THE GREEN LINE
ORIGINAL STORY
How Cabbagetown's New Walking Tour is Helping Revive its Hyperlocal Economy
The Green Line team walked around Cabbagetown to take the neighbourhood BIA's unique tour, which aims to support small businesses and highlight local history.
Matthew Mohan, executive director of the Cabbagetown BIA (pictured right) takes the Main Street Mosaic Tour with Amilia Cervantes, the BIA's marketing and events coordinator (pictured left).
: Amanda Seraphina/The Green Line.
AMANDA SERAPHINA JAMES RAJAKUMAR
Indian immigrant with a post-grad in journalism from Centennial College. Now living in Grange Park, meeting new people, and hearing different stories. Has four names, so it’s a pick-your-player situation.
August 23, 2024
With beach days, street festivals and live music in full swing, Toronto is buzzing with activities this summer.
So, one group in Cabbagetown is making the most of summer foot traffic by launching a unique walking tour to support local businesses.
At the height of COVID-19, Cabbagetown's main street businesses took a hit. A March 2023 loan repayment survey conducted by the City of Toronto Business Improvement Areas, reported that three out of four small businesses here made below 75 per cent of their pre-COVID sales.
A graphic showing the decline in sales for small businesses in Toronto during the COVID-19 pandemic.
: Paul Zwambag for THE GREEN LINE.
In response, the Cabbagetown BIA came up with the idea for Main Street Mosaic Tours, a free, self-guided walking tour that takes users through the neighbourhood and spotlights local businesses. While the BIA team had a walking tour in mind since February 2023, they were still awaiting funding. In the fall of 2023, the BIA received the City of Toronto Main Street Innovation Fund, which helped it put the plan into action in June 2024.
“I really think that we're at a time where the survival of our small businesses in Cabbagetown, across the city of Toronto, is really in danger of being lost to a lot of big box retailers or a lot of franchises," says Cabbagetown BIA executive director Matthew Mohan.
"Then where is our city going to be when those cultural hubs are gone? And so, the more that we can do to teach people about the history of these neighbourhoods and the architectural significance of these neighbourhoods, [the better].
“These neighbourhoods have been here for hundreds of years.”
Users can take the tour at their convenience by hopping on the Driftscape app. From Carlton and Sherbourne Streets, down to Parliament Street, learn Cabbagetown's in-depth history, get special offers at local stores and watch video interviews of business owners such as Tania Waldock, co-owner of House on Parliament.
The gastropub’s sales fell significantly during the pandemic, and only got back to 2019 levels last year. During physical lockdowns, House on Parliament’s sales were down 80 per cent when they could only provide takeout. In 2020 and 2021, sales were down 50 per cent and 45 per cent, respectively. Circumstances improved a little in 2022, but House on Parliament was still down 15 per cent. Waldock says 2023 was technically “back to normal” but adds that inflation and wage increases were disproportionate to the gastropub’s increase in sales.
“I would say this summer, we have had a noticeable uptick in tourist visits or for visitors from outside the area; I would love to attribute that to the tours,” she explains. “There's more to do now and having [House on Parliament] accessible on an app as opposed to somewhere where you have to go and pick up a map or sign up for an event — this has been a much more accessible tour. It's easy. People can just come on their own.”
The tour became available on June 15, attracting around 1,000 participants. It was slated to end on Aug. 15, but in light of this big turnout, the BIA is continuing its tour until the end of 2024.
Gilles Huot, a Cabbagetown resident who took the Cabbagetown BIA’s tour, stands outside Winchester Hotel and Winchester Hall, one of the tour stops.
: Amanda Seraphina/The Green Line.
Gilles Huot, a local resident who took the tour, says it teaches why and when buildings in the neighbourhood were built, and describes their architectural style. The tour also gives more information on the businesses running out of these buildings, and links to video snippets of the business owners sharing their stories.
“As residents of Cabbagetown, you come and you go to the store — in and out and everything — and you just get your things, and that's it,” he explains. “[The tour] gives texture…where it's no longer just the place where you shop, but it's your village, it's your place, it's your neighbourhood."
Matthew Mohan, executive director of the Cabbagetown BIA, stands at Parliament Street and Carlton Street to talk about Main Street Mosaic Tours.
: Amanda Seraphina/The Green Line.
Mohan believes the app format makes it easy to replicate the Cabbagetown BIA's walking tour in neighbourhoods across Toronto, and help shore up their hyperlocal economies.
"Whether it's the history of Little Italy, whether it's the cultural significance of Gerrard India Bazaar, whether it's the absolutely amazing food that you can find in a neighbourhood like the Junction, lots of BIAs or neighbourhoods can take something like a self-directed walking tour app like Driftscape or something else, and put together a really fun tour — like a food tour like a cultural tour — and be able to drive people to the neighbourhood," he says.
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