A hearing for the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) challenge of a City of Toronto bylaw limiting the concentration of bars on Queen Street West in Parkdale takes place Feb. 14. City council adopted the bylaw last summer after the planning department completed a restaurant study of the strip. The bylaw included a cap on the number of bars along Queen West between Dufferin Street and Roncesvalles Avenue to 25 per cent. It also had a number of rules around size of dance floors, patios and prohibiting bars on second floors of buildings.
During that study a moratorium was placed on new bars, restaurants and bakeries opening. Since the bylaw was appealed by the Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association, the moratorium has remained in place.
An OMB pre-hearing is the first time those involved in the hearing meet. Pre-hearings are held to help identify issues, parties and participants; to determine what documents should be exchanged; and determine procedures before and during the hearing. They are also a time to set future hearing dates. For more details about this Parkdale Village article click here, and for case study details click: OMB Restaurant Study Pre-hearing - Feb 2014.