Ontario Construction News staff writer
The City of Toronto broke ground this week on the first of two buildings at 25 Sewells Rd. in Scarborough, which will provide 201 affordable rental homes.
Currently, the city has 2,780 affordable rental housing homes and 507 market rent-controlled homes under construction.
“More affordable housing means stronger communities across Toronto. This affordable housing site at 25 Sewells Rd. is a success story of the collaboration between federal and municipal government and the not-for-profit sector,” Mayor Olivia Chow said in a statement. “To address the housing crisis we need more partnerships like this one, creating homes and a sense of belonging for all,”
The development will include two buildings with a total of 318 affordable rental homes. This milestone is the culmination of a partnership between the City of Toronto, Government of Canada and the not-for-profit housing provider and developer, the Brenyon Way Charitable Foundation.
Owned and operated by the Brenyon Way Charitable Foundation, the project located at 25 Sewells Road is a nine-storey building. It will have a mix of one and two-bedroom apartments and will prioritize providing homes for women and their children and people with physical disabilities. Twelve of the units will be fully accessible to persons with physical disabilities.
A breakdown of funding for this project includes:
- $15 million in funding and over $79 million in repayable loans from the federal government through the Affordable Housing Fund
- $ 3.37 million in capital funding from the City of Toronto
- $27 million in financial incentives through the City of Toronto’s Open Door program
Construction is expected to be completed by the Fall of 2026.
”The Brenyon Way Charitable Foundation is pleased to start construction of a much needed affordable housing development with the support of our Federal and Municipal partners,” said Eric Cohen, president of the board, Brenyon Way Charitable Foundation. :Our non-profit volunteer board is committed to providing quality, permanently affordable housing for the residents of Scarborough, as we have been providing for more than 40 years.”