WATCH: Housing experts say unless major funds are raised to address repair backlogs, dangerous scenarios like this will become more common at aging TCHC facilities. Mark Carcasole reports.
TORONTO – Toronto Community Housing officials say they are doing their best to conduct repairs to hundreds of ageing housing units under its care after bricks came crumbling down from one of its buildings on Saturday.
“This year we’re spending $175 million in capital repairs. That is an increase of three times from just three years ago,” said TCHC spokesperson Sarah Goldvine. “In 2013, we spent $68 million.”
Crews were on site Sunday to pull down the remaining loose bricks from the 50-year-old building located near Eglinton Ave. E. and Markham Rd. in Scarborough.
Although officials said there wasn’t any structural damage, a number of unit windows were barricaded as a precaution.
“This incident underlines the urgency of the extensive repair work we are doing on TCHC buildings but as I stated earlier this week, we can’t get it all done without the help of the other governments,” Mayor John Tory said in a statement to Global News.
TCHC has over $2 billion worth of capital repairs to be done on more than 2000 buildings.
Last week, the mayor said the federal and provincial governments need to pay their share in making sure valuable housing units don’t close in Toronto.
With a report from Candice Daniel
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