Restaurant patios spark clashes over noise and loss of sidewalk space

Robins and packed outdoor restaurant patios: In Toronto those are the two sure signs of spring.

But with the patios come the inevitable clashes. Last year, the City of Toronto recorded 270 complaints related to outdoor patios, some dealing with noise. And then theres the loss of precious sidewalk space, squeezing out pedestrians, moms with strollers, seniors on mobility scooters or parents with children in tow.

Teresa Pavlin, a mother of two who lives in the Junction, finds restaurant owners dont always use the best judgment when it comes to patio accoutrements. Getting a stroller down a street crowded with pedestrians as well as other furniture such as planters and sandwich boards can be difficult, she said. But at least we have options. People in wheelchairs and scooters are much more limited.

Councillor Mary Fragedakis (Ward 29, Toronto-Danforth) says residents used to complain about trying to navigate the Danforth with its numerous restaurant patios. But those days are gone with the removal last fall of bulky concrete planters on sidewalks from Broadview to Donlands.

Many had been located at the pinch points, or in front of existing patios, said Fragedakis.

People are praising it to the heavens theyre saying it seems wider now. Its better for pedestrians, for people pushing strollers, elderly people on mobility scooters.

Aside from that, Fragedakis hasnt heard of people unhappy with the Danforths patios. People come to eat, have a coffee or to drink. They sit out and enjoy the fine weather its part of the vibrancy of the area.

As long as the nice flavour restaurant patios bring to an area is balanced with a respect for sidewalk boundaries, Dwight Peters is happy to live near them.

It may sound petty, the downtown condo resident says, when a complaint is made about a patios umbrellas, flowers or sidewalk signs encroaching on the adjoining sidewalk, as happened recently with Bier Markt restaurant on The Esplanade.

But the issue of encroaching patios is important because so many people share the congested corridors of heavily trafficked pedestrian routes, like The Esplanade, says Peters.

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Restaurant patios spark clashes over noise and loss of sidewalk space