The vacant properties at 214-230 Sherbourne St., Toronto, are at the epicenter of the housing and homelessness crisis in Toronto. They are the site of the freezing death of Drina Joubert in 1985. They are less than 150 yards from the bus shelter where a man died of suspected hypothermia on February 4th of this year. Community and other advocates have worked for years to secure this land for truly affordable housing. Now the properties are back on the market.  The deadline for Letter of Intent from interested purchasers is Friday March 11.

We cannot afford to lose this opportunity to provide good, safe housing that people can afford in a community where people are supported and connected to each other.  Let the vendors know how important it is for the City of Toronto to be able to purchase this land and provide truly affordable housing in this community. 

Sign on to this letter by Friday, March 11 at 10am-

THE LETTER:

Mr. Steve Keyzer- Senior Vice President, Colliers

Dear Mr. Keyzer:

We are writing to you in your position as the representative of the vendors and the sales agent for 214-230 Sherbourne St, Toronto, Ontario with a critical and urgent message for the vendors of this property. The Sherbourne-Dundas community needs this land to provide truly affordable housing and supports for community members who cannot find or afford housing and who have deep, life-saving connections to other people and supports in this neighbourhood. There has been so much hardship and so many deaths of people who are homeless in this neighbourhood in the last few years – this site could make an incredible difference to the entire community. 

The City of Toronto will put in a bid to purchase this property by the deadline of March 11, 2022. We appeal to the vendors to accept this bid and be among the first to demonstrate how private market sellers, ordinary people, can be part of the solution to homelessness. 

On February 4th, 2022, a homeless man was found dead in a bus shelter at the corner of Shuter and Sherbourne Street - less than 150 yards from the vacant property at 214-230 Sherbourne. On December 17th, 1985, a homeless woman named Drina Joubert, froze to death in the cab of an abandoned pick-up truck close to the property. This site can change from being a location where hundreds of people who are homeless struggle to survive to a place where people can be safe, and thrive in the community they call home. 

We know this land may attract many bids, for a lot of money. For this community and for all of us signing on to this letter, the greatest value of this land is the difference it will make in the lives of people who need good, safe affordable housing. We urge the vendor to enable this difference to happen. 

The pandemic has taught us all many things. One of them is that we need each other to do the right thing. And when we truly are “all in this together”, we can change the status quo, and change lives (ours and others’) for the better. This is both our invitation to the vendor and our appeal at this pivotal time, when things will either get better or get worse for many.

Yours sincerely,

Concerned people in Toronto:

Susan Bender

Danielle Koyama