Pressure is mounting on the boss and remaining board members at the Toronto Community Housing Corporation to step down over improper spending at the agency -- but so far, they are holding their ground.
Following Thursday's resignations of seven of the organization's 13 board members, Mayor Rob Ford and his allies said they'd like to see CEO Keiko Nakamura and the board's two tenant representatives give up their roles so the agency can have a fresh start.
The mayor and council lack the authority to fire Nakamura, which can only be done by the TCHC board. But without enough members to form a quorum, the board isn't in a place to fire her either.
In an effort to get things moving, Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday plans to put forward a motion at Tuesday's council meeting to dismantle the remainder of the board and start the process of appointing a new one. That could take at least a month.
Meanwhile, the two tenant members are holding firm, saying they retain the support of the TCHC residents they represent.
"Last evening that was still their position, that they don't intend to resign," Coun. John Parker, the mayor's designate on the TCHC board, told CTV Toronto on Friday. "I hope they rethink that. It's not personal. It has nothing to do with my respect for their integrity or their good intentions, but I do wish they would take the cue that their colleagues gave them."
But even if the board is dissolved, there is the possibility that its councillor and tenant representatives could be reappointed, said Holyday.
Thursday's resignations came during an emergency meeting convened after an auditor's report revealed between $4 and $10 million was wasted on sole-sourced contracts. It also revealed issues with record-keeping at the agency and found that $200,000 was misspent on luxury chocolates, spa trips and a party.
Nakamura says she has identified $28,000 that the organization can recover immediately and $16,400 it will try to get back through the courts. She said Thursday that six staff members have been fired over the findings; 14 have undergone discipline through suspension, repayment or warnings; and four remain under investigation.
While many tenants voiced disgust at Thursday's meeting, others spoke in favour of the housing agency's staff, bringing a tear to Nakamura's eye when one thanked her for her work.
The auditor's review looked at spending between Jan. 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010. Nakamura began leading the TCHC in May 2009, while her predecessor Derek Ballantyne -- now CEO of municipal real estate development corporation Build Toronto -- led the organization between 2002 and 2009.
Coun. Doug Ford, the mayor's brother, met with Ballantyne on Thursday, and Build Toronto's board called a last-minute meeting for Friday at noon to discuss the concerns.
In a statement released Friday afternoon, the mayor's office said Ford had "spoken with the chair of Build Toronto and expressed his concerns. The matter is now in the hands of the board to take any action that it feels is appropriate."
