City
What ails Little India?
Little India on a Monday afternoon is a ghost town. Granted, it's the off-season. Plus, on days like today, when it feels like -15°C and the wind is blowing furiously across Gerrard Street East, I can understand why the sidewalks aren't overflowing with pedestrian traffic. But the storefront windows covered with newspapers and scattering of "For Lease" signs, several within one block west of Coxwell Ave., give the impression that something is amiss.
After speaking with several restaurant owners along the bazaar, the consensus seems to be that competition outside of Toronto--such as in Brampton and Mississauga--is sucking up the business Gerrard's Indian Bazaar once enjoyed exclusively.
"It's very bad now," one of the owners of Moti Mahal tells me as we chat by the buffet of his nearly empty restaurant. "Even the weekends aren't good. Everyone is struggling." The restaurant has been a fixture in Little India for several decades, undergoing a remodel about five years ago. "Now there is just so much competition; in Malton, in Rexdale, Mississauga. Now we have to rely a lot on tourists." He says he's noticed the change happen over the past few years, and at its worst over the past seven or eight months. "I'm hoping more festivals or something can revive the area."
I get a similar impression talking to the men at Nitya, the restaurant that moved into the space previously occupied by Skylark Restaurant. "There's an Indian bazaar in Brampton, an Indian bazaar in Mississauga, an Indian bazaar in Markham. So people can find places to shop closer to their homes." Though Nitya has been around for under a year, its owner is an area veteran, and these men say there's been a marked different in recent years. "There's been fewer people," one says. "Especially when people hear in the news that the DVP is under construction, the Lakeshore is under construction, it becomes very difficult to come out here, so they stay in their communities. Plus parking is bad and they don't want to risk getting a ticket."
Personally, I've never driven to Little India, but apparently pay parking is enforced to the second--which means a lot of unhappy returning to tickets on their windshields after lunch or shopping.
The hope here seems to be some sort of revival in the summer to breathe new life into the area. Moti Mahal's owner tells me business always picks up during the wedding season, even if though hasn't been as good in recent years. In the meantime, though, restaurants are just trying to keep their tables occupied during the rough winter months and hope for summertime resuscitation of Gerrard's Indian Bazaar.
Photographs by Derek Flack.
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Like Chinatown, the real action is up in the 'burbs. Look for coffee shops, art galleries and hipstah monoculture to fill in when these businesses move out.
It can't rely on being Indian anymore. It needs to be full of quality businesses.
Hopefully these business owners actually own their units. They'll make a mint selling off the land.
End of story.
Several of my neighbours have been trying to get a sandwich shop or coffee shop set up on Gerrard and they've been told point blank that their business is not welcome.
One could argue that they're trying to preserve the cultural integrity of the area, but as those businesses move away to the suburbs, they're also keeping out other businesses from taking their place. This is a problem as the "for lease" signs multiply.
The reality is the businesses on Gerrard aren't trying to cater to the people that live here. They wont survive based on the saturday/sunday traffic from their target markets, and thats why we see so many empty storefronts and the biggest restaurant in the neighborhood (lahore tikka hut) is still unfinished after years of 'renovations'. Even shopping for groceries in BJ's seems to earn me a scowl. The only restaurant on Gerrard I patronize is Siddartha.
Luckily Queen St has excellent cafes like Voulez Vous and Red Rocket. I'll happily trek down there to spend my money where its appreciated.
This area is pretty heartbreaking these days.
http://www.bbc.com/travel/feature/20101027-torontos-world-map
So quality businesses aren't Indian? The neighbourhood *can* rely on being Indian, if it going to work at it. It just needs quality *Indian* estasblishments and a good marketing strategy.
That said, I don't believe in creating a neighbourhood that isn't true to who lives there. If the neighbourhood no longer has that many South Asian residents, it doesn't make sense to push it. If the greatest concentration of South Asians in Toronto is located elsewhere in Toronto, then that area naturally becomes the new Little India.
Culture- and ethnicity-based neighbourhoods grow out of the culture and ethnicity of its residents.
Personally i'd like to see *something* in those abandoned storefronts up on Gerrard. If its true what the other poster said about the BIA keeping non-ethnic businesses out, it is a shame because its going to kill the area over time. You just have to look farther west along Gerrard to see re-gentrification in full swing by Jones.
Maybe the businesses aren't actively targeting the residents, but I am a super pale freaky person and everyone is always kind and never mean about my poor pronunciation of their holiday greetings. Maybe ya'll just need to smile and talk to people more.
Anyone who's taken the streetcar or driven through the stretch in the past few years can see that Little India as it was known is long gone. It is a ghost town most days. It's time for the neighbourhood to understand the change is coming. Tragic but true.
* Clothing stores abound sell seemingly identical apparel.
* Restaurants food style fall into a few categories.
* Patios are non-existent making it difficult to attract new customers in the summer months.
* There are NO late night businesses to draw in foot traffic like a theatre, cinema, pub/lounge, etc.
* No coffee shops (also along the theme of lack of diversity) to bring in the lounging type of customer that makes an area look busy and desirable....Though sidecar is a welcome addition, it's on the fringe of India Bazaar.
* In addition to a lack of patio, there's no nearby park or place to sit down, fly a kite, have a picnic, etc. It has this small, run down, unwelcoming feel to it at times.
I really want the area to do well but it has a lot of structural problems that have persisted as long as I have lived in Toronto. Without a major change or a shakeup at the BIA so they actually come up with a proper vision like the Riverside and Greektown BIA have done, this area will become a historical footnote.
People hoping this place will end up like Leslieville. Jesus H. Christ. Well, rejoice away, Starbucks is opening at Gerrard and Jones, not long before it comes down the street.
And really, is it THAT HARD to walk to Shoppers' at Coxwell for a Timbit fix? I'm guessing that Coffee Time will flip to a Tim's eventually, as the one by the Don Jail did, but when I want something bad enough, I go get it.
I'm thinking more along the lines of a bollywood theatre mixed in with NA/EU films, modern Indian fashion, a park with Indian and Hindu themes/gods/statues, a cultural centre that hosts Indian art events, language classes, cultural grants, etc, exotic Indian music shops where you can buy and learn to play the Sitar, hooka/shisha shops, etc. You get the idea. NOT boring, fun and diverse yet still distinctly Indian/Pakistani. The area today is has very little fun things to offer.
And I think we are seeing the early stages, TL - though the real estate isn't cheap, it's less than Leslieville and the Beaches. In the good weather, we see places all around us flip owners, some a few times in the last few years. Most of the places are getting renos. It doesn't look like south of Gerrard or north of the tracks yet, but it's coming along.
People love Leslieville partially because of its cool independent shops and businesses and that sort of thing wasn't developed by bringing in corporate chains. If the BIA isn't open, that would be a sad thing. Piero has some excellent points. But a lot of these comments seem to be 'I don't have a place to get coffee, the stores aren't for me, therefore it sucks. Living on Queen would be cooler.'
I would echo many of the comments above:
Appearance/Streetscape:
The BIA did invest is some nice pedestrian lights a few years ago, though that is their only investment of which I am aware. The lights however, do not extend to Coxwell in the east, or Greenwood in the west, which means there is no attractive gateway into the community, and no brand-awareness locally. If those pedestrian lights were extended to Coxwell (perhaps the BIA boundary isn't that far, but if it isn't, it should be)... Then anyone passing along Coxwell might get a visual cue...oh India Bazaar...that way.
They need to invest in creating at least one signature public space. Nothing on the scale of NPS or even the Greentown pubic square is needed; but just a focal point that's attractive for gathering, pick one side street and 'pinch' it at Gerrard to create a gather spot with room so some sort of enhanced streetscaping.
They need to have a coordinated lighting display for Diwali.
Flowers in the summer season would also be a nice touch.
***
On Patios, this is a must, and liquor licenses.
You want to tempt me out for a late-night snack or a romantic dinner, show me, tempt me, don't hide behind a closed door with a seeming indifference to passersby!
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On Cinema
The 'India Centre' was a grand old 1-screen cinema many years ago. Now it is not terribly attractive mini-mall of sorts.
Partial restoration, possibly to a 2-screen cinema (utilizing the original balcony level as the 2nd screen) and becoming THE PLACE to see Bollywood or other South Asian cinema in the heart of the City would be great.
****
Finally, while I absolutely support the area retaining its 'theme' it must do more to meet the needs of every-day residents from a variety of backgrounds.
That means, inviting an upmarket 'western' coffee shop; be that Timmy's, Starbucks or an independent; that means looking at groceries, hardware, or even a local pizza place (chain or indy). Greektown is still Greek even with a Timmy's, a Starbuck's and a Mamma's Pizza.
The Indian Bazaar can likewise maintain a clear identity while mixing in a bit of variety to appeal to a broader constituency.
***
Perhaps Blog T.O. could inquire with the BIA on the various points raised in the article and the comments?
I'll add my voice to those of my neighbours who decry the inability or unwillingness of the BIA to open the area up to non South Asian businesses - how do we go about changing this? I'm on board. I'm proud of my heritage and happy to have some of the comforts of my upbringing so close at hand, but I'd also love to be able to sit on a patio and drink a beer, or have access to a Tim Hortons/Starbucks/Shopper's Drug Mart as well - I can't survive solely on samosas and cheap Bollywood DVDs. If the BIA is unwilling to change its philosophies then good riddance to them, I'm not opposed to a little gentrification and I don't mind driving to Mississauga or Brampton to get my "Indian" fix so long as my neighbourhood caters to most of my needs.
http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/cns_profiles/2006/pdf2/cpa65.pdf
If anything the neighbourhood is predominantly Chinese.
I don't think the problem in Little India has anything to do with clean, modern stores, I think the clientele just aren't there as David said. It's the same thing that's happening to Chinatown, where the Chinese have begun and have moved outwards to Markham.
and by the way, it's about time Lahore Tikka house finishes their renovation and get some real plates and cutlery!
The answer does not lie in whining about parking meters or the DVP or some evil perpetrated by the TTC, city government, landlords, etc. The answer lies in doing what cities have always done, which is to find a way to reinvest and renovate and attract business from whatever the current market is. If that's condo-dwelling yuppies who want their Timmies, so be it. If it's hip coffee shops and record stores, great. If there is a new ethnic group in the area that now is looking for inexpensive real estate for their own shops and restaurants, wonderful. Time moves on -- fighting change with government intervention will only frustrate all and result in blight. Reinvent yourself Toronto, as you always have.
Who knew? There are road signs ... they are pretty clear. Not sure what this has to do with Little India.
I think there's a difference between reviving Gerrard St and reviving Little India. The way to revive Gerrard St would be to encourage businesses that cater to the needs of lower-income residents as much as the gentrifiers. Though I'd prefer those business not to be payday loan sharks; it really disturbed me when I saw one those open up near Coxwell.
[1] http://www.toronto.ca/demographics/atlas_2006.htm
The area doesn't need low income businesses - they need to cater to the couples & families who want to save a trip down to Queen. I look at the demographic of my neighbors in the area and am pretty sure they're the Starbucks - not Coffee Time types.
As someone who works in the Little India area, I am saddened by its decline. Once a year, it is host to the fantastic Gerrard Street Festival, which I have attended every year since it was created about five or six years ago.
As someone who chats with merchants all the time (and someone who makes a point of buying local from them), there are a number of problems. Many East Indians have moved out of the area, and shop closer to new homes in Burlington and other places. Another problem is the disproportionately high rent in the area -- it is simply not possible for many store owners to survive when they have to pay so much for merchandise, overhead, staff, etc.
Personally, I would like to see the city get involved with advertising the area, and cleaning-up empty storefronts. Stores can remain empty for awhile, but this is compounded by postering (as evidenced, that terrible "Andrew" poster in the above photo), and other dirt, grime, tagging, etc. None of this helps the area look better.
Comments from Jildren are best ignored.
I think you misinterpreted my words. Quality businesses can be Indian, that was my point. If you read my entire comment, you'd see my reference to how Chinatown has evolved over time. My suggestion was for Little India to do the same, though your point about reflecting the people who live in the neighbourhood is a good one.
Little India is "Indian" only by stores, not by community. It's too far from where desi people live, has nothing unique that isn't found in Scarborough, for example, and parking is a big hassle now. They need big events and festivals.
Hopefully new businesses will cater to the diverse population in the area, and some of the Indian businesses can continue exist and thrive. My grandma loves samosas... a great bargain. I think her strongest wishes are that they finally finish the Lahore Tikka House renovations (this ongoing construction really is a mess) and that Jenny's Place closes down. She is a smart lady, these would probably be good developments!
I think this area needs a diner, a coffee shop, and another convenience store. Been thinking of moving and only been here 1 year.
The India Bazaar is not what it was ten years ago and I'd rather see commercial space occupied as opposed to remaining vacant and empty.
http://www.geography.ryerson.ca/hbauder/Little%20India%20Expedition/Index.html
There was a report on the March, Eco. Dev. committee agenda for the City to expand the BIA for this area to both the east and west.
Good info on the rationale for it as well.
Its subject to approval (or non-objection) among area businesses.
Seems like a good step forward.