Published in The Weekly, July 27, 2025
These updates are intended to keep members informed about the latest developments, decisions, and upcoming events within Woodsworth. Note the board is now meeting Monthly and so these updates will be published to coincide with the new monthly cadence.
Note: Office is closed August 4, 2025 for civic holiday.
PODIUM DECK
The tender packages are being reviewed by CMS, and contractors are being interviewed. Stay tuned for more info as it becomes available.
GMM STANDARDIZATION
We heard your feedback about the last GMM and have developed a GMM standardization document which will provide guidelines for running the GMMs more democratically within our hybrid meeting environment.
EMERGENCY SUBSIDY
Reminder to members that we offer an emergency subsidy for folks experiencing difficulty paying their housing charge, if they are eligible. The emergency subsidy is 30% of their income and last for a maximum of 3 months.
LAUNDRY
As stated in a previous weekly article, the co-op is moving toward a card based system in the next month. Stay tuned, instruction pamphlets and cards will be distributed closer to the implementation date
STAFF’S PERSONAL PHONE NUMBERS
If you have been given the personal cellphone number of an office or maintenance staff please don’t use it beyond its initial purpose. Do not abuse this privilege. Always call the office first.
RECYCLING and GARBAGE
Please ensure garbage is separated from recycling and disposed of appropriately. If there is organic waste mixed into recycling, it will attract flies and other pests. This inconveniences other members and costs the coop money.
It has also been noted that non-recyclable items (e.g. lampshades) are being placed in the blue bins instead of the cage. Please put only recyclable items in blue bins.
The blue bins in the basement of the mid-rise are often overflowing onto the floor. On checking in with maintenance, they stated that the most significant thing that causes this condition is the fact that people are not flattening their boxes.
Please, please, please – keep recycling – BUT flatten boxes (both large and small). Our maintenance folks are spending a couple of hours a week working on flattening boxes.
The maintenance team’s time is better spent looking after priority maintenance items. If you need help flattening your boxes, please ask a friend or neighbour to help. If you have an assistant or personal support worker that is helping you, please make sure that they know.
All of this will help in focusing our resources where they are really needed.
OFFICE AND BOARD CORRESPONDENCE
It is a member’s responsibility to update the office when you have new contact information (i.e. email address/phone number). You must explicitly notify the Office that you want to update your information e.g. saying “Update my email address on file to example@example.com” vs just emailing the Office a query from a new email address.
Messages from members will normally receive a prompt response from Woodsworth’s Office Staff, who handle virtually all administrative matters with little or no input from the Board. Staff have the skills and resources to resolve most issues. Matters that may require a Board decision are rapidly brought to the Board’s attention, along with background material that can speed the process. The Board email address is to be used only for escalations from members where the office could not adequately assist, and for correspondence from committees Internal Escalations
If you have an after hours need, please call the on-call team.
If you have issues of an administrative nature (e.g. waiting lists, pest control, priority moves, housing charge, RGI or maintenance), please contact the office. The Board does not need to be cc’d on these emails.
If you have an escalation (regarding the property manager or another issue for which no resolution has been reached) contact the Board, and specify that it is an escalation requiring action.
If you are having an issue with another member, contact the Conflict Mediation Committee. If you have an idea – consider whether it could be addressed to a related committee. The list of Woodsworth Committees and their contact information is on the Woodsworth website.
FORMS
If you would like to submit an accommodation request, please complete the relevant Accommodation for disabilities request forms on the Woodsworth website and submit it to the office.
If you would like to receive electronic communication from Woodsworth please fill out the Electronic communications agreement on the Woodsworth website and submit it to the office.
If you would like to submit a complaint to the co-op about a violation of the co-op’s Human Rights By-law please complete and submit the Human rights complaint form on the Woodsworth website and submit it to the office.
If you would like to report an incident, complete the Incident report form on the Woodsworth website and submit it to the office. In this case, an incident would be an accident or problem you would like the co-op to be aware of and/or take action on.
See a complete list of Woodsworth forms on the Woodsworth website.
The Board reads all submissions to the inbox, and endeavours to respond quickly to business correspondence and official communications from co-op committees. Response to individual co-op members is limited to cases where Board intervention seems necessary.
The Board meets just once a month and typically intervenes only on matters of overall co-op policy, or in cases where it becomes convinced that all other channels have failed. The cut off for correspondence to be covered in a board meeting is 9 days before the meeting date.
We all deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. In keeping with this principle, any harassment, bigotry, or threatening behaviour in correspondence sent to the board will not be tolerated.
LOOKING AHEAD:
The board’s next meeting will be August 26, 2025.
Cooperatively, Woodsworth Board of Directors