Parkdale People’s Economy

An Update on the Parkdale People’s Economy 

As the funding for the work currently being undertaken by the Parkdale People’s Economy (PPE) draws to an end, PARC, PPE’s current sponsor, has undertaken a review of the initiative’s current and future goals.  

Over the past week we have met with agencies who are or had been collaborators of the Parkdale People’s Economy, many of whom participated in developing the current Parkdale Plan.  

As always, the agencies were thoughtful and generous in their observations and suggestions.  The majority opinion is that the current iteration of the Parkdale People’s Economy is at an impasse and a reset is required.   

We hope that the following recommendations will lay the groundwork with transformative justice as a guiding principle in next steps: 

1. That the PPE as a collective and collaborative activity needs a governance structure that allows for consensus-building to make group decisions and directions that represent the neighbourhood as a whole 
2. That a dispute mechanism be developed for the times, like now, when there is a disagreement between PPE members that impacts the collective work of a strong neighborhood 
3. That the dispute mechanism includes the creation of a mediation process that can be initiated by any community group who does not feel like the work being carried out by PPE is aligned with its stated mandate and directions 

In recent days, an open letter was circulated on behalf of the PARC staff working for the PPE project.  

The Open Letter raises some important questions, and we acknowledge that there are differing opinions and positions on next steps.  We value opportunities for respectful dialogue as a key tool in figuring out how Parkdale and the collective that is the Parkdale People’s Economy move forward. It’s clear that the complexity of the work we are joined in requires us to continually engage in evolving and reimaging our co-working rhythms as a neighbourhood. 

Unfortunately, the current situation places PARC in an untenable position. PARC has made the difficult decision not to seek a renewal in funding for the future sponsorship of the PPE, which will run out at the end of 2024. 

The staff impacted have entitlements under the collective agreement as part of a permanent lay-off, which PARC, as an organized workplace, recognizes and supports.  

This is a difficult time for the Parkdale People’s Economy, but we strongly believe that the wisdom of the neighbourhood will prevail. 

Please contact Victor Willis with questions or concerns.  

Parkdale People’s Economy (PPE) is a network of over 30 community-based organizations and hundreds of community members collaborating toward economic, racial, and climate justice in Parkdale. The network combines neighbourhood planning, collective action, community benefits organizing, mutual aid, and community-based research to build shared visions for the future of Parkdale.

This year PPE released ‘The 2024 Parkdale Community Planning Study’ which aims to achieve a vision of decent work, shared wealth, and equitable development. In the themes of housing justice, solidarity economy, community health and safety, social infrastructure, food systems, and climate action, it lays out how community members and partner organizations can build a better future for Parkdale.

You can read the full report here: 2024 Parkdale Community Study.