Community Update: May 1, 2026

In Davenport, the arrival of spring has brought new opportunities to connect with residents and support a cleaner and greener community. To celebrate the warmer weather, our office recently hosted our first Environment Day and Compost Day events of the year. These initiatives highlight how small, local actions can make a meaningful impact.

At Environment Days, residents are invited to safely dispose of household hazardous waste and donate items for reuse, helping to reduce how much of our waste ends up in a landfill. Our first event took place at Dufferin Mall last weekend, and the turnout was enormous. It was a pleasure to meet and reconnect with so many Davenport residents who came out to participate. If you weren’t able to attend, I hope to see you at our next Environment Day at Loretto College School near Dufferin and St. Clair on Sunday, May 31st.

Our Compost Days are another opportunity to support greener neighbourhoods. Residents can pick up both bagged and loose compost to use in their gardens. Compost is a simple but powerful resource: it enriches soil, supports healthy plant growth, and helps create vibrant gardens and lawns throughout the summer. You can find the full schedule of upcoming Compost Days below.

I also want to invite those in the St. Clair and Dufferin community to join me at our upcoming community cleanup event on Saturday, May 9th from 10:00 to 12:00. We will be stationed at the Santa Chiara Parkette where participants are invited to drop by to say hello, enjoy a refreshment, and pick up some gloves and garbage bags for the cleanup.

These events are a reminder that building a more sustainable city sometimes begins at the community level. By coming together to reduce waste and support greener practices, Davenport residents continue to show what’s possible when we all do our part.

Sincerely,

Alejandra Bravo
City Councillor • Ward 9 • Davenport
Chair, Economic & Community Development Committee

In this Edition

• Colour-Coded RentSafeTO Signs Coming to Buildings in June
• 2026 Community Environment Days and Compost Days full schedule
• Community Cleanup: Dufferin and St. Clair
• Take my 2026 Snow Response Survey
• Development Application for 8-storey residential rental apartment building at 1280–1286 College Street
• Let’s Get Coaching and Let’s Get Officiating
• Cherry Blossom Season in Toronto
• Match Ready: A More Beautiful Toronto

Colour-Coded RentSafeTO Signs Coming to Buildings in June

At the City Council meeting this past week, we approved the final measures to require landlords to display colour-coded signs reflecting their building audit, beginning June 15, 2026. This requirement applies for all buildings that are included in RentSafeTO (which applies to any rental building with three or more storeys and 10 or more units). This is a big victory for tenants’ groups including Toronto ACORN, who have fought for a program like this for years.

In my remarks in support of this item at Council, I talked about how nearly half of all households in Toronto rent. Landlords and property owners are responsible for maintaining their buildings, just like a restaurant owner is responsible for keeping the kitchen clean – and these signs will help to hold them to account. In this year’s City budget we also increased the number of RentSafeTO officers, in order to better serve tenants and increase tenant engagement.

Starting June 15, 2026, building owners and operators will be required to:

• Post the colour-coded sign near the main entrance of each building, reflecting the most recent colour assigned to the building.
• Replace the sign within 14 calendar days if building owners and operators are notified that their building’s colour has changed.
• Inform tenants and prospective tenants of the colour rating that each building has received:
  • Before a lease is signed,
  • After a lease is signed,
  • Once every year.
• Provide the building’s colour rating to anyone who requests.

The City will mail all three signs to building owners via registered mail. Building owners can expect to receive these signs by early June 2026.

More information for property owners and landlords about this requirement is available here.

2026 Community Environment Days and Compost Days full schedule

Here is our full schedule for our 2026 Compost Days and Environment Days:

Community Cleanup: Dufferin and St. Clair

Join us at Dufferin and St. Clair for a community cleanup day on Saturday, May 9th from 10:00 to 12:00.

Take my 2026 Snow Response Survey 

This winter, we experienced a lot of snow and Davenport residents did not get the level of service we deserve.

Continuing my efforts from the Snow Town Hall meeting I hosted with City staff in February, I want to hear about your experiences and suggestions on how the City’s snow response can be improved.

A quick summary on what’s already happened: 

• Last year, the City did an in-depth review of its winter response contracts, which were approved under former Mayor John Tory and remain in effect until 2029.
• From a citywide perspective, staff highlighted the key areas for concern include sidewalk clearing, and plowing on residential streets. Monitoring tools don’t reliably confirm actual conditions, and the current contracts lack the flexibility and surge capacity needed for rapid snow removal in response to major storm events.  
• In our community of Ward 9 - Davenport, the main issues identified were narrow and rigid sidewalks which cannot be serviced by standard sidewalk plows, as well as infrequent servicing times, and insufficient snow removal. 

At my Snow Town Hall meeting, I heard about accessibility challenges for residents due to snow, as well as parking and safety issues that impacted residents in Davenport. This survey is another opportunity for you to share your experiences with this year’s snow response, and what changes you would like to see.

I’ll be using your survey submissions and feedback to bring recommendations to Council about our winter and snow response going forward.

Development Application for 8-storey residential rental apartment building at 1280-1286 College Street

The City of Toronto’s Development Review Division has received an application to permit an 8-storey residential rental apartment building at 1280-1286 College Street.

Join City of Toronto staff at the virtual community consultation meeting on Tuesday, May 5, 2026 from 6:00 - 7:30 pm where you can learn about the proposal, provide comments, ask questions, and speak with the project team.

Visit www.toronto.ca/CPconsultations for the registration link and instructions on how to join.

Let’s Get Coaching and Let’s Get Officiating

Through the support of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Toronto Legacy Program, the City is offering free training to young people aged 13 to 24 to get trained and certified as soccer coaches or officials.

This training helps youth build practical, job‑ready skills and earn certifications that support pathways to paid employment in sport and recreation. They also develop leadership skills, confidence and work readiness.

Spaces are limited. Visit toronto.ca/YouthTraining to learn more and sign up.

Cherry Blossom Season in Toronto

Did you know that parks across the city have cherry blossom (Sakura) trees that will soon be in bloom? 

Typically lasting four to 10 days, the blossoms are expected to peak in early May, depending on weather. There are many locations to see blooms across the city. Learn more and find the park nearest you on the City’s Cherry Blossoms web page.

Match Ready: A More Beautiful Toronto

This spring, Toronto is advancing a coordinated, city-wide effort to clean, maintain and beautify public spaces—part of our ongoing commitment to keeping the city welcoming, vibrant and well cared for. City crews are accelerating and aligning existing services to deliver visible improvements across neighbourhoods—helping make Toronto cleaner, greener and ready for the world stage.

In the Community

It was a pleasure to speak with so many Davenport residents who came out to participate at our first Environment Day at Dufferin Mall last weekend.

It was so nice to attend the retirement celebration of Dave Hains, former Recreation Supervisor at Dufferin Grove Park.

Thank you to all who attended the Dufferin Grove community cleanup last weekend!

More Updates

• Upcoming Gardiner and DVP weekend maintenance closures
• City of Toronto Mayor calls on Torontonians to participate in Canada’s largest municipal cleanup
• City of Toronto and Toronto Tempo announce new state-of-the-art training facility and community recreation hub at Exhibition Place
• City of Toronto and Councillor Bradford joined Cannect Homes to start construction on new purpose-built rental homes in the Beaches
• City of Toronto honours first responders during 9-1-1 Telecommunicators Week
• City of Toronto to almost double the amount of basement flooding subsidies starting May 1
• Toronto Public Health reopens North York Sexual Health Clinic with service improvements for clients
• City of Toronto shares first look at FIFA Fan Festival™ Toronto
• City of Toronto announces 2026 Toronto Community Champion Award recipients

I hope you enjoyed this Community Update. Visit our website for more Davenport news, updates, and events.