Author: Woodsworth Housing Co-op

Who is part of a Woodsworth household?

In the co-op’s by-laws, household means:

• any members living in the unit
• children of the members who are under sixteen (16) and live in the unit
• children of the members who have turned sixteen (16) and continue to live in the unit, and
• long-term guests approved by the board of directors and have signed a long-term guest agreement for that unit.

The Ontario Family Law Act determines whether a child is considered the member’s child for the purposes of housing in Woodsworth.

Members have been approved by the Board of Directors as members and have signed an Occupancy Agreement for the unit.

The co-op gives members these rights:

• live in their housing unit
• use their parking space if any
• use the co-op’s common facilities, and
• be involved in the governance of the co-op

However, co-op by-laws limit members’ rights.

All members in a unit share equal rights and responsibilities with no priority for any member in the household.

Normally, income from all those in a household counts towards subsidy calculations. Talk to Management if this applies to you.

Who is not part of a household:

Only persons mentioned above are part of a member’s household. Others can stay in a member’s unit but only as casual guests.

They can also be sub-occupants (sub-lessees) and only if permitted by the by-laws and according to the Occupancy Bylaw.

Rights of occupants of a unit who are not members:

Long-term guests are not members but have co-op status. They have been approved by the Board of Directors as long-term guests when the members in their household have requested it and have signed a long-term guest agreement.

Long-term guests have

• no right to occupy the unit independent of the members
• no right to occupy any other unit in the co-op
• no right to a place on the co-op’s internal waiting list.

However, long-term guests may apply for membership with the agreement of the co-op members in their household.

What this means for unit selection – occupancy standards:

“Occupancy standards” means the minimum number of persons required to qualify for each of the co-op’s unit sizes. The  standards restrict the maximum unit size that a Woodsworth member can apply to move into or relocate to.

• There must be at least one member in a unit.
• All who have Woodsworth status including members, children, and long-term guests count towards the household size for  occupancy standards.
• Guests without long-term guest status do not count towards household size for occupancy standards. Neither do visitors or sub-lessees.

Woodsworth’s occupancy standards (Occupancy Bylaw):

• one-bedroom – a minimum of 1 person
• two-bedroom-  a minimum of 2 persons, except a single person may occupy a 2 bedroom unit in the mid-rise including Wilton Street
• three-bedroom – a minimum of 3 persons
• four-bedroom – a minimum of 4 persons.

The co-op bylaws don’t specify maximum household size, but say it is determined by the City of Toronto Municipal Code, Property Standards, Occupancy Standards.
(See Occupancy Bylaw Article 9.3).

Non-member occupants can become members:

Long-term guests and young people age 16 or over who have not become members are all non-member occupants. While they have status with the co-op and count for household size, they do not have member rights.

The minimum age for becoming a member is sixteen (16).There is a slightly relaxed membership process for those between the ages of 16 and 19. (Turning 16s).

In all cases, applying for membership starts with attendance at an information session held by the Membership Committee.