Hi All, I know we're waiting to hear from the Province and City this afternoon re: moving or not moving into the Grey Zone. In the meantime I wanted to share the information below from the City of Toronto regarding the much discussed VOCs (variants of concern) that are increasing in spread. I recommend taking a few minutes to read through the release. Also, I'm looking for any business member who is having a hard time renewing their insurance -…

Good Afternoon All, We are hoping that Toronto might be able to transition to the Grey Zone this coming Monday, Feb. 22nd. If that happens then our non-essential retail members are able to open with limited in-store shopping. For our larger retailers who have been able to stay open with in-store customers - Loblaws and Shoppers - you are still limited to 50% capacity; LCBO - you are still limited to 25%. For all other retailers you will be limited…

Good Afternoon All, I hope that everyone is doing okay on this very snowy day! The Province has expanded their grant eligibility for their Main Street Grant program. This is the $1,000 grant for small businesses to access in order to purchase ppe. I know that some of you have already taken advantage of this funding but.... if you haven't you may want to apply now. Full details and application links are contained below. Snow Clearing: Just a reminder that…

Good Afternoon All, Premier Ford has just completed his announcements regarding the reopening of certain areas and the extension of the Stay at Home orders for other areas. At this time Toronto's Stay at Home orders will be maintained until Monday, Feb. 22/21. Again that means only going out for essentials and some exercise, no one allowed in your home who doesn't live there on an on-going basis, no in-person dining or shopping at small retailers. Our Toronto numbers are…

Good Afternoon All, A while back I had emailed you about the situation surrounding rising insurance rates and in some cases insurance policies not being renewed. We pushed this issue with Premier Ford and he said that he would "lay the hammer down on insurance companies". Since then we haven't heard any updates and we haven't seen the effects of the so-called "hammer being laid down". So we're working with TABIA and our fellow Toronto BIAs to push this issue…

Good Wintery Afternoon All, Given the snow storm happening I thought this was a good time to let you know about a couple of things that will be happening in our BIA. 1. Snow Clearing The City was offering BIAs the opportunity to apply for a Winter Activation grant. We applied and were accepted. We will be using part of this grant to pay for curated snow removal within our BIA. Each year we have the problem of large snow…