Inside the Liberals’ solution to the housing crisis

Plus, the spring movie preview, the boardroom battle at t-shirt giant Gildan and the Masters’ unsung Black caddies [The Star] First Up [By Andrew Joe Potter] By Andrew Joe Potter Good morning. Maple Leafs sharpshooter Auston Matthews is just [two goals shy of the vaunted 70-goal milestone]( with three games to go. His next chance to make history comes tonight versus Detroit. Here’s the latest. MUST READS Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press Housing [What’s inside Justin Trudeau’s sweeping plan to “solve” Canada’s housing crisis]( The Liberals unveiled a suite of spending and policy changes on Friday designed to, in the words of Housing Minister Sean Fraser, “solve” the nationwide housing crisis. In the party’s vision, the plan will spur home construction, assist those struggling to purchase or rent homes, and shelter the unhoused, Alex Ballingall and Victoria Gibson report. But housing advocates and experts are split on its potential. [Here’s what’s in the plan](. N/A LONG READ [A teenager’s hit-and-run death consumed his small town for 14 years. The truth shattered it.]( Beloved by his community, Lucas Shortreed was 18 years old when he was fatally struck while walking on Wellington Road 17. “We hit a deer,” the driver told his young son in the backseat — the first of many steps taken to evade justice for the hit-and-run, writes Jon Wells. As the deep emotional wound festered in Shortreed’s heartbroken hometown, police endlessly searched for a white, mid-1990s Dodge Neon. [Fourteen years later, they found it](. Nick Lachance/Toronto Star ARTS [With Toronto’s art scene in free fall, artists implore us to consider what we value about the city]( A long-running haven for local printmakers, Open Studio’s announcement earlier this month that it had secured the necessary funding to avoid permanent closure is a rare exception in Toronto’s beleaguered art scene. Scores of arts organizations, big and small, have drastically cut programming or closed altogether in recent years, Joshua Chong reports. [Let’s walk through the timeline of how many well-established, successful operations reached a crisis point](. Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press file photo Business [Investors want Gildan’s exiled cofounder back before the Montreal apparel giant loses its shirt]( Last fall, Gildan Activewear CEO and cofounder Glenn Chamandy suggested new growth strategies that were apparently so alarming that its board soon fired the longtime executive. A war has been raging between Gildan’s board and its most influential investors ever since, writes David Olive. [Here’s how it could shake up the $8.5-billion company and its globe-spanning supply chain](. Augusta National Sports [Their place in golf’s iconography is legendary; fans should better know the Masters’ unsung Black caddies]( The sports universe is once again back at Augusta National for the Masters — historically, an event literally carried on the shoulders of Black caddies, Dave Feschuk notes. Despite past champions often crediting these men as instrumental, the tournament would seemingly rather keep the caddies’ legacy in the shadows. [Still, there’s at least some optimism change could be afoot](. [Calendar icon] Are our messages a little late for you lately? Emails from the Star are taking longer than normal to arrive to Gmail and Hotmail inboxes after we send them. That's a problem we're solving now, but we're sorry for keeping you waiting. WATCH THIS Courtesy of Elevation Pictures “Dune: Part Two” aside, there has been a dearth of mega-hits at the local multiplex to start the year. That is most definitely about to change. [Film critic Peter Howell rolls out the red carpet for his 10 most-anticipated movies of spring]( including Ryan Gosling’s big follow-up to “Barbie.” Thanks for reading. You can reach the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_212189), and I will see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [View in Browser]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](