Co-op calls on landlords to do the same
In response to financial hardship imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, a housing co-op in the south end has voted to give two months of rent relief to its 50 tenants.
The Wingale Housing Co-operative, in the Greenboro area, announced the decision Thursday after hearing numerous concerns from members about the sudden loss of income caused by the massive shutdown of the city’s economy.
The co-op consists of 50 townhouses configured in two-, threeand four-bedroom units and monthly rents range from about $1,083 to $1,190, though some are also subsidized.
“Many members are precariously employed and live gig-to-gig and cheque-to-cheque. Others are on a fixed income and face serious hardship. We felt an obligation as a community to help each other,” co-op board president Len Bush said in a statement.
The rent “credit” can be used any time in the next year, starting with the April payment.
Co-op manager Gen LeBreton, also the lone employee, said the board conducted a vote among all members over a three-day period and the outcome was unanimous. She said the cost of the rent forgiveness would be offset by delaying a major capital project to renovate bathrooms in many of the units.
Members of the board wanted to go public with their decision to encourage other co-ops and landlords to consider relief for any tenant under financial stress during a possibly prolonged period without regular income. There are well over 50 housing co-ops in Ottawa and Eastern Ontario, covering more than 3,000 households.