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Main street shops in Toronto are facing some of their biggest challenges as new transit lines and residential towers under construction have caused seemingly interminable disruptions that undermine trade activity.

But the 86 Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) in the Greater Toronto Area – designated as districts where local businesses and property owners fund and manage improvements – can help reduce the impact of construction by working with developers to shape projects that best suit their communities, said John Kiru, CEO, Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA).

A speaker at a seminar at the Buildings Show recently in Toronto, Kiru said developers need not be afraid of BIAs. Among other things, they can help guide developers through the oft-complex development approvals process.

“At the same time there is an expectation of collaboration to make sure the retail mix continues to be supportive of the neighbourhood.”

He said an example of a development that often runs counter to the needs of small main street businesses is when a highrise features a large amount of square footage for lease on the main floor.

Another difficulty for small shops can be new public transit developments.

The Eglinton Crosstown LRT is a case in point.

“I have 12 BIAs that have been caught up in that 15-year transit project.”

The pandemic was the beginning of a retail shift to online sales that has also hurt small neighbourhood shops, Kiru told the seminar audience, noting it led to his founding of Digital Main Street (DMS).

A nationally recognized program helping more than 120,000 small businesses transition into the digital economy, DMS provides tools, training and funding for shops to develop or improve websites, e-commerce and other online marketing efforts.

Kiru said the city’s first BIA was established in Bloor West Village in 1970 through amendments to Ontario’s Municipal Act that created a mechanism for local businesses to collectively fund improvements and market their street.

It came about as new regional malls and the construction of the Bloor subway began draining vitality from local shops along Bloor Street.

Kiru said the number of BIAs is projected to grow to 130 in the GTA by 2035.

Chris van de Water, vice-president of development, Fitzrovia, said the developer understands the importance of working with the community, the BIA and the city on the design of its purpose-built rental projects.

And, he said over the past 18 months or so the City of Toronto’s urban design and planning departments have been more open to collaborate with Fitzrovia on projects, including anything from the design of open space around the building to the look and type of amenities in the building. 

A factor in selecting retail inside is that it does not “crowd out someone that is operating in the same space” on the street.

One of the concerns of the city’s urban design department is the integration of the tower into the neighbourhood “so it doesn’t feel like a walled off building, closed to the public.”     

“The easiest way to do that is by providing a coffee shop” open to the public on the ground floor of the building, van de Water said.

He added first-rate gyms and co-working spaces are among the amenities that can help to provide social spaces for the building’s residents.  

“We recognize that you can’t just have someone organically get to know their neighbours on the building’s elevator. You have to give them opportunities.

“At the end of the day it leads to a better finished product,” van de Water told the audience.