Roncesvalles pizzeria to reopen after deal reached

Celina Blanchard is breathing a sigh of relief as her Roncesvalles restaurant, Lambretta Pizzeria, will reopen Thursday for takeout and delivery after she shuttered it in early May.

Blanchard closed her restaurant because she said she could no longer afford almost $13,000 in monthly rent, echoing concerns from other small business owners that their landlords weren’t offering rent relief or applying for the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance program.

The program, announced by the federal government in May, subsidizes 50 per cent of monthly rent, with 25 per cent covered by the tenant, meaning the landlord would get 75 per cent of the rent for April, May and June. Critics of the program say it puts the onus on the landlord to apply, that not all businesses and property owners quality and that, since it’s voluntary, landlords prefer to defer rent to get the full amount later.

Blanchard’s landlord, Daniel Pitoscia, says he will apply for the CECRA this week, and that he had been waiting for more details on the program as well as for online applications to open, which happened this week.

His relationship with Blanchard has been complicated by an ongoing lawsuit Blanchard filed against him regarding alleged damages from a renovation in 2018, but for now the ovens are being fired up again after Pitoscia and Blanchard reached a deal for reduced rent.

Blanchard says her biggest challenge is hiring staff without being able to give them full-time hours since the restaurant will be operating at reduced capacity. She adds that she’s fortunate to have the support of her Roncesvalles neighbourhood, but hopes the provincial government will adopt measures to protect commercial tenants.

Last week, Premier Doug Ford issued a warning to “greedy landlords,” but has yet to call for a moratorium on commercial evictions. Business groups have been rallying for the province to halt commercial evictions with another month of rent coming due.

“Intimidation isn’t enough. They need to do more. Help the small businesses, not the property owner,” says Blanchard. “Give them a chance.”

Stephen Murphy of OMG Real Estate, which specializes in buying and selling restaurants, says he’s been busier than ever with new listings but has been advising landlords to work with their tenants before kicking them out. “We’re telling them to apply for CECRA because losing 25 per cent of rent for three months is better than losing 100 per cent rent for eight, nine months. There’s a cost to vacancy” he says.