City Commissioned Consultants Present Report on the SDP

The Regent Park Social Development Plan, commonly referred to as the SDP,is a key framework guiding the neighborhood's well-being through a focus on social inclusion and cohesion. The current SDP structure revolves around four working groups related to community identified needs around employment, safety, community building and communication. The working groups generally meet monthly to plan and implement action plans and activities. The working groups are supported by a planning committee that meets weekly and various other sub-committees. The planning committee and work groups all report to a stakeholders table that meets quarterly. Participation on the work groups, planning committee, sub-committees and the stakeholders table are open to everyone, including:

• TCHC Residents

• Market Residents

• City of Toronto Staff

• Representatives from TCHC

•  Daniels and Tridel

  • Staff members from all agencies and organizations operating in Regent Park

Several major accomplishments of the SDP include:

• Regent Park Cafe and Vendors Market;

• An Employment Barriers Report and improved communications around employment services;

• Improved relationships with community police;

• An asset map of youth services;

• 86 episodes of a weekly news show on Regent Park;

• Development of Hello Neighbor, a mobile app providing information on the community;

• A report on the community spacing needs informing Phrase 4 & 5 of the Regent Park redevelopment;

• The continued support of Sunday in the Park, an annual festival celebrating Regent Park;

City Announced A SDP Refresh

Over the past year the City and TCHC have significantly reduced their participation in the SDP citing ongoing conflict, problems and tensions. In the hopes of resolving these issues, the City announced in a letter dated May 29, 2023, their intentions to carry out are fresh of the SDP. To initiate this refresh process the City commissioned an independent consultant group, Human Future Studio, to produce a report.

Consultants Report

On July 16, 2024, the Regent Park community gathered to hear the findings of the report by Human Future Studio (HFS), a third party consultant group commissioned by the City of Toronto. The aim of the SDP Refresh Report was to review and make recommendations related the Regent Park Social Development Plan.

The two hour presentation was held at the Regent Park Community Centre. At the beginning of the meeting it was announced that neither the City or HFS would be taking any questions related to the presentation, requesting instead that attendees write down their questions on cards provided at the seated tables.

HFS began the presentation by outlining their methodology which included:a review of SDP documents; a community scan; interviews with City staff, community leaders and researchers; and discussions with a small reference group made up of community members selected by the City.

Next HFS presented the following insights and learnings. From their discussions with the City, HFS revealed that :

• The SDP, according to the City, was about opening channels of communication with residents and stakeholders, not about governance (involving decision making);

• The SDP has become a site of conflict and miscommunication. Many residents are not represented, and the roles and intentions of the City are sometimes misunderstood;

The City is committed to continuing the SDP but it's unclear how to reconcile their involvement with the understanding that residents must lead the way; HFS reports that:

• The SDP was never meant to be a static entity.  Refreshes and updates will mark a new chapter, and now is a moment to reevaluate what has gone right and what has gone wrong as demographics are changing rapidly.

Moving forward, HFS states there are balances to be struck between:

• City staff stepping back from leadership & adopting new modes of participation in the SDP;

• Promoting inclusion & and maintaining a focus on TCHC residents and equity deserving groups;

• Funding community initiatives & helping promote independence from City funding;

While noting that SDP has a bright future other insights mentioned by HFD in the report include:

• Rumors & miscommunication take a toll on social and political life, and conflicts has held the SDP from reaching its potential. In addition SDP is either unknown or misunderstood among a majority of residents;

• Many see the SDP as (another) inaccessible seat of power;

• There is a lack of clarity among SDP members on what role the group plays in (decision-making, governance) in social development;

• There is a lack of clarity in the City's role, mandates, what staff can and cannot do, and how this may change over time;

• Funding feels temporary or precarious;

In its report HFS states that Regent Park is diverse, with multiple distinct groups, and that attempts at inclusion cannot ignore systemic inequalities including poverty, racism, trauma and a housing crisis. These factors have influenced participation and perceptions of the SDP. Furthermore expecting Regent Park to be a single community ignores the multiplicity of identities that matter to people and puts pressure on collaboration between people who don't have the same interests.

Finally HFS concluded it's presentation with some of the following recommendations.

HFS recommended viewing Regent Park as a neighbourhood comprising multiple communities and suggested decentralizing the SDP, making more committees and the goals they have - smaller and more specific and responses to immediate needs.

HFS advocated for a comprehensive needs assessment and recommended creating accessible, informal entry points to the SDP to foster greater community involvement.

HFS argued for the need for enhancing  public spaces such as Daniel Spectrum Living Room, where residents could interact informally,improving facilitation skills among SDP members, and incorporating trauma-informed processes.

HFS indicated the establishment of clear roles, providing structure to meetings and accountability measures, as well as adopting frameworks for evaluating the successes of committee work.

HFS advocated for strengthening partnerships with agencies and employing the expertise of agency staff to resource the SDP as well as the use of meeting facilitators who are at arms length from the SDP.

HFS recommended to improve channels of information by harnessing the power of word of mouth by using TCHC animator model.

Next Steps

Following the recommendations made by Human Future Studios, Richard Kiwan, community development staff from the City of Toronto, outlined the next steps.

According to Richard Kirwan, as part of a SDP Refresh the City will:

• Conduct a community needs assessment;

• Work with TCHC to expand and train Ambassadors to communicate about the SDP;

• Resume the Refresh Reference Group to restructure the SDP;

• Introduce trauma informed practices as well as conflict resolution processes;

• Engage agency expertise in supporting and resourcing the SDP;

Richard ended his presentation by concluding that the implementation of the SDP refresh process will begin in Fall 2024.

Neither HFS or Richard Kiwan identified in their presentations, on how or what role will the existing SDP structure - including its committees,work groups and stakeholder members - play in the proposed SDP Refresh.

The evening concluded with a status update by TCHC on community benefits,as well as an announcement by City staff related to the soon to bere lease $500,000 SDP grant. Community Grant information meetings will be scheduled for August 2024, followed by the grant application process running from August to November.

The City's decision not to take questions was unusual for a community meeting and disconcerting to a number of residents in attendance. The City held firm in its decision not to take questions referring to the cards provided.

For full coverage of the meeting see the RPTV Social Development Plan Refresh video report. 

 

By Adonis Huggins