Hamilton ACORN wins unanimous Council support for moving forward on renoviction and demoviction policies!
Posted April 26, 2023
Last week the Emergency and Community Services Committee passed a motion to move the city forward on tenant protections from renoviction.
At the committee 23 ACORN members and 6 ally organizations delegated calling for bold action.
Today April 26th the motion was amended with stronger language and a clearer timeline based on feedback from city staff.
That item 1 (d) of Emergency and Community Services Committee Report 23-005, be amended as follows:
(d) That staff be directed to report back to the Emergency and Community Services Committee in August 2023, with recommendations on the full suite of options to halt renovictions in the City of Hamilton including RentSafeTO, the City of Toronto Tenant Support Program and amendments to various city by-laws, the use of building permits, and a city wide licensing by-law and a New Westminster style renovictions by-law.
(e) That staff be directed to report back to the Planning Committee in December 2023, with recommendations on the rental replacement policies and to review the current policies.
The amendment passed with full support of Councillors present 12-0 with one conflict of interest declared by the Ward 14 Councillor who said he is a landlord.
Four ACORN members attended the Council meeting to watch the vote.
ACORN will keep organizing to ensure the August report gets Hamilton in a position to pass an anti-renoviction bylaw, city wide landlord licensing and a strong Tenant Defence Fund. More to come!
Watch the Council discussion and vote here: