Candidates vying to be Toronto's next mayor will face off in a debate concerning the city's housing crisis next week.
Sponsored by the Residential Construction Council of Ontario (RESCON) and other industry partners, the debate will focus on the critical housing supply shortage and affordability crisis facing Toronto.
The Toronto Mayoralty Housing Debate will take place at George Brown College's Waterfront Campus from 12 pm to 2 pm on May 24, and will be moderated by Joe Cressy, Senior Vice President of George Brown College and a former City Councillor. A panel of prominent journalists will ask questions of the candidates.
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According to RESCON, most major mayoral candidates have confirmed their attendance at the debate.
There are 102 candidates in the running to be Toronto's next major, with recent polling from Forum Research placing Olivia Chow as the front-runner, followed by Mark Saunders and Josh Matlow. Mitzie Hunter, Ana Bailão, and Brad Bradford round out the top six, respectively.
"The housing affordability and supply crisis is one of the most pressing issues facing the next mayor of the City of Toronto, so the debate promises to be one of the main events of the mayoralty campaign,” said RESCON President Richard Lyall.
"With the city planning to meet or exceed the provincial target of building 285K homes over the next 10 years, housing is a critical issue. I am certain the public will want to hear how candidates intend to address the crisis we are facing."
Other organizations sponsoring the debate include STOREYS, the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD), the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB), and Habitat for Humanity GTA.
More information on the Toronto Mayoralty Housing Debate can be found here, and tickets can be accessed here using the code "Torontoelection23." The event will be live streamed on Vimeo.
