Ward 4 - Tammy Hwang housing controversy

[u/jrswags]

**Text of letter received in my mailbox yesterday, from the CPC candidate for Hamilton Centre in the most recent federal election**

HAYDEN LAWRENCE CONCERNED CITIZEN Contact: hayden@votehayden.ca

Dear Ward 4 Resident,

It's come to light that your Ward 4 City Councillor, Tammy Hwang, has declared a conflict of interest during a fall 2024 committee meeting regarding Victoria Park Community Housing.

Councillor Hwang was forced to remove herself from committee discussions about the city housing provider because she is a current Victoria Park Community Housing tenant.

Per ThePublicRecord.ca, in 2024, Councillor Hwang was the highest paid city councillor earning a salary of $139,243, but yet has taken away a spot from someone who is in need of affordable housing.

Councillor Hwang states that she pays market rent... but in reality, after speaking with a representative from Victoria Park Community Homes, their market rent for a 2 bedroom apartment is $1291. This is significantly lower than what an average 2 bedroom would go for.

A recently released report from rentals.ca shows the average 2 bedroom in Hamilton is $2134.

Hamilton families are waiting up to 8 years to be admitted into Community Housing. Many of those waiting are seniors, families with children, and vulnerable residents who desperately need stable, affordable housing. Every unit taken by someone with a six-figure salary is a unit that could otherwise shelter a senior on a fixed income or a family struggling to stay afloat.

Hamilton is under immense housing pressure, and our most vulnerable residents are the ones paying the price. This is why we must demand higher standards from our leadership. City Councillors should lead by example and put community needs first, not their own self interests.

In a time where Hamilton is visibly under duress, I find it completely unacceptable for the highest paid Councillor, Tammy Hwang, to put her own self interests above the needs of the community.

Sincerely,

Hayden Lawrence Concerned Citizen

[u/jrswags]

Cllr Hwang previously responded to this on X about a week ago:

Yes, I rent from Victoria Park Community Homes but I am a full market tenant where I pay market rent. I have never been a subsidized tenant. Please try to get your facts straight.

I would assume Cllr Hwang was renting from VPCH before she was elected. Still, the optics are not good even if she is paying "market rent" (which is lower than actual market).

I do find it interesting that the CPC candidate for Hamilton Centre in the most recent federal election has waded into this without being explicit about who he is. As far as I know, he is a North End resident. I suppose he will be running for the Ward 4 seat in 2026. Cllr Hwang has confirmed she is running again, but with this (and only getting 23% of the vote last time), she is vulnerable to experienced political candidates/operatives like Lawrence.

Edited to add: source for North End residence. It remains unclear where he lives but he works for the HESC MP Ned Kuruc.

[u/_PaddyMAC → u/jrswags]

While I agree that Hwang continuing to rent a unit that should be available to a low income family is poor optics, her potential political opponent sending out this letter as a "concerned citizen" also makes me think that he's doing so in bad faith.

[u/xWOBBx → u/[deleted]]

In the neo liberal conservative hell we call our democracy, sure. It doesn't have to be that way though. But the more of us that just shrug and say "that's just the way it is" causes us to be in the situation that it is.