The DTES has long been a neighbourhood of deep cultural roots, mutual aid, and resistance – but it has also been shaped by cycles of disinvestment and gentrification. Each year, hundreds of low-income units are lost to neglect, eviction, or upscale conversions, pushing residents further into precarity and homelessness.
Our work is a direct response to these forces. By acquiring land and housing, placing them under community control, and centering tenant and Indigenous leadership, we are creating a long-term buffer against displacement and speculation. This is not just housing – it is a platform for stability, belonging, and dignity.
We work to ensure that land and housing in the DTES remain:
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Affordable — by protecting rents from market speculation;
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Secure — through permanent community stewardship;
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Community-led — by embedding tenant and resident leadership into governance; and
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Sustainable — by supporting community-rooted social and economic development.
Our long-term vision includes not only preserving existing housing, but transforming it into improved, self-contained, and culturally grounded homes – connected to green space, creativity, and care. We aim to deepen residents’ relationships to land while expanding collective control over neighbourhood development.