NDP calls for plan to help local business owners hurt by Eglinton Crosstown delay

QUEEN’S PARK — Jill Andrew, NDP MPP for Toronto-St. Paul’s, called on the Doug Ford government to put a plan in place to support local business owners who are suffering because of the Liberal and Conservative failures on the P3 Eglinton Crosstown. Andrew’s call comes after local business owners learned that construction on the Crosstown has been delayed yet again.

“Liberals and Conservatives have bungled the Eglinton Crosstown project so badly that it’s being sidetracked again,” said Andrew. “Businesses in vibrant communities like Little Jamaica, Yonge and Eglinton, and Dufferin and Eglinton, right here in my riding of Toronto-St. Paul’s, are already paying the price, and they simply can’t afford to keep hanging on by a thread, wracked with debt and stress, for two more years.”

Local business owners have been dealing with the impact of construction on the Eglinton Crosstown since 2011. The Crosstown was originally supposed to be completed in 2020. It now won’t be completed until sometime in 2022. Neither Metrolinx nor the Ford government have provided any form of financial compensation or other types of support for these small businesses.

“The Liberals let local business owners down by forcing the community to fight to prevent the shutdown of the Bathurst and Eglinton intersection for seven months,” said Andrew. “Now Doug Ford is turning his back on business owners in my riding as closed signs sprout up along Eglinton Avenue, flying in the face of his claims that Ontario is open for business.

“Small business owners in Toronto-St. Paul’s bring a distinct sense of culture, identity and heritage to our community, and they deserve better. I am urging this government to come forward with a plan to support business owners who are struggling until the Crosstown construction is finally complete.”