The CEO of Toronto Community Housing is apologizing to residents who were displaced from their city-run housing complex after a ceiling there collapsed nearly two weeks ago.
“We regret the incident on May 27 and at the town hall meeting tonight I will apologize to the Swansea Mews community for the disruption they have experienced and the tension the incident has caused,” TCH President and CEO Jag Sharma said in a statement Tuesday evening .
He said the situation is “rapidly evolving” and that the corporation’s focus “continues to be protecting the safety of tenants.”
A female tenant was seriously injured after a concrete ceiling panel collapsed in a townhouse bedroom at the complex, located near Windermere Avenue and The Queensway.
TCH initially evacuated a section of the complex and said that tenants from other parts of the facility who felt unsafe could be moved to temporary accommodations as well. But the agency said Monday that all tenants at the complex have been informed that they will need to temporarily vacate their homes while further safety tests are conducted.
A report by a structural engineer found the reason for the collapse dates back to the building’s construction and that routine inspections would not have identified the problem. The report called for further testing to determine the extent of the issue.
Tenants are being accommodated at post-secondary school campuses in the city and at nearby hotels.
There were 113 occupied units at the complex at the time of the incident and at least 25 households have already been moved to temporary accommodations.
Major John Tory met with Sharma Monday and discussed the situation. His office called the incident “unacceptable” and said that the city would be working with TCH to ensure that residents are kept up-to-date about development.
Tory’s office said the city is working through a backlog of repairs at TCH facilities, but said it will take years to complete due to “decades of neglect.”
In his statement Tuesday, Sharma said that he plans to listen to residents at a community meeting Tuesday night in order to develop appropriate plans to accommodate them while testing is conducted.
“We will question every assumption and consider every option until we can get it right, so that Swansea Mews residents can live in the comfort and safety they deserve,” Sharma said.