BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CCST relies on a working board to fulfill the organizations strategic plans and operate our properties. This takes a tremendous amount of effort and we are deeply grateful to all Members, past and present, who have contributed to the organizations success.
The Founding Board was established in 2022 and has grown with a goal of equity-driven board recruitment. We are committed to maintaining a board with a diverse range of perspectives, skills, professional and lived experiences to strategically guide the organization. Learn more about our Board practices and recruitment process.
Julia Culpeper, Board Member
Julia joined CCST in 2023 as an Advisory Committee member and was elected to the Board in 2024, since serving as the Communications Lead. She is a project and program manager and learning strategist specializing in helping arts organizations and startups upskill and thrive. She is an active resident of Ward 9 and is inspired by the CCST mandate to prevent displacement and promote community governance approaches to solving complex issues. When not working or volunteering, she enjoys making music, reading, gardening, and weightlifting.
Hannah Fleisher, Chair
Hannah is the Chair of CCST and has served on the Board since 2022. She is an urban planner with experience in community development and strategic planning for local non-profit/charitable organizations, as well as real estate development and commercial transactions in the public sector. She is deeply motivated by CCSTs priority to preserve arts and culture space for the local community and seeks to create permanently affordable access to these assets for less resourced and equity seeking communities. Outside of these pursuits, Hannah is an avid cyclist and dedicated gardener.
Erella Ganon, Board Member
Erella is an artist, illustrator, publisher, and community activist. She has worked as a broadcast announcer, writer for publications in Canada and in NYC, and as a New Media Designer until brain tumours and fighting them became the main challenge of her life. She has moderated the Dufferin Grove listserv for almost two decades and contributes to many initiatives at the Dufferin Grove Park. Erella joined the founding Board of CCST in 2022 and also currently serves on the Board of Build A Better Bloor Dufferin.
Maggie Hutcheson, Co-Founder & Vice-Chair
Maggie was the co-Chair of Build A Better Bloor Dufferin from 2017-2020, co-founded the Community and Cultural Spaces Trust in 2022 (with Yolanda Ferrato) and currently serves on the CCST Board as Vice-Chair. She is a community-based artist, curator, programmer and educator who is passionate about fostering and sustaining inclusive spaces where culture and community can thrive. In 2023, she joined the University of Toronto as an Assistant Professor of Museum Studies. Maggie can often be found walking in Dovercourt Park or chatting with neighbours. She especially cherishes community events like Clay and Paper Theatre’s Night of Dread.
Liz Hysen, Secretary
Liz joined the CCST Advisory Committee in 2023, and was elected as a General Director in 2024, serving as the Secretary. Based in Ward 9, she has worked for over 25 years as a public librarian, archival appraiser, and touring musician. Her interests focus on the changing public landscapes of urban areas and how access to space and resources can be improved for both emerging and established artists. She sees CCST as a vital platform for exploring solutions to Toronto’s uneven cultural infrastructure and for advancing sustainable artistic spaces for future generations.
Eryn Maloney, Board Member
Eryn joined the CCST Board in 2025 as a General Director. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Planning at the University of Toronto with a focus on access to space for grassroots arts activity. He is passionate about the preservation of arts spaces and has firsthand experiences with the precarity of the cultural industries in Canada after working for 15 years in music and live events. Eryn is excited to work with CCST on the ongoing community needs assessment and research endeavours. When not engaged in research or volunteering, Eryn enjoys playing bike polo or ultimate, reading fiction, and lying in the grass with his dog.
Alycia Shanika, Board Member
Alycia Shanika, MScPl, BCom (she/her/they) Alycia joined the CCST Advisory Committee in 2023 and was appointed Board Director and Network Mobilization Lead in 2024. Alycia is an urban–cultural planner, artist–designer, and city builder dedicated to shaping communities into just, culturally responsive, joyful, and sustainable spaces. She is the author–publisher of Future Diasporas: Culture, Art, Identity, Space and founder–co-lead of Collective Futures. Blending cultural policy, planning, real estate, & design expertise with systems & futures thinking, research, community engagement, & cultural production, Alycia strengthens community–cultural spaces & broader infrastructure by building strong relationships & bringing the right collaborators to the table. Through meaningful partnerships and action, she addresses key ecosystem needs—particularly workforce & community development, social finance & governance innovation, & housing & spatial equity—to create positive social impact. She also teaches workshops, mentors students, makes ceramics, & produces storytelling projects across multiple mediums.
Danielle Singer, Board Member
Danielle joined the Board in 2025 as a General Director. She has a diverse background in law, real estate, and recruitment. She began her career as a real estate lawyer before joining a real estate asset management and development company, where she gained extensive experience in development, property management, and commercial leasing. Now focused on creating opportunities for refugees, Danielle currently works at TalentLift where she creates opportunities for refugees through business development, advocacy, policy and building strategic partnerships. An avid traveler who has visited 44 countries, she enjoys hiking, and exploring Ontario’s hiking trails with her dog, Barley and husband.
James Roy, Treasurer
James joined the CCST Board in 2025 as a General Director and also serves as the Treasurer. He has had an extensive career serving as Artistic Director of several professional theatres, including as the founding Artistic Director of the Blyth Festival, as well as serving on the Boards of two professional theatres. During this he has become acutely aware of the rising crisis of supporting and preserving artists and their workspaces in urban centres. The CCST is a crucial opportunity to provide a solution and retain artists and their art as a dynamic part of our city life. When not volunteering, James may be working on his project to record the stories of the founders of Canadian theatres from the 70’s and 80’s - or gardening.
Chris Wilson, Board Member
Chris joined the Board in 2025 as a General Director, bringing a wealth of experience from the arts & culture and non profit sectors. With a Master of Design in Strategic Foresight and Innovation, he works at the intersection of futures thinking, community development, and cultural infrastructure. His background includes leading inclusive cultural programming, research, and futures design projects that centre equity and collective imagination. Chris serves on the Board to support CCST’s mission of sustaining accessible, community-led cultural spaces, especially for Black, Indigenous, and equity-deserving communities. He is also the co-lead of It’s OK* Studios, a multidisciplinary creative hub supporting Black artists and arts workers. Outside of his professional work, Chris is an avid music curator and DJ who finds joy in building community through sound and storytelling.
Past Board
Yolanda Ferrato, Co-Founder & Past Board Member
Yolanda Ferrato is experienced in Arts and Not-For-Profit sector management. She is interested in creative, community-oriented solutions for happy, sustainable cities. Yolanda was a member of Build a Better Bloor Dufferin and the co-founder of CCST, where she served on the Board until 2024.
Sean Fitzpatrick, Past Board Member
Sean is a partner at Cavalluzzo LLP, a Toronto law firm that specializes in labour and employment law acting solely on behalf of unions and employees. As a member of the Building a Better Bloor Dufferin (BBBD) neighbourhood group he participated in the founding of the Community Affordable Housing Trust (CAHS) and joined the founding Board of CCST in 2022 on which he served until 2025.