Ontario just extended its ban on commercial evictions for another month

While residential landlords can once again boot renters from their homes following the four-month provincial moratorium on evictions, commercial tenants still struggling to recover from the devastating financial blow of the health crisis won't have to worry about potentially getting evicted for at least another month.

The original ban on evictions from commercial properties that Premier Doug Ford enacted back in June — nearly three months later than the one for residences — only lasted until Aug. 31. 

But, Ford somewhat unofficially announced in his media briefing on Friday that it is apparently being extended until the end of September, allowing owners of bars, restaurants, retail stores and other small businesses provincewide to breathe a sigh of relief.

"We're extending it as of today... our priority is to always make sure we protect businesses out there," Ford said, encouraging landlords to take part in the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) program and give their tenants a break. "They can't just evict someone."

The premier has been justifiably stern with landlords throughout the pandemic, telling them not to push him by taking advantage of small companies.

"Nothing drives me more crazy than greedy landlords...  I'm going to come down on them like they've never seen before," he said at a presser back in May.

Meanwhile, renters in the city who are still reeling from months of lost work during lockdown and struggling to make ends meet continue to advocate for the government to re-implement the ban on residential evictions, too.