Toronto may finally do something about all of its vacant storefronts

A number of Toronto thoroughfares once known as lively, walkable streets lined with shops and restaurants have been rendered almost unrecognizable in recent years, largely because of what feels like a never-ending wave of business closures.

The stark contrast between arteries like Queen Street in 2019 and 2025 is jarring, to say the least, with the folding of countless small businesses and even large corporate chains begging the question of who can afford to operate in the city anymore.

Spreading much like the respiratory disease that ended up spelling the end for so many establishments in the city following months of mandatory forced closures, vacant storefronts have dominated chunks of Queen West, the Beaches, Yonge Street and others, sometimes for years.

Compounding the lockdown era that many businesses never recovered from, there was the swift and drastic shift to online shopping during the same period, along with the region's ever-increasing cost of living and its infamous obsession with upward development that has led to the loss of many iconic spots.

It's been enough to drive the City to rethink how it deals with these gaping holes in areas that should be prime real estate for any and all sorts of businesses.

A new motion heading to city council this week asks that we start addressing the vast number of empty storefronts by dealing with property owners directly, and trying to "compel" them to tenant their street-level spaces.

"Thriving main streets are the hearts of our communities and neighborhoods. Strong retail strips promote small businesses and local economic growth, and provide spaces for essential services that residents rely on," the motion reads.

"With the looming specter of U.S. tariffs, it is more critical than ever to protect Toronto's main streets. Unfortunately, due to the challenging real estate market and rising cost of development, storefronts are remaining vacant for longer periods as developers are sitting on approvals. This creates an uglier, less vibrant streetscape, more crime and public safety issues, and reduced economic activity in our city."

Local Ward 12 Toronto—St. Paul's Councillor Josh Matlow, who is spearheading the initiative, is recommending that staff look at policy options to get unused commercial spaces leased, whether it means strengthening Municipal Licensing and Standards rules and enforcement, or offering tax reliefs to landlords who use these spaces more effectively, like through pop-ups or art installations.

A vacant storefront tax is also in the cards, and has been since 2020, when councillors felt that our " buoyant real estate market sometimes creates a perverse incentive to keep a store vacant rather than renting it out to the people willing to invest in our communities."

While that real estate market has become significantly less buoyant (at least on the residential side), it does seem that commercial landlords are still as happy as ever to jack up the rent and boot long-running establishments out in the process, even if it means their property sits vacant for months until a dispensary agrees to pay more to move in.