The Local Wins Two Digital Publishing Awards
The honours include gold in the General Excellence category for the third year in a row.
Who is Ana Bailão? Depends Who You Ask
The former councillor has been criticized for her allegiance to John Tory and a career of political compromise. But some housing advocates see something different: a savvy, effective consensus-builder. Is Bailão's brand of pragmatism enough for voters looking for bold change?
Landlord and Tenant Board Wait Times Continue to Grow
Wait times for tenant cases have risen by four months since last count, as a new report from the Ontario Ombudsman declares the LTB to be “fundamentally failing in its role.”
Awards Season at The Local
We’re honoured to have received nominations for three National Magazine Awards and two Digital Publishing Awards, including for General Excellence.
What It Takes to Get Someone Housed
Each day, housing support workers like Madison McElroy are asked to do the near impossible: get clients out of homelessness and onto a lease in the midst of a raging rental crisis.
Stuck in Social Housing
With an 80,000-household waitlist, just getting affordable housing is hard enough. But once they’re in, residents find themselves with few options to leave.
When a Guest Takes Over
Unit takeovers are a hidden crisis in Toronto social housing, at the intersection of unaffordability, social isolation, and an epidemic of addiction.
Meet Your New Landlord: a Local Non-Profit
The Neighbourhood Land Trust has been snapping up buildings across Toronto, taking them off the market and into the community. Over 200 units later, they say they’re ready to do much more.
The Realities of Renting While Black
Black renters have always faced discrimination in Toronto. The rental crisis makes it worse.
The Airbnb Loophole Pushing Out Long-Term Tenants
Despite regulations, short-term rentals continue to keep apartments off the market in neighbourhoods like Kensington Market.
How to Protect Seniors From Eviction
A new report on seniors in TCHC buildings shows that current eviction prevention methods need to be strengthened.
At the Landlord and Tenant Board, Tenants Wait Twice as Long as Their Landlords
Applications by tenants take up to seven months longer than those by landlords. Behind this disparity is a skewed system of Zoom hearings and inexperienced adjudicators that can’t keep up with a mile-high case backlog.
How We Misunderstand the Housing Crisis
The “housing crisis” isn’t a crisis for everyone—for some it’s a windfall. That fact infuses every aspect of our response to it.
For Scarborough Bus Riders, a Long Wait Gets Longer
The TTC is implementing a new round of cuts to bus services on March 26. Many of the biggest wait time increases are in Scarborough.
The Private Deals Remaking Long-Term Care
In a province with the highest percentage of for-profit LTC homes in the country, new deals are further consolidating the industry into the hands of a few companies with some of the worst COVID death rates in the country.
Post-Tory Toronto: What Happens Next?
A by-election, an interim mayor, uncertainty around the budget, and the first real race of the “strong mayor” era—what John Tory’s resignation means for Toronto politics.
Understanding John Tory’s Proposed Budget
The first budget of the “strong mayor” era doesn’t do enough to address the city’s long-standing problems.
See the Results of Our Annual Diversity Survey
Every year The Local conducts a diversity survey among staff and contributors. See how we did in 2022.
The Local Journalism Fellowship 2023
Now in its fourth year, the program provides training and mentorship to aspiring and emerging journalists from communities underrepresented in Canadian media. Applications are now open.
After a Voided Election, A Surge of Interest in a French School Trustee Race
Last fall, a French school trustee election imploded when it emerged that no one running actually spoke French. Now the by-election in Viamonde Ward 3 — Centre has a crowded slate of eager candidates and an increase in voter enrollment.