Anti-fun Leslieville residents protest bar patio licence

The Beaches and Leslieville seem to be having a bit of a problem having fun these days. Throughout the summer, Tori's bakeshop, which has plans to morph into a wine bar by night, has been thwarted by one neighbour who says the development will make the area too noisy, and possibly impact his property value. Now, neighbours are reacting similarly to Hitch owner Doug Tiller's plans to launch a 20-seat patio.

Tiller says his numbers have decreased significantly over the summer, because people are heading to other establishments where they can enjoy patio season. He's been trying to get the patio licensed since May, but neighbours are not happy with the plans because of what they foresee as excessive noise—despite the fact that the Duke, which is down the street, just opened a 150-seat patio. Tiller's pre-hearing with the License Appeal Tribunal is next week, and the results of that will determine what happens going forward.

Paula Fletcher has been trying to organize a meeting between Tiller and residents of the area so they can reach an agreement. Tiller understands why people might have noise concerns, as he is a family man with small children. But that's why he moved to a quiet side street in the area, and not a main thoroughfare with lots of noise and a sure chance of further development, like Queen St. E. Because he understands his neighbours' concerns, he says he's willing to clear people off the patio by 11 p.m. if the neighbours decide to cooperate with him.

What do you think? Should neighbours live and let live, or should the booze be kept behind closed doors?

by Sarah Ratchford via blogTO