55 Brownlow Avenue
Your support will allow hundreds of families, low income individuals, and elderly people to remain housed in the middle of an affordability crisis in Toronto.
This development is highly distressing for the tenants who call it home. This projects implementation will incur a significant, irreversible community cost, and may even contribute to the homelessness crisis our city is currently experiencing.
In 2013, 5,000 people were estimated to be experiencing homelessness on any given night. In 2021, that number has risen to over 18,000 people.
We believe that it is irresponsible to displace hundreds of tenants at 55 Brownlow Avenue, as many of them are fixed or low income and have nowhere else to go.
This isn't the first rent-controlled building to be demolished by developers, and it will not be the last. Take a stand with us and help the tenants at 55 Brownlow Avenue by signing our petition asking city council to deny the demolition application.
Vancouver-headquartered QuadReal manages a $67.1-billion global real estate portfolio in more than two dozen cities on behalf of its stakeholders.
Menkes was founded in 1954 and has become one of the largest private developers in Canada. It sold more pre-construction high-rise condos in Canada than any other developer in 2021.
This development is just another drop in the bucket for QuadReal and Menkes. To them it means profit, to us it means uprooting our entire lives.
QuadReal and Menkes Development purchased 55 Brownlow Avenue for $56.18 million in May 2022.
A majority of residents felt disheartened and fearful about what this meant for their homes. However, we started to organize in January 2023 after a meeting with the Toronto Tenants.
We are dedicated to fighting for the rights of all tenants, ensuring that no one is left behind.
The residents of 55 Brownlow are at all walks of life. To uproot them now would be displacing people into a market where they cannot afford to rent a new apartment. Moving could be financially catastrophic for these families.
- Cheryl P
This isn't just another building. It is a collective group of young families, students, seniors, and people who don't want to leave their homes.
WANDA'S STORY
My name is Wanda and I have lived at 55 Brownlow Avenue for over 8 years. This building is under rent control and is affordable.
I am retired and, like many retirees, I live on a fixed income. I am deeply concerned about the demolition of 55 Brownlow Avenue. I cannot afford to move from my affordable apartment at 55 Brownlow Avenue to an apartment in a new building. It isn’t just the unaffordable rents that make me anxious but also being separated from my granddaughter for whom I am a caregiver. I love our community, the people and the parks, schools and other amenities.
I consider myself lucky that my daughter, her husband and daughter live in another apartment in this building. My granddaughter will not only be uprooted from her home, but also her grandmother and her friends.
Iryna, 40, and her family of four moved to Toronto from Italy and the 55 Brownlow's affordable rent and location allowed her children to attend schools nearby and be walking distance from her office. Iryna is saving to put her kids through post-secondary education and the family currently doesn't own a vehicle. With rents in the neighborhood skyrocketing, Iryna fears that without 55 Brownlow, her family will have to leave the community they've built over the past five years. "Renting even a two bedroom in the neighborhood would be unsustainable," she said.
CANEY & JUNYAN'S STORY
A year ago, Junyan and I moved from a $3000/month, 2nd floor Annex rental home to 55 Brownlow Avenue seeking more sustainable rent.
At first we were skeptical if apartment living would be for us, but we soon fell in love with the community and diversity we found in this building. Our neighbours are a mix of elderly individuals living alone, new immigrants, young families, and a mother and daughter duo.
During the pandemic, we also salvaged a couple of art spaces going out of business, and are now offering affordable rehearsal space for artists. We are artists ourselves, and it is this diversity that keeps Toronto a vibrant city. Please help us keep Toronto affordable for all demographics.
Karen dreamed of retiring next year. She has been living at 55 Brownlow for nearly 15 years, a location she moved to because it allowed her easy access to public transit and she can walk to work. But if she has to move, she says there's "no way" she can afford to stay in this neighborhood. “Let’s just say about 70% of my income would have to go to rent if I had to leave right now. And that’s before I retire,” she said.
