The City of Toronto is giving King Street business owners a bit of a break this patio season.
Businesses have been granted permission to set up patio space in the curbside lane of the busy downtown street and the city has now opted to waive the application fee required to occupy that space for businesses within King Street pilot area.
In an email to CP24 Wednesday, Bruce Hawkins, a spokesperson for the city’s planning department, said business owners are still required to pay all other fees associated with operating patios, including a café application fee, as well as fees associated with acquiring a liquor licence, if needed.
Hawkins added that design, construction, and maintenance of the patios still falls to businesses.
The move may appease some King Street business owners who have been critical of the one-year pilot project since it began in November.
While the city says the pilot has been successful in improving commute times for the tens of thousands of people who use the King streetcar every day, a group of outspoken business owners have railed against the pilot since it was implemented in November.
The pilot stipulates that anyone driving on King Street between Jarvis and Bathurst streets must only travel one block before making a right-hand turn and during the winter months, a handful of business owners claimed that the traffic restrictions discouraged people from dining and shopping on King Street.
The owners claimed that the lack of business had a substantial impact on their bottom line.
The city subsequently launched a number of measures to help encourage customers to eat, drink, and shop on King Street. Some of the initiatives included offering discounted parking in the surrounding area and introducing the ‘Food is King’ promotion, which gave diners a $15 credit to order food from several King Street restaurants using the Ritual app.
