August 16^th, 2012

Bruce Rodrigues

Director of Education

Toronto Catholic District School Board

80 Sheppard Avenue East

North York, ON

M2N 6E8

Dear Mr. Rodrigues,

As you may have heard, I recently put a motion before City Council related to the issue of establishing appropriate room temperatures in rental apartment buildings.

Currently, the Municipal Code states that landlords must turn on the heating in their units from September 15^th to June 1^st in an effort to maintain an average room temperature of 21 degrees Celsius. Due to recent changes in climate and seasonal temperatures, it has become increasingly obvious that enforcing temperature by date rather than by external temperature is neither efficient nor effective. Unseasonably warm temperatures throughout spring often result in uncomfortably hot units, as well as pose health risks to elderly tenants and those with medical conditions.

It is for these reasons that I presented the motion to Council earlier this month. The motion would allow for changes to the Municipal Code that would accurately reflect the climatic reality of the city, and the fact that it passed near unanimously demonstrates Council's recognition of the importance of such a change in City policy.

In addition to the widespread support we've received from residents backing the motion, there have also been multiple suggestions that this policy should be extended to schools. I am therefore writing to you on their behalf to gain your perspective on whether such a change should be put into effect in TCDSB schools.

Thank you very much for taking the time to consider the question residents have raised. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,

Josh Matlow
Toronto City Councillor
Ward 22 - St. Paul's

July 27^th, 2012

Dr. Chris Spence
Director of Education
Toronto District School Board
5050 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 5N8

Dear Dr. Spence,

As you may have heard, I recently put a motion before City Council related to the issue of establishing appropriate room temperatures in rental apartment buildings.

Currently, the Municipal Code states that landlords must turn on the heating in their units from September 15^th to June 1^st in an effort to maintain an average room temperature of 21 degrees Celsius. Due to recent changes in climate and seasonal temperatures, it has become increasingly obvious that enforcing temperature by date rather than by external temperature is neither efficient nor effective. Unseasonably warm temperatures throughout spring often result in uncomfortably hot units, as well as pose health risks to elderly tenants and those with medical conditions.

It is for these reasons that I presented the motion to Council earlier this month. The motion would allow for changes to the Municipal Code that would accurately reflect the climatic reality of the city, and the fact that it passed near unanimously demonstrates Council's recognition of the importance of such a change in City policy.

In addition to the widespread support we've received from residents backing the motion, there have also been multiple suggestions that this policy should be extended to schools. I am therefore writing to you on their behalf to gain your perspective on whether such a change should be put into effect in TDSB schools.

Thank you very much for taking the time to consider the question residents have raised. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,

Josh Matlow
Toronto City Councillor
Ward 22- St. Paul's

Dear Resident,

I hope that you've been enjoying this beautiful summer weather and taking good care of yourself in the heat. It's always a great pleasure for me to see you in our community when Melissa and I go for our weekly Ward 22 neighbourhoods walk, at our new farmers market, at my town hall meetings, community events or even when out shopping at one of our local businesses!

To keep you informed, I've prepared an update for you below about our community and upcoming public meetings and events. To learn more, please visit www.joshmatlow.ca

Best regards,

Josh Matlow
Toronto City Councillor
Ward 22-St.Paul's
www.joshmatlow.ca

Oriole Park Update

Good news, Ward 22. At long last, the corner of Oriole Park, at Oriole Pkway & Chaplin, is now restored and beautified with new turf and flowers. I am continuing to make improvements to this park including the newly paved entrance at the North East corner.

Hydro One and the Community Tree Committee

Earlier this spring many residents contacted my office with regards to Hydro One's planned removal of trees and brush along the hydro transmission corridor that runs adjacent to the CP rail tracks behind Cottingham Street. While it was understood that vegetation management to be carried out by Hydro One was needed to address safety concerns along the corridor, residents had also expressed concern about the impact that the loss of several trees will have on the area. I shared their concerns, and it is was important to me to ensure that local residents were engaged as much as possible in the decision making process regarding the proposed removal and replanting of trees along the transmission corridor.

We held a public meeting with Hydro One and local residents in May and subsequently formed a working group with my office, Hydro One and representatives from the community. I am pleased to report that the working group and Hydro One have agreed to a plan that will allow for the necessary pruning and in some cases removal of trees that on the Hydro corridor, while at the same time minimizing the impact this work would have on the community and the environment. Hydro One has agreed to a three year pruning cycle (as opposed to six years) for trees along the corridor, which will result in more frequent but less aggressive pruning at any given time.

Here is a summary of the resolution between Hydro One and the community working group:

• Hydro One has agreed to the three year pruning cycle of the 31 Norway Maples just north of the fence at the south end of Robertson Davies Park.
• Hydro One committed to landscaping at the top of the railway embankment, which will occur in the spring of 2013. This landscaping will include cleaning up debris (previously fallen trees and rubbish) on CP property.
• Six mature trees along Macpherson Ave., west of Avenue Rd., will require some pruning to meet electrical clearance requirements.
• Hydro One has agreed to cut the brush down to ground level just south of the Cottingham Tennis Club and a landscape plan will be implemented that could entail planting a coniferous buffer along the top of the CP embankment, which would minimize leaf litter on the clay courts.

Preservation of historic postal office in North Toronto

As some of you are surely aware, Postal Station K is an iconic building and still-functioning post office that sits on Yonge just north of Eglinton. Its long-standing service to the community, sitting on the site of the Upper Canada Rebellion's Montgomery Tavern, along with its Art Deco architecture and the rare Royal Cipher of Edward VIII make this a very valuable and historic building. I have therefore put my support behind the Eglinton Park Residents' Association's formal application to have the City grant Postal Station K heritage status. I invite anyone who wishes to find out more about the issue and get involved to take a look at their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/YongeEglintonPostOfficeStationK.

Toronto Parks and Trees Foundation B.U.L.B. Program

The B.U.L.B. program – that is, the Better Urban Living with Bulbs Program – is a fantastic program run through the Toronto Parks and Trees Foundation. The program provides daffodil bulbs to groups across the city for planting in publicly accessible space. It provides this service free of charge. For more information as well as application forms, please see www.greenhere.ca/GREENHERE/TPTF_BULBS_Form.html.

Davisville Village Farmers' Market

The Davisville Village Farmers' Market continues throughout the summer on Tuesdays from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm in June Rowlands Park, which is located at Davisville and Mount Pleasant. The Davisville Village Farmers' Market is operated by Appletree Markets, a local non-profit organization, and supports local farmers and food producers. The Farmers' Market runs until October 16th, 2012.

Congratulations to Olympian David Wright

Local athlete David Wright is competing in the Men's Laser sailing event in the London 2012 Olympic Games. David finished sixth in the World Championships for his event in 2009 and placed third in the Miami Olympic Classes Regatta earlier this year. David was Canadian Sailing Male athlete of the year in 2009.

David placed eighteenth in his first Olympic race and fifteenth in his second on July 30th. I would like to congratulate David for his performance and I wish him luck in his upcoming races. Your Ward 22 community is cheering for you David!

1331 Yonge Street Public Meeting

Date: Thursday, August 9th, 2012 7:00 to 9:00 pm
Location: Christ Church Deer Park, Elliott Hall, 1570 Yonge Street

I would like to invite you and your neighbours to an important community information meeting, regarding a development application for 1331 Yonge Street - the former CHUM site.  Keeping residents engaged and informed is a priority for me, and the purpose of this meeting is to review the new plans submitted by the applicants for the project.

In December of last year, approximately 150 of you attended a meeting hosted by City Planning to voice your concern with the initial proposal for this site. The original plan was for a 13 storey condo with 214 units and 184 parking spaces. The community was almost unanimously opposed to this proposal.

Subsequent to the winter meeting the applicant has submitted new plans for an 11 storey building with 149 units and 4 levels of below-grade parking. While certainly a step in the right direction, I have heard from many of you that there are still concerns with the traffic that will be come from the building along with the height, density, its relationship with adjacent properties and design of the building itself.

I have asked the applicant to present their revised plans to the community and for City Planning staff to attend. You will have an opportunity to ask questions of both parties.

Final Port Lands Acceleration Initiative Public Meeting

The final public consultation meeting for the Port Lands Acceleration Initiative is being held from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. on August 8, 2012 at the Toronto Reference Library's Bram & Bluma Appel Salon (789 Yonge Street, 1 street north of Bloor Street). If you have any questions, please contact Christopher Dunn, Waterfront Secretariat, at (416) 395-1211 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Live Green Toronto Grants – Fall Round 2012

Starting September 4, the Toronto Environment Office will begin receiving applications for its Live Green Toronto grants. This represents an exciting opportunity for resident associations, community groups, not-for-profit organizations, and BIAs. Two grants are being offered:

• Community Investment Program Grants ($25,000): geared towards community-led projects addressing local issues such as food production, renewable energy, and transportation;
• Capital Projects Fund (up to $250,000): geared towards community improvement projects – building retrofits, tree planting, park restoration, and more.

For more information, please see http://www.toronto.ca/livegreen/greenneighbourhood_rebates.htm.

2nd Annual Toronto 5K Run

Get active and get running for a great cause! The 2nd Annual Toronto 5K Run will be happening on Saturday, September 15 at Winston Churchill Park. The race is in support of SickKids Foundation. Join Councillor Matlow at the starting line at 8:00 AM. For more information, please see www.toronto5k.com.

For more council and community information, please visit www.joshmatlow.ca.

Dear Ward 22 tenant,

I've heard from many of you that being a renter in Toronto is becoming increasingly difficult and it feels like every month, your budget is being squeezed tighter. High provincial guideline rent increases, coupled with Above the Guideline Increases allowed by the Ontario government for basic upkeep and repairs have pushed rents that were already steep into the unaffordable range. In addition, the low vacancy rate has made it near impossible to find lower-cost alternatives elsewhere.

It's time for real action to protect tenants. Please see the reverse for my letter to the Honourable Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, advocating for reforms that will support your right to accessible, affordable rental housing.

This past May was unseasonably hot. I heard from many of you in apartments that your units were uncomfortable and that sleeping, in particular, was difficult. Toronto's tenants have the right to a comfortable and healthy home. That's why I put forward a motion that seeks to establish appropriate room temperatures for tenants.

My motion looks to change the Municipal Code to reflect the reality that before June 2^nd, it may not be necessary to keep the heat on due to warm or hot spring temperatures. Further, it may be necessary to set an acceptable maximum temperature at which rooms can be heated.

Knowing your rights as a tenant and how to protect them can be a challenging process. Various aspects of being a tenant and your relationship with your landlord are governed by different levels of government. Please visit the tenants page at www.joshmatlow.ca for a list of community resources. I'm here to advocate for you – if you have any questions please feel free to give my office a call for assistance.

Sincerely,

Josh Matlow
Toronto City Councillor
Ward 22 – St. Paul's

July 17, 2012

The Honourable Kathleen Wynne, M.P.P.

Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing

777 Bay St., 17th floor
Toronto, ON M5G 2E5

Dear Minister Wynne,

I would like to thank you for your recent initiative to cap Guideline Rent Increases. Over 60% of the residents in my ward rely on renting for their housing needs, the most out of any ward in Toronto; as such, my constituency was hit particularly hard by the 3.1% Guideline Rent Increase last year.

With low vacancy rates across the city, many renters have little choice but to accept high rents. By capping the Guideline Rent Increase at 2.5%, Bill 19 will help many residents in my ward make ends meet as they pay their bills each month; this is a good first step towards maintaining the affordability of rental housing here in Toronto and across the province.

I hope that this bill will pave the way for similar action in regards to Above the Guideline Increases (AGIs). My constituents have told me that AGIs should only be allowed where landlords are providing new amenities for their tenants, and provided that units have been kept in a state of good repair. The prospect of reintroducing vacancy controls along with a cap on rent increases for new units should also be explored, as the current conditions of low supply and high demand in the rental market give the landlord a tremendous amount of leverage in negotiating rent for a new tenancy.

On behalf of the tenants in Ward 22, St. Paul's, and across the city, let's work together on making Toronto a more affordable place to live for all its residents.

Sincerely,

Josh Matlow
Toronto City Councillor
Ward 22, St. Paul's

Dear Residents,

I hope that you've been enjoying your summer and are taking good care of yourself in this hot weather. Please also consider checking in on neighbours who are seniors and those with mobility challenges. Please note that during extreme heat alerts, civic centres are open to provide an air conditioned environment while public pools and splash pads will be operating under extended hours. Please call 311 for more information.

I would like to provide you with an update on a very successful week at Council and on several priorities. Council strongly supported my motions to move Toronto closer to a successful rapid transit expansion plan, support tenants during periods of extreme heat and increase the number of solar projects in our City. In Community news, I would like to share information regarding park improvements, Republic of Rathnelly street signs, tree protection, seniors' strategy consultation and more.

Sincerely,

Josh Matlow
Toronto City Councillor
Ward 22-St.Paul's
www.joshmatlow.ca

Moving Forward on a Regional Transit Strategy Approved at Council

Council was united this week in declaring that a regional approach is the best chance we have to build and fund the transit that Torontonians need and deserve. My motion, Moving Forward: Improving Public Transit and Relieving Traffic Congestion through a Regional Funding Strategy, was passed unanimously by my colleagues.

To fund public transportation and relieve traffic congestion for Toronto and the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH), it is imperative to move forward with a regional funding strategy. Implementing a sales tax, tolls or other tools across the GGH would create new, and dependable, revenue streams paid into by everyone in our region rather than have Toronto cover capital expenses through our property tax base.

We need these tools to move forward with a Downtown Relief Line to ease overcrowding on the Yonge Line, to finally build a rapid transit link to Pearson airport and to connect our city and region.

This fall, Metrolinx will begin a public discussion on transit funding while Toronto Council will discuss local funding and route requests. My hope is that these two initiatives find a common path to see a connective and fully funded plan through to fruition.

The "OneCity" transit proposal announced by Councillor Stintz and Councillor De Baeremaeker was not put forward by the proponents for Council's consideration.

Establishing Appropriate Room Temperatures for Tenants

This past May was unseasonably hot. I heard from many of you in apartments that your units were uncomfortable and that sleeping, in particular, was difficult. Toronto's tenants have the right to a comfortable and healthy home.  That's why I put forward a motion that seeks to establish appropriate room temperatures for renters.

Currently, the Municipal Code requires that landlords turn on the heat in rental housing units from September 15th through to June 1st.  This is to ensure that the room temperature be maintained to at least 21 degrees Celsius (70 degrees Fahrenheit).  However, this enforcement by date rather than by temperature ensures that during hot days before June 1st, a tenant's unit may be not only uncomfortable but could present a public health issue to the elderly and/or tenants with certain medical conditions.

The Motion looks to change the Municipal Code to reflect the reality that before June 2nd, it may not be necessary to keep the heat on due to warm or hot spring temperatures. Further, it may be necessary to set an acceptable maximum temperature at which rooms can be heated.

My intent is not to necessarily make air conditioners mandatory. There are many environmentally-friendly ways to cool an apartment including improved ventilation, green roofs, deep lake cooling and shading. This issue will be studied by City Staff and a report will come to committee for public input. To read the National Post article on this subject, click here.

New Solar Energy Projects Coming to Toronto

Solar energy has the potential to benefit Toronto's environment and economy. As your School Trustee I worked to have solar panels installed on school roofs and am proud to be helping expand green power across the city.

My motion, supported by Council, endorses potential solar projects for consideration by the Ontario Power Authority (OPA). The OPA has new rules establishing a points system to determine the priority for offering of contracts for rooftop solar projects. Points will be awarded to applications that are supported by the municipality in which the project is located. Projects with more points will be more likely to receive contracts from the OPA.

In particular, I worked with Bright Roof, a Ward 22 firm with projects in our community and across the city. The projects that BrightRoof and others are developing will deliver significant benefits to the City of Toronto, including:

Solar systems will provide 20 years of clean energy. On average, the systems produce 400kW of power. A 400kW rooftop system will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 104 metric tons per year. These solar systems produce clean energy locally, reducing the need for new transmission lines and/or large power generation facilities within the City of Toronto. Each project represents a significant capital investment into the property and the community. For instance, BrightRoof is investing approximately $1.5 million into each rooftop solar project that it is building in Toronto, creating jobs for local tradespeople The landlord of the property on which the rooftop solar project is built will receive rent for 20 years. The income stream derived from the rooftop solar project (both rental income and investment returns) will increase the value of the property.

The Republic of Rathnelly to get "national" street signs

Ward 22's Rathnelly is a picturesque enclave of homes, situated at the bottom of the Avenue Road Hill. It is home to a large number of artists, academics, writers, and media.

The Rathnelly neighbourhood made headlines in 1967, while celebrating Canada's 100thbirthday. During the celebrations Rathnelly residents playfully declared themselves as anindependent republic of Canada. To mark their independence, the "Republic of Rathnelly" elected a queen, organized a parade, formed an "air farce" of 1,000 helium balloons, and issued Republic of Rathnelly passports to everyone in the neighbourhood.

The Republic of Rathnelly celebrations continue to this day with a bi-annual street party. To recognize this distinctive neighbourhood, I've allocated funds with Council support toward "Republic of Rathnelly" street signs designed by the community.

To read more about this, click here.

To see the street sign design, click here.

Dogs now allowed in Mount Pleasant Cemetery

As of July 1st, dog owners are now allowed to walk their dogs on paths and roads in the Mount Pleasant Cemetery. Please note that dogs must be kept on a leash at all times.

Oriole Park North Pathway Replacement

The north-east pathway at Oriole Park has been replaced and new lights will be installed in the fall of 2012.

Seniors Strategy Consultation Workbook

The Seniors Strategy Consultation Workbook can now be completed and submitted online at:

http://wx.toronto.ca/inter/sdfa/seniorscw.nsf/workbook?OpenForm

To learn more about Toronto's Seniors Strategy, please click here.

Get your green on at the Live Green Toronto Festival!

What do you get when you mix hundreds of green products and services with live music and great local foods - and invite everyone in Toronto?  The Live Green Toronto Festival!

The 7th annual celebration of all things green - the Live Green Toronto Festival - will take place on Saturday, July 21 (11 a.m. to 9 p.m.) at Yonge-Dundas Square.  Everyone is welcome and admission is free.

Toronto's largest outdoor green festival brings hundreds of green products and services, live music, local foods, and more to the streets of Toronto every year!  Stroll through the exhibits, sample locally grown foods, check out the TD Kids' Zone, and catch some of Canada's hottest musical acts on the 104.5 CHUM FM Main Stage.

Enjoy a dazzling musical line-up including performances by Faber Drive, Fefe Dobson, Platinum Blonde, and many more.

Help defend our urban forest against the emerald ash borer!

Protect our ash trees against infestation by becoming an Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) Ambassador. Local Enhancement & Appreciation of Forests (LEAF) is providing a free training session which will give you the tools you need to educate your neighbours and community about EAB and the options for treatment, removal, and planting.

The session will be held at Scarborough Civic Centre on Saturday, July 28th, 10:00am – 2:00pm, in Committee Room 1.

To register for this event, visit www.yourleaf.org.