A Toronto restaurant owner who takes part in the city’s CaféTO program says the length of time it’s taking to get approved to participate in the program results in huge financial losses.
Cherrie Stinson says after submitting an application on March 29, the approval only arrived this weekend.
Even with the approval, which Stinson said she received via email, she still does not know when she can start installing a patio.
“The next steps are something to the fact that we have to first send our insurance to the city, and then the second step is to pay for the application, and then we will receive another email as to when the traffic people are going to be reviewing our patio again,” Stinson told CBC Toronto .
She said the traffic department will come in and install concrete barriers, after which they will be able to set up.
“But there’s no date or time. It just says a couple weeks, which is like going into June, and it’s nice out [right now].
Every day is a crazy day and it would be nice to have some notice, be able to prepare and understand when we will make that extra revenue, but we obviously don’t have an idea. – Cherrie Stinson, restaurant owner
CaféTO allows restaurants and bars to open expanded outdoor spaces on sidewalks and in curb lanes from spring to fall. It was introduced in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic led to restrictions on indoor dining.
A study funded by the city estimated that CaféTO generated more than $203 million in economic benefits in 2022, with more than 1,300 businesses taking part. A November 2022 city survey of hundreds of restaurant owners and businesses adjacent to patios, as well as more than 7,000 members of the general public, found solid support for the program.
“One good thing from COVID was the fact that Toronto finally allowed us to spread our wings onto the street and give energy to the city,” Stinson said.
“Unfortunately, it’s just very unorganized it seems and we like to prepare things in the restaurant business … every day is a crazy day and it would be nice to have some notice, be able to prepare and understand when we will make that extra revenue, but we obviously don’t have an idea.
“And then this year we have to pay for it of course, so the longer they take, the less profit we make by them dragging their heels,” she added.
The CaféTO program provides some restaurants and bars with increased outdoor dining areas in the public right-of way . (City of Toronto, CaféTO report November 2020)
Stinson said she wants to take part in the program because “it does create lots more revenue for us, by having the extra patio. I’d like to take advantage of the weather and it would be nice if it was quicker.”
According to Stinson, missing out on the Mother’s Day weekend and the upcoming Victoria Day weekend will result in “huge” losses for her business.
“We have to hire extra people in the kitchen and when we don’t have the revenue to pay for those extra people — servers and culinary staff — it’s basically like we have to pay them,” she said.
“We have to train them before this busy season and when there’s no patio ready then we don’t necessarily need them, but we have to keep them because it’s going to be crazy. But it would be nice to have this all planned. It’s not just planning to build a patio. It’s staffing and all types of things.”
City ‘still fairly on target,’ BIA manager says
Meg Marshall, manager of the Queen Street West BIA, said people are “really excited by the weather” and “are chomping at the bit.”
“[People] want to either have their patios up or go and patronize the patio. So, there’s that excitement in the air, which is amazing,” Marshall said.
Meg Marshall is the manager of the Queen Street West BIA. (CBC)
But she said because the CaféTO program is now permanent, the city has to take more due diligence in making sure that every site or every applicant meets the feasibility requirements.
“They can’t be as flexible or as lenient as they were with other situations in previous years,” Marshall said.
“So, it could be permanent parking spaces have to be taken into consideration, proximity to hydro vault, turning radius from corners and intersections. There’s lots of different technical things that most people don’t necessarily take note of or would understand per se. So, things are taking a lot longer than we had hoped.”
Marshall said the city is “still fairly on target,” adding that the program usually starts around the May 2-4 weekend.
“I think the city is moving as fast as it can knowing that there’s different departments that have to be involved as part of the feasibility assessment,” she said.
“Whenever we get a nice stretch of weather, the excitement obviously builds and everyone just wants to be out there. It’s a beautiful weekend right now so we all wish we were out there on a patio … We just have to, unfortunately, be a little bit more patient and we’ll get our patio sooner than later, I think. But we just have to be patient a little bit longer.”
More than 500 applications, city says
Meanwhile, the city of Toronto says it has received more than 500 applications from restaurant and bar owners and operators for CaféTO curb-lane cafés this year.
“Staff are working hard to review all applications as quickly as possible and are contacting businesses in sequential order about their curb-lane café permit areas now,” said Alex Burke, a media relations officer.
“The installation of traffic safety equipment city-wide is a process that takes several weeks and some restaurants will receive their curb-lane closure equipment and café permits before others, similar to previous years.”
According to Burke, the city anticipates that the application process will be quicker for returning CaféTO applicants in future years as curb-lane café permits will be renewable using previously approved designs and plans.
Burke said installation of approved CaféTO curb-lane café locations will begin on May 15 and continue through June.
TORONTO – Former fashion mogul Peter Nygard is expected to be sentenced for his sexual assault convictions today, after multiple delays in the case that have stretched for months.
The 83-year-old was convicted on four charges last November but the sentencing process has dragged on for several reasons, including Nygard’s difficulties in retaining legal counsel.
The sentencing was postponed once again last month because one of the Crown attorneys was out of the country.
Nygard’s latest lawyer is seeking a six-year sentence, citing her client’s age and health issues, while prosecutors have asked for a sentence of 15 years.
Nygard, who once helmed a successful women’s fashion company, was accused of sexually assaulting multiple women at his firm’s Toronto headquarters from the 1980s until the mid-2000s.
He was ultimately convicted of four counts of sexual assault but acquitted of a fifth count as well as one of forcible confinement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
Here is a roundup of stories from CanadaNewsMedia designed to bring you up to speed…
Liberal caucus gathers for retreat in Nanaimo
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau may be bracing for an earful from his caucus when Liberal MPs gather in Nanaimo, B.C. today to plot their strategy for the coming election year.
It will be the first time he faces them as a group since MPs departed Ottawa in the spring.
Still stinging from a devastating byelection loss earlier this summer, the caucus is now also reeling from news that their national campaign director has resigned and the party can no longer count on the NDP to stave off an early election.
The governing Liberals found themselves in political freefall last summer and despite efforts to refocus on key issues like housing and affordability, the polls have not moved back in their favour.
Simmering calls for a new leader reached a new intensity earlier this summer when the Conservatives won over a longtime Liberal stronghold in a major byelection upset in Toronto-St. Paul’s.
Here’s what else we’re watching…
Sentencing expected for Coutts protesters
A judge is expected to hand down sentences today for two men convicted for their roles in the 2022 Coutts, Alta., border blockade.
Anthony Olienick and Chris Carbert were convicted last month of public mischief over $5,000 and possessing a firearm dangerous to the public peace. Olienick was also convicted of possessing a pipe bomb.
A jury found them not guilty of the most serious charge they faced: conspiracy to murder police officers.
The men were charged after RCMP found guns, ammunition and body armour in trailers near the blockade at the key Canada-U.S. border crossing.
The blockade was one of several held across the country to protest COVID-19 rules and vaccine mandates.
Group calls for more tracking of health care funds
The Canadian Medical Association says there should be better tracking of health care spending, following health care agreements the federal government has signed with the provinces and territories.
The doctors’ group has released a new report calling for a greater commitment to tracking improvements in delivery and patient outcomes, citing the complexity of the deals.
It says the report outlines gaps in the agreements, such as that no province or territory has set targets for eliminating emergency room closures.
The medical association wants to establish a national health accountability officer, who would be focused on tracking progress and reporting on the efficiency of health care spending.
Last year, Ottawa announced $196 billion in funding over 10 years to improve access to health care, of which about $45 billion was new money.
Unions face battle organizing Amazon in Canada
Unions trying to organize at Amazon workplaces across Canada are facing a series of hurdles, including legal challenges and alleged anti-union tactics from the e-commerce giant.
Labour laws in Canada are generally stronger than those south of the border, where unions also face an uphill battle, experts say.
Amazon has challenged multiple steps of the certification process at several warehouses in Canada. It has been accused by unions of employing tactics to prevent workers from organizing, such as workplace messages and hiring sprees, which the company denies.
“Our employees have the right to choose to join a union or not to do so. They always have,” Amazon spokeswoman Barbara Agrait said in a statement, responding to characterizations of Amazon as anti-union.
She added that Amazon doesn’t think unions are the best option for its employees.
Peter Nygard’s sentencing expected today
Former fashion mogul Peter Nygard is expected to be sentenced for his sexual assault convictions today, after multiple delays in the case that have stretched for months.
The 83-year-old was convicted on four charges last November but the sentencing process has dragged on for several reasons, including Nygard’s difficulties in retaining legal counsel.
The sentencing was postponed once again last month because one of the Crown attorneys was out of the country.
Nygard’s latest lawyer is seeking a six-year sentence, citing her client’s age and health issues, while prosecutors have asked for a sentence of 15 years.
Nygard, who once helmed a successful women’s fashion company, was accused of sexually assaulting multiple women at his firm’s Toronto headquarters from the 1980s until the mid-2000s.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
OTTAWA – The Canadian Medical Association says there should be better tracking of health care spending, following health care agreements the federal government has signed with the provinces and territories.
The doctors’ group has released a new report calling for a greater commitment to tracking improvements in delivery and patient outcomes, citing the complexity of the deals.
It says the report outlines gaps in the agreements, such as that no province or territory has set targets for eliminating emergency room closures.
The medical association wants to establish a national health accountability officer, who would be focused on tracking progress and reporting on the efficiency of health care spending.
Last year, Ottawa announced $196 billion in funding over 10 years to improve access to health care, of which about $45 billion was new money.
Provinces and territories were asked to improve data sharing and measure progress in exchange for funds. In March, Quebec became the last province to sign on.
The association says the report found five provinces and territories don’t have targets for electronic access to health data and seven don’t have targets for information sharing.
It says it urges “all levels of governments to embrace proven solutions to ensure this historic-level funding truly transforms our health system.”
The group says more than 6.5 million Canadians don’t have a primary care physician, “surgical backlogs remain substantial, and the human health resource shortage is overwhelming.”
Association president Joss Reimer says in a statement “enhanced accountability is crucial to successfully implementing durable changes in our health care system.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
