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BOSS MAGAZINE ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Gene Jones
Boss MAN
by Kern Carter
How difficult is it to really influence
change or command enough power to
create real change? Lost in the current
political storm of Toronto is the past
turmoil that was the TCHC and the impending
rift between city constituents
and leaders elected to be their voices.
Into the midst of this friction steps
Gene Jones from seemingly a world
away; in actuality just a short ride south
of the border, and assigned with the
task of closing that rift and restoring
the residents faith in their officials and
Changing Places
implementing change against hesitant
surroundings.
As beautiful as we believe our city of Toronto
to be, it wasn’t initially the attraction
that pushed Gene Jones to leave
his home country.
“It was about the opportunity to do
wonderful things in the city of Toronto,”
Gene admits. “When I arrived here, then
I understood what a wonderful city Toronto
is and was for many years.”
And the opportunity is where Gene has
focused his attention; the opportunity
for real change, to succeed where the
TCHC has failed in the past in connecting
with its residents. An opportunity
that Gene is well aware will be difficult
to conquer.
“Change is the biggest thing. The transformation,
trying to show [residents] a different
way. Trying to get people to explore,
trying to get down into the culture.”
A culture built on accountability, Gene
hopes. He recognizes that for change to
work, the TCHC has to restore residents’
faith in its ability to identify and service
residents’ needs. They need to open the
dialogue through direct contact and
gatherings such as town hall meetings
where residents’ voices are heard and
their complaints are managed. And he
knows that can only happen from the
top down.
“You can’t operate TCHC from behind a
desk. They want to see you, they want
to talk to you. The TCHC has made a lot
of promises and have not delivered on
those promises. But the majority of the
promises I’ve made, we’ve reacted and
we’ve provided those resources. I think
now they think I mean what I say.”
That trust between people and their
representatives is crucial, even more so
when dealing with what is essentially a
landlord-tenant relationship. Each side
has expectations and responsibilities
and each side must be open to change.
And Gene wants that change across the
board. Apart from physically restoring
broken down communities and getting
the residents to take pride in their surroundings,
Gene hopes to implement
changes that stretch beyond simply being
a courteous landlord.
“I want to provide entrepreneurial opportunities
for our residents, jobs for
our residents and contracts with our
residents. We need educational programs.
The Youth Summit in October
was a good start. Bringing youth together
and alert the people who have
funding to help provide opportunities
for them.”
Opportunities, Gene feels, aren’t always
provided for youth and not on the scale
that is grand enough for them to truly
be successful.
“Youth are the most disenfranchised
group of individuals in the city. We
talk a good game, we provide resources,
but we pick at it. We need to go at
it holistically. We got to do it neighbourhood
by neighbourhood. I don’t
like the stereotype of having priority
neighbourhoods. Now we want to
bring a different program where we
invite and we try to work in a holistic
approach and put all the resources together
and really direct how we get
our youth to engage in education and
jobs and so forth.”
Certainly a big task. Although Gene
does admit that sometimes his staff
and even residents can be hesitant
about his plans, he has a clear vision of
where he expects Toronto to be and
when he wants it to get there. Sighting
2015 as the aim for when his changes
would have had time to be implemented
and recognized by residents, Gene is
taking a strong willed, straightforward
approach to rebuilding the social infrastructure
of his residents.
Gene plans to use every resource available
to him, including people and particularly
the elderly. Gene feels strongly
that the elderly have a wealth of knowledge
that they can impart on youth, and
he is working to find ways to bring these
two demographics together.
“We got to find ways to get them out
of the house and use their historical
knowledge to try to educate our youth.
That’s what we’re all about.”
And Gene feels that part of that social
reconstruction will have to include
physically creating affordable housing
for the residents, something he feels
Toronto is lacking.
“Toronto has no affordable housing.
You have people who can buy condos
and then you have those people who
have to rent, and there’s no in between.
I don’t understand how people can afford
to live in Toronto. My clientele’s
average income is like $1300/month.
That’s pretty, pretty dismal in this big
city where everything is expensive.”
And here the cycle begins. People who
can’t afford to live from month-tomonth
depend more on the system to
help make ends meet, or worse, turn to
illegal or underhanded activities they
feel are justified by their financial situation.
That’s partly why Gene is adamant
about a holistic approach to improving
the lives of youth and utilizing the TCHC
as a service provider and a resource
for its residents. And although he does
agree that affordable housing is a possible
step, Gene has some ideas.
“I think we need to work with the developers
and see how we can carve in
affordable housing. If there was a tax
credit system, like in the United States,
it would be a shoe-in. It provides an opportunity
to provide affordable housing
for those in between.”
Just repairing the relationship between
the TCHC and its residents is a huge undertaking,
but add to it the other ambitious
projects that Gene is pursuing and
you can understand why he says he’s
been extremely busy. He makes sure to
visit his residents, he analyzes housing
needs by going to TCHC properties, and
he keeps himself completely accessible
for suggestions on improvements.
Speaking with Gene Jones you recognize
immediately that he is a person
of few words. His focus is clear and his
work-ethic intense. He is on a direct
path to affecting change: physically by
restoring TCHC properties, and culturally
by providing opportunities for residents
to become educated and to use
their skills to become positive members
of their communities, society as a whole
and the overall economy of Toronto.
“I have great staff and I have great residents.
I enjoy my work and I’m proud to
be president of the TCHC.”
WINTER 2013 BOSS MAGAZINE
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