Canadian churches in Toronto may face eviction if they fail to pay increased rent to the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) – even as those payments increase up to 800 percent.
The TDSB announced on August 29 that churches renting space in public schools would no longer qualify for reduced rental rates. Other nonprofits still qualify for subsidized rent, but churches have been removed as the school district seeks to close a sizable budget gap.
Churches have scrambled to determine their options. In some cases, the recent change will result in rent increases of up to 800 percent.
Some pastors gathered to protest the rental fee hikes, claiming the increase to be an attack on churches, but other pastors prayed over the school board for divine intervention.
The move is part of a 2012-2013 district budget, approved in June, that will attempt to close a $110 million budget gap.
CT previously covered the similar situation of churches in New York City, a long-running case that questioned whether or not schools could evict churches and went before the U.S. Supreme Court in December 2011. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case, so in June a New York district court judge issued a permanent injunction, allowing churches to continue meeting in schools.
