‘Double-whammy:’ Small businesses along the Eglinton Crosstown corridor petition for financial help

Less marketing and more direct financial support.

That is the message of the York-Eglinton Business Improvement Area (BIA) to Metrolinx, the government agency involved in a decades-long construction project in the area that won’t see completion until well into 2022.

Now, coupled with COVID-19 closures, the small businesses along the Eglinton Crosstown corridor say they won’t survive the winter if they don’t get financial help.

Nick Alampi’s family has owned and operated Anthony and Andrew’s Formals, a small clothing store, for almost 50 years. He says it seems like there is no provincial plan to deal with the fallout of COVID-19 and the construction delays, which makes the uncertainty about the future that much harder to face.

“There is nobody on the street,” he says. “Yes, construction is important, but small shops are the incubators of what happens in the area. We’re hearing other areas (like Montreal) are giving percentage-based support. Traffic flow has come to a near stop and with COVID, there is no action plan or understanding of what we should be doing.”

This cry for help is the main callout behind a petition called Eglinton West Now, says Louroz Mercader who is the manager of the BIA. The BIA represents 200 properties on Eglinton Avenue, many of them run the risk of not surviving the winter.

Mercader says he hopes to raise awareness for the complex issues facing the area because he says the small businesses along the corridor have done everything they can on their own.

“To paint a picture, if you think about three massive construction zones in front of your business for a decade,” he said. “Business has been down in terms of foot traffic because of lack of parking. Suddenly we were hit by COVID, so it was a double-whammy. A lot of our businesses are service-based so they’re not allowed to be open during this time.”

Along with calling on the province, Metrolinx and Crosslinx to help with more financial supports for the businesses, the petition also calls on the Green P parking organization to ensure their lots are safe.

They are also asking Toronto Public Health and the city to ensure more is being done to help vulnerable populations who have moved into areas around the construction zones.

In an email statement to CityNews, Metrolinx said, “The Ontario government has begun allocating their pledge of $3-milion to fund marketing and promotion of businesses impacted by LRT construction along Eglinton Avenue that will provide direct funding to some of these businesses.”

In addition, the spokesperson also says Metrolinx has been working with BIAs and the community to help support small businesses during this time through “shop local marketing initiatives and signage and advertising, as well as parking support, community outreach, and procuring social enterprises such as ‘Building Up’ – which runs pre-apprenticeship trades training – for help with window cleaning.”

Metrolinx also said they are funding “Digital Main Street,” which is an “online platform and service for main street businesses that can help with the adoption of digital tools and/or technologies.”

Construction on the Crosstown LRT is expected to be finished sometime in 2022.

Retailers considered non-essential in Ontario’s COVID-19 hotspots of Toronto and Peel Region were forced to shut their doors on November 23 for at least a 28-day period that began on Nov. 23.