Toronto is inviting senior governments to a “conversation” about how they can help fund the third phase of the successful, but costly, Regent Park revitalization.

Mayor John Tory, councillors Pam McConnell, who represents Regent Park, and Ana Bailão, the city’s housing advocate, make the case for provincial and federal help in a letter dated Thursday and obtained by the Star.

“The plans to expedite the complete of Phase 3 are ambitious and require creative financial solutions to bring them to life,” they wrote to local MPP Glen Murray, Ontario’s environment minister, and local MP Bill Morneau, the federal finance minister.

“Any delay in proceeding with the current construction schedule for Regent Park revitalization will disrupt the momentum that has been built and demoralize the tenants who are waiting to return to new units.”

The redevelopment of what had become a troubled 69-acre Toronto Community Housing project started in 2005. TCH and lead developer Daniels Corp. are reaching the midpoint of its five-phase remake into a vibrant, mixed-income neighbourhood of condos, rental units, sports and community facilities, retail and more.

Phase 3 includes construction of 637 replacement rental units in four buildings, two of which are under construction, and the Regent Park Athletic Grounds that opened last summer. The cost, excluding some Daniels buildings to come later, is $256 million.

Toronto is $108 million short, prompting the letter.

McConnell said the money would let the city proceed with construction of the remaining two rental buildings simultaneously and accelerate the ability of 396 relocated families to move back if they wish to do so.

“We’ve been climbing this hill and we’re almost at the apex of it, and we want to know how to plan the last half of this project and bring everyone home,” she said.

Bailão has been banging the drum for a national housing strategy and billions of dollars in federal infrastructure funds to repair crumbling TCH homes and provide new options for low-income residents of a pricey city.

Meanwhile, a steady stream of international housing experts have toured Regent Park to study its innovative use of condo sales to help fund an inclusive mixed community that aims to have no social housing stigma.

“We can’t have the city doing it all,” Bailão said in an interview. “We need the provincial and the federal governments to come to the table. We’ve done a billion dollars of repairs at TCH, we have six revitalizations in the city, we have the Open Door program to get affordable housing built . . . something’s got to give.”

The letter states that in the first three Regent Park phases Toronto will have spent $512 million on development costs, while the provincial and federal governments will have spent $87 million and $35 million respectively.

Tory said it’s Toronto’s good fortune that the area’s provincial and federal representatives are influential cabinet ministers, so it seemed opportune to ask them to talk about help getting the third phase finished.

The mayor said he considers the $108-million request separate from a demand for $12.6 billion in housing funds he and other big-city mayors have put to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government.

“I view this as a separate conversation,” Tory said of the letter. “It’s a considerable sum but Regent Park is a spectacular success so let’s finish it and help these (relocated) families who are waiting with anticipation.”

The targets of the letter were not opening their wallets Friday — but they weren’t saying no, either.

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Morneau’s office said the Toronto Centre MP “looks forward to seeing Regent Park continue to succeed as an example of the successful revitalization of social housing and as a model both in Toronto and across the country.”

Murray said in an email the request was a “surprise to me” but he is committed to the revitalization.

“I am not aware of any issues preventing the continuing collaboration between the orders of government to continue and complete the Regent Park renewal.”

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