The 2009 meeting of Ontario members was held in Victoria on May 31. Over 200 delegates and guests took part in the meeting which was part of the very successful 2009 Annual Meeting.

Delegates were inspired by the short film, Greenhouse, that shows how housing co‑ops can become more environmentally sustainable. Set at Atahualpa and Brimell Court co‑ops, the film highlights the Community Champions program of GLOBE (Green Light on a Better Environment), which educates and enables residents of co‑ops and non-profits to become agents of change in their community.

Resolutions

Delegates passed three resolutions to guide the Region’s work over the next year:

Resolution #1, Preserving the non-profit use of housing co‑ops in Ontario, calls on the Ontario Region to press the provincial government to tighten rules in the Co‑operative Corporations Act, so that the non-profit use of housing co‑ops is preserved for the long-term.

The second resolution, Speaking up for co‑operative housing in the Province’s consultation on its Affordable Housing Strategy, calls on co‑ops across the province to take part in Ontario’s consultations on the Affordable Housing Strategy.

A late resolution, Moving forward on eviction law reform, gave approval to the Ontario Region to proceed with final negotiations with the Province on the eviction law reform proposal put forward by Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Jim Watson. The resolutions also approved a one-time levy of up to $7.20 per unit on the 2010 dues of Ontario housing co‑ops to pay for the costs of changes to the systems used by the Landlord and Tenant Board to make them work for co‑ops.

Council elections

Delegates elected two at-large Council members: Deana Sheriff (Elmvale Co‑op, Ottawa) and Nicole Waldron (Atahualpa Co‑op, Toronto). Judith Collins (Co‑op Housing Federation of Toronto) was acclaimed as the federations’ member on the Council.

On May 31, the Council held its first meeting and elected Amanda Yetman as President, Barb Millsap and Deana Sheriff as Vice-Presidents and Brian Burch as Treasurer.

Long-term service awards

The Ontario Region honoured 39 co‑op housing staff for long-term service to housing co‑ops. The awards are presented to co‑op staff who have served for five, ten, 15, 20 or 25 years in housing co‑ops.

On-line and downloadable documents

• Minutes of the 2009 Ontario Region annual meeting (pdf)
• Resolutions considered at the 2009 Ontario Region annual meeting
• CHF Canada 2008 annual report (pdf)
• CHF Canada 2008 audited financial statements (pdf)
• Report on actions taken on the 2008 Ontario Region annual meeting resolutions (pdf)
• Resolutions considered at the 2008 Ontario Region annual meeting