City of Toronto staff directed by council to draft bylaw in response to ‘renovictions’

Toronto city council has directed municipal staff to draft a bylaw requiring landlords looking to evict tenants for renovation purposes to apply for a municipal licence.

In a 22-to-one decision approved by council members on Wednesday, City of Toronto staff were asked to bring forward a bylaw that would require landlords serving tenants with a N-13 renovation-related eviction notice to potentially do the following:

• Apply for a renovation licence within seven days of issuing the notice to a tenant
• Include approved building permits or other approvals, a copy of the N-13, proof of a tenant information notice of building permit information, report from a “qualified person” that vacancy is needed, a tenant accommodation and/or compensation plan signed off on by the tenant, providing a copy of the renovation licence application to the tenant, and a ban on construction work until the licence is approved

If approved, the bylaw would apply to all rental units in Toronto with potential exemptions on “certain types of housing.” A target implementation date cited in a staff report said they are looking at Nov. 1, 2025.

The bylaw is based on a City of Hamilton bylaw that was put in place to crack down on so-called ‘renovictions.’ It’s set to come into effect on Jan. 1, 2025.

In a statement released by the tenants’ advocacy group Toronto ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) Wednesday afternoon, members called council’s move a “step forward” for providing protections against the displacement of residents.

“It will go a long way in protecting tenants’ security of tenure and prevent more homelessness,” the statement said.

“Toronto ACORN has been pushing the city to implement a strong bylaw to stop the practice of ‘renovictions’ — a practice used by landlords to evict long-term tenants under the guise of doing renovations.

“It’s about time for the city to take action as many tenants have lost their homes and countless more continue to fight for their rights in the absence of adequate protections and rent control loopholes in the provincial housing legislation.”

City of Toronto staff were asked to bring forward the bylaw to the planning and housing committee at the end of October. As part of the process, staff were ordered to hold public consultations before the draft bylaw comes forward.