Oakview Heights Tenant Speakout!
Posted October 8, 2025
On October 7th, Tenants at 2000 Sheppard West held a successful Tenant Speakout to protest against unfinished repairs, health and safety concerns, and their absentee landlords. Despite the wind and the rain, 26 tenants gathered together in front of the building to build solidarity with each other and show each other that nobody in the building is suffering alone – they will not need to fight alone either.
Sharon Mitchell, a promising new leader and returning ACORN member led the rally, heartfelt and forceful, livestreaming on her socials while tenants of the building shared their stories. The crowd came up with chants on the fly, and Sharon gracefully welcomed the property manager into the crowd when he came out of hiding to attempt to snuff out the rally.
A reporter and photographer from The Toronto Star braved the weather to document the rally as well, and they were able to do four unit tours with ACORN members and tenants, Sharon, being intimately familiar with the issues in nearly every unit at this point, led the reporters through units with extensive water damage, collapsed or crumbling ceilings, and broken appliances.
A demand letter to the Landlord was delivered amongst cheers, and the group disbanded under the knowledge that the fight will continue until they get the safe and healthy homes they deserve. The action got tenants excited to come out to the next York West chapter meeting, and will feed directly into upcoming York West and citywide campaigns, including the Healthy Homes and RentSafe initiatives and the Queen’s Park rally later this month.
