Client Profile: Humber Co-operative Development Corporation

May 23rd, 2019 by Iler Campbell

The Humber Condominiums is Options for Homes’ latest development on the market. Options calls The Humber “an affordable modern condominium surrounded by nature and convenience.” And we’re sure the condo on Wilby Cres. in Weston Village will be!

The relationship between Options and Iler Campbell dates back to the ’90s when Brian Iler helped the founder of Options establish a financing model that provides down payment support to purchasers, making home ownership affordable to people who mostly wouldn’t otherwise be able to get into the housing market. That was 25 years ago. Nowadays, the need is even greater. In addition to the benefits to purchasers, the model moves some renters into ownership, which frees up more space in a tight rental market. Over 3,000 new homes have been built using their innovative model, creating great communities of people living in quality homes that are more affordable.

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Video: Employment Standards Act – Amendments in 2018 and 2019 and what they mean for you

May 16th, 2019 by Iler Campbell

In 2018, the Ford Government passed Bill 47, the “Making Ontario Open for Businesses Act”. This bill reverses a number of changes made to employment standards legislation by the Liberal government, including the provision around annual increases to minimum wage. In addition to providing a summary of key amendments to the Employment Standards Act, we will also touch on Bill 66, the “Act to Restore Ontario’s Competitiveness”, which was passed on April 3, 2019 and makes further changes to employment legislation in Ontario.

Iler Campbell lawyer, Safia Lakhani, led a workshop on these changes on May 15. A recording of it is now online. Check it out below. You can download a copy of her slideshow here and handout here.

The LTB has become slooooow. Is there relief on the horizon?

May 10th, 2019 by Celia Chandler

Many of our housing clients have been disappointed recently about the length of time it takes to conduct business at the Landlord and Tenant Board. Rest assured, we are doing our very best to push things along as quickly as we can. The LTB acknowledges the delay on its website:

Over past months, parties have experienced service delays at the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB). The LTB continues to work with the government to improve its services. A number of experienced adjudicators have recently been reappointed and recruitment is under way to fill other adjudicator vacancies. On January 1, 2019, the LTB became part of the newly created Tribunals Ontario organization. A review will be conducted of all tribunals, including the LTB, to identify areas for improvement to make services more streamlined, cost-effective and efficient.

This is not new – the Toronto Star and the Globe and Mail both reported on the delay, and on the LTB admission of the problem, six months ago. We see no improvement since then.

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Community land trusts a model for community-led land stewardship

April 25th, 2019 by Claudia Pedrero

This article was first published on rabble.ca

Last week marked the first meeting of the Canadian Network of Community Land Trusts held on Canadian soil.

The group’s meeting in Montreal was attended by community land trusts from across Canada, most of them from British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec. It’s indicative of a rise in popularity of this alternative model of land ownership, as communities grapple with increasingly unaffordable housing prices, and commercial development changes the social, cultural and economic diversity of neighbourhoods. The Canadian Network of Community Land Trusts is seeking to share the collective experience and expertise of Canadian land trusts while expanding the footprint of this model of land ownership.

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Don’t Miss It – May 4, 2019: CHFT Spring Durham Education Event – Human Rights

April 25th, 2019 by Celia Chandler

Human rights is a topic that comes up daily in the work we do with housing co‑ops.  Some recent examples:

  • how to accommodate dogs in a pet‑free co‑op;
  • is the medical note provided is enough to justify replacing carpet with laminate;
  • what is the best way to finance the cost of a stair lift in a townhouse (do we really have to?);
  • can we evict for noises that might relate to a mental health disability; and
  • can a maintenance person with a drug addiction continue to work at the co‑op.

If these are the kinds of questions that are coming up in your co‑op, come to my session on May 4, 2019 to talk through what the co‑op’s obligations are and how best to meet them.

CHFT has a long history of education in Toronto but recently they’ve expanded their reach to Durham.  I was excited to participate in the first CHFT Fall Durham Education Day in 2018 and am pleased to be asked back.

May 4’s event will include lunch and an afternoon workshop from CHFT staff member Anjala Kulasegaram, about what makes a good board.  You won’t want to miss that.

Registration information is here.

Join us!  We’d love to see you.

Free legal workshop: Employment Standards Act – Amendments in 2018 and 2019 and what they mean for you

April 25th, 2019 by Iler Campbell

Free legal workshop | Employment Standards Act: Amendments in 2018 and 2019 and What They Mean for You

In 2018, the Ford Government passed Bill 47, the “Making Ontario Open for Businesses Act”. This bill reverses a number of changes made to employment standards legislation by the Liberal government, including the provision around annual increases to minimum wage. In addition to providing a summary of key amendments to the Employment Standards Act, we will also touch on Bill 66, the “Act to Restore Ontario’s Competitiveness”, which was passed on April 3, 2019 and makes further changes to employment legislation in Ontario.

Join Iler Campbell lawyer, Safia Lakhani, on May 15 at 9:30 am for this free workshop.

How to attend

You can attend this workshop as an interactive webinar or in person in our office.

If you can’t make it but would like a recording of the webinar, click register and select ‘I can’t attend the webinar but please send me a recording.’

Sign up here.