by Tyreike Reid, April 6th, 2023
Excerpt: "When Megan Kee heard a developer purchased her midtown Toronto apartment building, she knew a demolition notice may soon follow.
She was right.
“In December of 2022, we received an official notice from the landlord that our building was slated to be demolished and that an application had been submitted to the City of Toronto,” Kee said.
She, along with the other tenants of 55 Brownlow Ave. in the Eglinton Avenue and Yonge Street area, a rent controlled apartment in Toronto’s midtown neighbourhood, became the latest target of a demolition eviction, also known as demoviction.
Menkes Development submitted an application in 2022 to the city to demolish the building and replace it with three residential condo towers, providing a total of 1,162 units.
According to Ontario’s guidelines this means units in the new towers will be exempt from rent control, making them less affordable for many of the existing residents.
The application has yet to be approved by the city, but Kee said it is unlikely to be rejected.
Kee said for many of the residents living at 55 Brownlow Ave., the threat of eviction will not only result in displacement, but may also lead to homelessness.
“There are some people in this building who are already on ODSP, who are only able to live in this building because they moved in at a time when rent was reasonable,” she said.
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