City of Toronto's 'CafeTO' Initiative Allowing Businesses to Expand Patios into Sidewalks

By Jessica Finch

The City of Toronto recently announced its CafeTO initiative where outdoor patios can be expanded into sidewalks and parking lots to assist restaurants with physical distancing regulations as they prepare to reopen soon.

The CafeTO initiative is designed to create more outdoor space for restaurants and bars in an attempt to make up for the lost revenue over the past months of closures.

A press release stated that the program “will provide more outdoor dining areas by identifying space in the public right-of-way and expediting the current application and permitting process for sidewalk cafes and parklets.”

In Mayor John Tory’s announcement he noted the continued strain put on Toronto’s restaurants due to not being permitted to allow dine-in guests. He was also optimistic that the time to reopen is fast-approaching and assured the food and beverage industry that the city is available to assist restauranteurs in the application of the CafeTO program in the coming weeks.

“CafeTO is one more example of a quick-start program that will bring vibrancy back to our main streets and help our hospitality industry and all those who rely on it.”

To date, the city has already implemented a cross-divisional action team to oversee the program efficiently, and is conducting a review of current requirements while determining how the city can better support businesses, including waiving patio fees which would otherwise be levied on expanded space and undertaking planning for reallocating curb lanes for patios to maximize space.

CafeTO is working closely with TABIA and the city’s many BIAs to coordinate the economic rescue initiative. They will be key to ensuring restaurants in appropriate locations across the city have the means and information to sign up for expanded space as soon as possible.

Establishing the essential cafe placements guidelines is also underway and quickly being finalized to ensure participating patios can be operational as soon as they are permitted.

Regular permit and application fees may be waived in order to allow for participating restaurants and bars to incorporate these new aspects to their business model.

Deputy Mayor Thompson called the initiative “an opportunity to expand patio culture across our City and bring people back to our main streets as the city begins to reopen and recover”.

The toronto.ca website states that “a simple registration process for businesses to sign-up for CafeTO will be shared with business owners as soon as its finalized.”

This announcements comes after Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced that government officials are in the process of permitting second stage of the province’s economic reopening plan, part of which may include the reopening of patios. On Wednesday Ford allowed parts of the province to open on Friday, though areas such as Toronto will remain shut for the time being.

Restaurants in Edmonton, Calgary, and Vancouver are steps ahead of Ontario and have already been permitted to reopen the food and beverage industry for dine-in guests. Some establishments are availing of similar initiatives to what we hope to see in Toronto.

B.C. is currently in phase two of its reopening plan, which began on May 19 and permits patios to open with sufficient distancing measures. Recent reporting on the status of open restaurants and patios in B.C., however, have noted a shortage in patrons since opening a few weeks ago. Within the first few days of reopening things seemed to be picking up — at 50 percent capacity of course — but have subsequently dropped off.

In Alberta, the industry was permitted to begin business once again on May 14, during stage one of the province’s reopening plan. Again, with regulations to keep capacity at 50 percent. Foodservice businesses across the country are hoping to see a return in traffic. In international markets where foodservice businesses have reopened, however, business has been slower than prior to the COVID-19 shutdowns. A recent Angus Reid study shows that more than half of Canadians are hesitant to return to restaurants any time soon. So it seems, just like everything else COVID-related, only time will tell.

Jessica Finch is a writer and editor based in Toronto. She holds a BA in English and Psychology and is a graduate of Ryerson University’s Publishing program. She has extensive managerial experience in the food service industry, and is interested in exploring innovations within this sector and other retail environments. Email: jessica@retail-insider.com

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