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QW Blog

BIA Letter Re: Urgent Ask for Additional Supports and Clarity for Main Street Businesses

4/9/2021

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Emailed to:
Premier Doug Ford premier@ontario.ca  
MPP Hon. Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria (Brampton South) prabmeet.sarkaria@pc.ola.org 
Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction
MPP Vic Fedeli (Nipissing) vic.fedelico@pc.ola.org 
Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade Chair of CabinetMPP Lisa Thompson (Huron-Bruce) lisa.thompson@pc.ola.org 
Minister of Government and Consumer Services
MPP Chris Glover (Spadina-Fort York) CGlover-CO@ndp.on.ca 
MPP Marit Stiles (Davenport) MStiles-QP@ndp.on.ca 
MPP Peter Tabuns (Toronto-Danforth) tabunsp-co@ndp.on.ca  
MPP Jessica Bell (University-Rosedale) jbell-CO@ndp.on.ca 
MPP Catherine Fife (Waterloo) CFife-QP@ndp.on.ca 

April 9, 2021
To our provincial leaders,

Re: Urgent Ask for Additional Supports and Clarity for Main Street Businesses
The Riverside District, Queen Street West, Bloorcourt, Leslieville and West Queen West BIAs are five of Toronto’s 80+ BIAs. We collectively represent approximately 1300 small and medium sized businesses and property owners. The views expressed in this letter come from our direct consultations with our members.
While we recognize that efforts have been made to support our businesses during the ongoing pandemic, not enough has been done. Our members are looking for outcomes including more financial support for Toronto-based businesses, policy that is driven by transparent statistics, and clear lines of communication.
In summary, what is needed:
  • More sustained financial support for Toronto area businesses who have been on the longest lockdown in North America - with geographic considerations toward fixed costs: 
    • Remuneration for sectors that were publicly informed of reopening timeframes and then ordered to abandon reopening plans (including but not limited to health, fitness, beauty, wellness, retail, restaurants, and hospitality)
    • Introducing a sector-specific program for covering reopening and closure costs, such as wasted inventory, staffing costs, etc.  
    • Inclusive financial support programs that ensure all types of businesses in need are able to participate (i.e. new businesses that have opened during the pandemic, single person businesses).
    • Immediately and permanently cease the 6% markup that restaurants pay for alcohol from the LCBO. 

  • Scientific and evidence-based decision-making for policies and regulations: 
    • Transparency is needed with credible facts and sources to identify the reasoning for strong and major business closure actions taken by the provincial government
    • A clear path is needed now for how businesses can plan for re-opening for the remainder of 2021, following the current stay-at-home/ lockdown order, aligned with statistics, clearly associated KPIs (e.g. based on case counts, vaccination rates)

  • Clear lines of communication 
    • Outline a clear plan for how lockdown measures will be eased to avoid any further unnecessary costs for reopening and closing of businesses. News releases must immediately come with updated detailed regulations and orders.
    • Create a reasonable and clear set of rules for vaccinated people to remove uncertainty for our public-facing main street businesses

Due to the financial devastation that has been produced by the actions provincial government measures have been enacted to date, some businesses are taking risks under the strain they are experiencing. The only way to navigate past this reality is to directly address their concerns transparently on a financial, mental and emotional level.

We are already losing the character of our neighbourhoods and the social and economic diversity in all sectors of industry. The measures we have outlined are what business leaders need to see now to prevent decimation of our main streets.
On behalf all of the BIAs mentioned above,
 
Jennifer Lay                                                    Meg Marshall
Executive Director                                        Manager          
Riverside BIA                                                  Bloorcourt & Queen Street West BIAs

​c.c. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca 
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland (University-Rosedale) Chrystia.Freeland@parl.gc.ca 
MP Mary Ng (Markham-Thornhill) Mary.Ng@international.gc.ca 
MP Julie Dabrusin (Toronto-Danforth) Julie.Dabrusin@parl.gc.ca   
MP Julie Dzerowicz (Davenport) Julie.Dzerowicz@parl.gc.ca 
Mayor John Tory (City of Toronto) mayor_tory@toronto.ca  
Councillor Paula Fletcher (Toronto-Danforth) councillor_fletcher@toronto.ca 
Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam (Toronto Centre) councillor_wongtam@toronto
Councillor Ana Bailao (Davenport) Councillor_Bailao@toronto.ca 
Councillor Mike Layton (University-Rosedale) councillor_layton@toronto.ca 
Councillor Joe Cressy (Spadina-Fort York) councillor_cressy@toronto.ca 
Councillor Brad Bradford (Beaches East-York) councillour_bradford@toronto.ca
John Kiru - Toronto BIA Association jkiru@toronto-bia.com  


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Queen West Inspiration Through the Lens of a Photographer

10/24/2020

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Toronto is a very photogenic city. We have one of the best skylines in the world. With that said, there are some sections of the city that have amazing character - Queen Street West is certainly one of them. My name is Richie (@rich3dee) and am a Toronto based portrait and street-style photographer, sharing what inspires me for photo shoots and capturing moments along Queen Street West.

Favourite Places To Shoot On Queen West

Graffiti Alley
Everyone’s favourite spot, or perhaps the most notable spot is Graffiti Alley. Its the longest stretch of alleyway in the city where you can see street art from some of the city’s most talented artists. My very first portrait session was shot in Graffiti Alley in 2016 because like everyone else, I wanted to take pictures in a cool urban scape with character. I mean, where else can you find a random couch and step stool to use as a prop for a shoot?

More recently, Graffiti Alley has been utilized by artists to address social issues such as Black Lives Matter with an initiative called “Paint the City Black”. During the height of the social injustice that occurred at the beginning of the summer, many artists showed their solidarity through art.
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Osgoode Station
This is such a cool spot for street photography as you can capture a lot of people on the go as they are rushing out of the station to catch the street car or running into the station to catch the next train.
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Queen and Spadina
Such a busy intersection with a mix of old and new Toronto, coupled with heavy pedestrian and vehicle traffic, Queen and Spadina is a street photographers dream (beware to not get caught on the street car tracks!). The south-west corner of the intersection also offers a nice unobstructed view of the CN Tower.
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With street photography in Toronto, I look at it as an opportunity to capture the character, beauty and charm that makes the city such a unique and diverse place. I absolutely love shooting our street cars, our historic buildings and people in motion. We have some of the most photogenic street cars in the world, the bright red rocket that you can see coming from a mile away. Queen Street West definitely offers some unique views of our space needle aka CN Tower. One thing is for sure, the people in the streets of Toronto are always hustling, always on the go which always makes for amazing actions shots during a leisurely stroll of Queen West.
Tips for Shooting on Queen West
  • shoot with a friend - never know when you may need someone to watch your back when you’re shooting and drifting into traffic; also your friend can double as a subject/model :)
  • Shoot during the day if you want capture people in motion (more natural light allows for a faster shutter speed) but also come back at night - the lit up store fronts look very dynamic against a night sky
  • personally, I prefer to shoot during overcast and even rainy days as the pictures tend to be moodier without much additional editing required.
  • if you’re shooting portraits and you need some accessories, clothing or props, be sure to support some local shops such as Get Fresh Clothing, Vitaly, and Get Outside. 
  • do not limit yourself, be diverse, be confined by nothing. “You miss 100% of shots you dont take” Set your lens on doing some street photography, portraits and even some product photography.
Photography and Writing by Richie Dos Santos
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Land Acknowledgement 
The City of Toronto acknowledges that what we now call Toronto is on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. The City also acknowledges that Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 signed with the Mississaugas of the Credit, and the Williams Treaties signed with multiple Mississaugas and Chippewa bands.
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      • 416 Snack Bar Recipe
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      • HotBlack Coffee
      • La Palette
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      • Mi Taco Taqueria
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      • Parka
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