Portage and Main concourse businesses face uncertain future as intersection is set to reopen to foot traffic

Coming July 1, Portage and Main will reopen to pedestrians after being closed to foot traffic for 46 years, but some business owners who work underneath the city's most famous intersection are concerned about the long-term plan for the space.

Last year Eric Chi, owner of the Eshel Tree restaurant, signed a five-year contract to rent a spot in the concourse underneath Portage and Main, also known as the circus. 

At the time, council had yet to decide to reopen the intersection to foot traffic, but Chi said the city, which rents businesses in the circus, told him that if the concourse level was to shut down, it wouldn't happen anytime soon. 

"That's why I signed the contract," he said. 

Since then, the city released a report that said fixing a leaky membrane at Portage Avenue and Main Street in order to protect the city-owned underground pedestrian crossing would create traffic delays for four or five years and cost at least $73 million — work that would need to be repeated in another few decades.

The business owner is concerned about what that construction work will mean for his business if it were to happen, including how much construction would disrupt foot traffic at the circus or any temporary closures of his business.

"I'm not against the city's decision, but my biggest concern is, I want to know as soon as possible what's going to happen," Chi said. "I have to adjust my business volume." 

But he is also concerned the city might decide to shut down the space altogether.

"If we have to move, you know, will [the city] pay for the relocation of the store?," he said. 

Coun. Jeff Browaty, who chairs the standing policy committee on finance and economic development, told CBC the city will keep and maintain the circus open in the meantime, given there's no immediate threat of it collapsing or a need to close it immediately due to its deterioration.  

The councillor has recently pushed for an amendment to look into other alternatives to keep the space open and repair it for a smaller price tag and with fewer traffic interruptions.

The city has also yet to look at how much it will cost to close the site permanently and how long that would take, Browaty said. The cost difference between retrofitting and shuttering the underground concourse would be key for the city to take next steps. 

"Once that is all known, decisions can be made," he said. 

But he acknowledged the uncertainty is challenging for businesses on the circus and those in the underground retail spaces near the intersection that continue to recover from the economic shock of the COVID-19 pandemic.