The City of Toronto is once again looking at expanding the operating hours of St. Lawrence Market and is seeking public input on how to do so.
The bustling South Market building, popular with both locals and tourists, is currently open five days a week, from 9 a.m.to 5 p.m. on Tuesday to Friday and on Saturdays from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is closed on Sundays and Mondays.
The city, which owns the market, started a pilot project to expand hours in March 2020, but had to abandon it and further limit hours due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As the city works to rebuild, the Market is now again considering relaunching expanded hours of operation,” the city said in a news release Wednesday. “The public survey is being conducted to verify how expanded hours of operation for the Market could best serve the public’s needs.”
The release notes that the pandemic has had many impacts on people’s daily lives, including their food shopping patterns and level of demand for additional shopping hours.
The online survey asks people about their habits around visits to the market, their food shopping habits in general and whether they would be more likely to visit the market on evenings and/ or Sundays.
In a statement, Toronto Centre Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam said it makes sense to re-examine the market’s hours now, ahead of the busy summer season.
“I look forward to optimized hours of operation for the Market so that this community anchor can better support the small businesses operating in the Market and the many residents of Toronto that it serves,” she said in a release. “Looking forward to a lively summer season, now is the right time to consider relaunching expanded hours of operation for the Market.”
The survey takes around 10 minutes to complete and will be available until April 18 for those who wish to weigh in.
