Social housing was Jon Harstone’s passion

With the passing of Jon Harstone at age 71 on New Yr’s Day, Toronto misplaced one in all its most profitable and devoted advocates of social housing.

Jon was an in depth member of my household — he had been the associate of my sister, Deborah Aaron, for nearly twenty years. Born in Buffalo, N.Y., Jon was the daddy of 4 kids and an uncle to a few nieces and two nephews. His loss of life was attributable to a sudden coronary heart assault.

Jon was keen about all the things in his life: his beloved Toronto neighbourhoods, his love of biking, his travels and his profession of advocating for reasonably priced entry to housing for these in want.

With our mutual curiosity in actual property, we had lots in frequent. Once we had the possibility to speak with one another, he would possibly embark on a pleasant story about west Toronto neighbourhood historical past or provide an arcane perception into medieval Italian church structure — or how housing coverage can be so significantly better if policy-makers simply listened to him extra.

Again in 1974, Jon was among the many founders of Dufferin Grove Co‑op, one of many first housing co‑ops in Toronto. It offered lots of the management for co‑op housing, and social housing, over the subsequent many years.

With CMHC funding readily given, even to a bunch of 20-something youngsters, the co‑op purchased a 24‑unit condominium constructing on Melbourne Ave., in Parkdale.

It was the primary of what would grow to be hundreds of profitable non-profit co-op housing models that Jon can be instrumental in making occur till his retirement in 2019.

When nobody else may determine how you can do it efficiently, Jon was busy discovering properties to purchase, creating enterprise plans, speaking standard mortgage lenders into taking an opportunity on a brand-new group with no observe file, and efficiently cajoling the town, together with the federal and provincial governments, to supply the assist they may. That made all of the distinction.

From 1999 to 2018, Jon was government director of St. Clare’s Multifaith Housing Society and president of Ganesh Group Improvement Co-op. Along with managing greater than 400 St. Clare models in 5 repurposed buildings in Toronto neighbourhoods, all through his profession Jon assisted within the growth of 53 housing initiatives which have offered over 3,500 models of reasonably priced and supportive housing in buildings throughout the town.

He as soon as instructed his lawyer, Brian Iler, that folks had been having plenty of kids in St. Clare’s buildings. Jon defined that, as a result of they'd lastly discovered safe and reasonably priced housing, they may with confidence resolve to go forward with their household plans.

It was a type of sudden and but very concrete indicators of Jon’s success.

In his spare time, Jon delved into historic analysis of many locations all over the world, together with that of his dwelling metropolis, Toronto. He volunteered for the board of Heritage Toronto for 5 years, and would go on to curate historic walks of his beloved Trinity-Bellwoods neighbourhood for 20 years.

His information of this space is captured in his guide titled, “Between the Bridge and the Brewery.”

Jon has left behind so many individuals who will miss him. However his household, my household and his mates take satisfaction in having identified such a outstanding particular person who has had an unimaginable impression on innumerable lives by means of his work and his passions.