures on the shelter system exacerbated due to COVID-19.’