Toronto's Taste of the Danforth festival cancelled for 2022
The Taste of the Danforth has been called off.
Despite six months of talks with the city to address “logistical issues,” organizers of the popular three-night, two-day event said they just couldn’t make it work and have decided to “reimagine” this year’s event.
“The short timeline available to adapt the event to the changes in the street meant that Taste of the Danforth in 2022 was at too great a risk of not being as successful as in the past,” the Greektown on the Danforth Business Improvement Area (BIA) said in a statement posted to Twitter.
“Our membership and the broader community have high expectations for a great event.”
- Download our app to get local alerts to your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
The business association said instead it would be hosting “localized” events on the strip.
“So now we’re going to take the time, working hand in hand with the city and all our partners, to put on the best Taste of the Danforth ever in 2023,” the BIA said.
Earlier this month, the BIA reiterated its request to remove designated bike lanes and curb lane CafeTO patios during the event.
At that time, City of Toronto spokesperson Brad Ross said Taste of the Danforth organizers must accept this “new reality,” if they want to move forward with their event.
On June 1, he said removing and reinstalling bike lanes and curbside patios is a “significant undertaking.”
“We are looking at least, at a minimum, nine days of disruption in terms of removing bike lanes and CafeTO installations and then having to reinstall them,” Ross told CP24.
Today, he said the city’s “understands” the BIA’s decision and appreciates that the “best way to ensure the long-term success of the festival is to postpone restarting it until 2023.”
In a statement provided to CP24, Ross said the city would “continue to work collaboratively with all BIAs on festivals, and looks forward to working with the GreekTown on the Danforth BIA on a reimagined Taste of the Danforth in 2023.”
He also said the city would help Greektown on the Danforth BIA “in any way it can as it brings localized events to the Danforth this summer, where music, food, and the vibrant community the Danforth is known for can be enjoyed by all.”
Mayor John Tory said he, too, supports the Greektown on the Danforth BIA in “whatever decision” it makes for Taste of the Danforth “because they have built the event up into the success that it is and they will know best how to continue that success.”
He also vowed to lend his support to the festival’s reimagined event in 2023 and the association’s local events this summer.
“Now that the work is underway to ensure a reimagined Taste of the Danforth next year, I know City staff will continue to work with the BIA and all festival organizers across the city to support this event and all the great events across Toronto” added Tory, who urged “everyone to visit the Danforth throughout the summer to partake in the vibrant patio culture with food from every corner of the world.”
“I encourage people to get out this weekend and support businesses along the Danforth and across the city – summer is here, patios are open and it's time to dine out and dine often.”
Local Coun. Paula Fletcher also said she also respects the BIA's determination that the “best option for bringing back a successful Taste of the Danforth is to reimagine the event for 2023 to allow for an additional year of planning for this very popular street festival.”
“Like so many residents in Toronto-Danforth, I will be celebrating the vibrant business community and street atmosphere in GreekTown this summer with their 32 CaféTO patios and live music on the street, and welcome residents from across the city to join us and to keep strongly supporting our local businesses,” the Toronto-Danforth rep said in a statement.
“I am confident that when Taste returns to the Danforth it will be well worth the wait.”
Following a two-year pandemic hiatus, Taste of the Danforth was set to run Aug. 5 to 7 on Danforth Avenue, from Broadview to Donlands avenues.
Considered one of Canada’s largest street festivals, it was expected to welcome an estimated 1.6 million visitors over three days.
In 2019, the event had an economic impact of approximately $70 million, organizers said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
India's foreign minister reacts to murder charges, claims Canada welcomes criminals
India's Foreign Affairs Minister accused Canada of welcoming criminals from his country in response to the RCMP's recent arrests in a homicide that has roiled tensions between the two countries.
15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
'A tiny city:' Pro-Palestinian campus protesters organize for another week
Pro-Palestinian activists have set up tents at universities in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal, following a wave of similar protests at campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
A Holocaust survivor will mark that history differently after the horrors of Oct. 7
This year's Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins on Sunday evening in Israel, carries a heavier weight than usual for many Jews around the world.
Princess Anne lays wreath at Battle of Atlantic ceremony; honours late Queen
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members and honoured her late mother during separate ceremonies Sunday in Victoria as she wrapped up a three-day British Columbia West Coast royal visit.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
As storms moves across Texas, 1 child dies after being swept away in floodwaters
A child in Texas died Sunday after being swept away in floodwaters as storms swept across the state.