Featured Guest
You’ll find this guest among our growing roll of Urban Champions.
Judy Lam
Manager, Urban Renewal, City Of Hamilton
Chris Rickett
Director, Economic Growth, Culture and Entrepreneurship, City of Markham
Antoinette Rodrigue
Directrice location, Marchés publics de Montréal
5 Key
Takeaways
A roundup of the most compelling ideas, themes and quotes from this candid conversation
1. Collaboration is essential
There is an urgent need to facilitate direct business to government contact. According to 360 Collective’s Judy Morgan, “a successful policy response needs to consider that business is a partner.” BIAs know their own needs the best. Cities must take a leadership role to enable businesses to go forward with much needed and asked for adaptations. It is important to note that the needs of small businesses are place-based. Each community has its own set of needs.
2. The pandemic pop-up
Dr. Alexandra Flynn, Assistant Professor at the Peter A. Allard School of Law at the University of British Columbia, has researched how pop-ups are created and managed. Alexandra identifies a new type, the pandemic pop-up. Relaxed patio rules and the expansion of pedestrian zones are examples of an improved decision-making process characterized by urgency. Municipalities must become more responsive to the needs of small businesses and work with them to develop fast, innovative solutions that may outlast the pandemic.
3. Do not be afraid to fail
Chris Rickett, of the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation, shares his experience leading the City of Toronto’s economic response to COVID. Chris highlights the need to be much more activist in rebuilding Main Street. The pandemic has brought new challenges that cities and businesses must adapt to. This requires experimentation through rapid prototyping. Chris has a message for public servants and local politicians: “Let your great staff go run free and develop cool and interesting solutions and get behind them and support them. “
4. Consider unrepresented businesses
Flynn points out that there are a wide range of businesses in our cities not captured by BIAs. Businesses run by newcomers in dense immigrant communities are one such group. Canada’s multicultural cities require special considerations when it comes to inclusivity. John Archer, also of the 360 Collective, identifies the need to understand how businesses run by newcomers operate. Morgan reiterates that special attention needs to be paid to start-ups and businesses owned by equity seeking groups.
5. Enabling business communities to build their own resilience
COVID has hit the small business sector the hardest. Main streets were already struggling in the lead up to the pandemic. Technological advancements have changed the face of retail shifting patrons from brick and mortar shops to online stores. Municipal initiatives such as Hamilton’s Hometown Hub and Toronto’s Digital Main Street have partnered small businesses with tech savvy website developers to bring main street online. With disruptions to traditional retail, the City of Hamilton’s Judy Lam stresses that for small businesses to survive e-commerce must be on their business plan.
Additional Resources
The City of Montreal has launched an eco-friendly bike delivery service for small businesses
Full Panel
Transcript
Note to readers: This video session was transcribed using auto-transcribing software. Manual editing was undertaken in an effort to improve readability and clarity. Questions or concerns with the transcription can be directed to events@canurb.org with “transcription” in the subject line.
Full Audience
Chatroom Transcript
Note to reader: Chat comments have been edited for ease of readability. The text has not been edited for spelling or grammar. For questions or concerns, please contact events@canurb.org with “Chat Comments” in the subject line.
From Canadian Urban Institute: You can find transcripts and recordings of today’s and all our webinars at https://canurb.org/citytalk12:01:26 From Canadian Urban Institute: Welcome! Folks, please change your chat settings to “all panelists and attendees” so everyone can see your comments.
12:02:24 From Canadian Urban Institute: You can find transcripts and recordings of today’s and all our sessions at https://www.canurb.org/citytalk
12:03:12 From Canadian Urban Institute: CUI extends a big thank you to our partner for today’s session 360 Collective https://www.360collective.co/
12:03:26 From Denny Warner: Hello from Sidney, BC on Vancouver Island
12:03:32 From Ranon Soans: Hi from Edmonton
12:03:37 From paul mackinnon to All panelists: Hi from Halifax, NS
12:03:40 From Kjeld-Mizpah Conyers-Steede to All panelists: Hi from Halifax, NS
12:03:48 From Stuart Filson: Hello from London, Ontario
12:03:49 From Ayusha Hanif to All panelists: Hello from Penetanguishene Ontario
12:03:54 From Carlos Salazar to All panelists: hello, Buenas Tardes, from Clarington (Bowmanville) Ontario
12:03:54 From Bob van Wegen: Hi from Calgary
12:03:55 From Canadian Urban Institute:
Everyday: https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/action-report
12:04:07 From Michal Matyjewicz: Hello from Downtown Toronto!
12:04:16 From Ryan Lynn: Good afternoon! Hello from Brampton
12:04:18 From Rachel Braithwaite: Hello from Hamilton:)
12:04:21 From Canadian Urban Institute: Keep the conversation going #BringBackMainStreet #citytalk @canurb
12:04:36 From Britney Conlon to All panelists: Hello from St. Catharines!
12:04:37 From NOÉMIE LUCAS to All panelists: Hi from Montréal !
12:04:47 From sue uteck to All panelists: Hello from Halifax!
12:04:58 From Canadian Urban Institute: https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/solution-briefs
12:05:41 From Julia Davis: Hello from the City of Hamilton
12:06:43 From Canadian Urban Institute: You can read the full report here: Supporting Main Street Recovery through Small-Business-Friendly Policy https://bit.ly/3lRBpMl
360 Collective https://www.360collective.co/
12:07:29 From Canadian Urban Institute:
Dr. Alexandra Flynn, University of British Columbia
@alexandraeflynn
linkedin.com/in/alexandraflynn
Judy Lam, City of Hamilton
@JudyLam12
linkedin.com/in/judylam-investinhamilton
Chris Rickett, Municipal Property Assessment Corporation
@enterpriseTO
@rickett_chris
linkedin.com/in/chrisrickett
Antoinette Rodrigue, Association des sociétés de développement commercial de Montréal
linkedin.com/in/antoinette-rodrigue
12:15:47 From Canadian Urban Institute to Lisa Cavicchia CUI(Privately): Ah…didn’t note the start time of their presentation….I think Andre spoke for a little bit….maybe 12:10?
12:17:06 From Lisa Cavicchia CUI to Canadian Urban Institute(Privately): I think it was 12:08
12:17:28 From Canadian Urban Institute to Lisa Cavicchia CUI(Privately): ok thanks! You said they had 17 minutes? LOL
12:17:41 From Lisa Cavicchia CUI to Canadian Urban Institute(Privately): yes please
12:17:47 From Ralph Cipolla: from Ralph cipolla hello from Orillia Ontario
12:18:27 From Chelsea Whity: Hello from Edmonton, AB
12:18:29 From Canadian Urban Institute to Lisa Cavicchia CUI(Privately): Ok I’ll give them a flag when they have 2 mins.:)
12:24:03 From Canadian Urban Institute to John Archer(Privately): Presentation is great! I think you guys have another two minutes.:)
12:24:15 From Canadian Urban Institute to Judy Morgan(Privately): Presentation is great! I think you guys have another two minutes.:)
12:24:22 From Abby S: What is interesting is how quickly cities changed rules around patios etc. When necessary governing bodies can move quickly. Although I would say the government support programs are still hard to access and still quite restrictive for sole owner establishmets.
12:25:46 From Diego Almaraz: I fully agree @Abby! It was great to see that we can actually move and approve things quickly when needed, now we need to apply that same decisiveness to policy that strengthens communities
12:26:02 From Canadian Urban Institute to Judy Morgan(Privately): Amazing!!!
12:26:09 From Canadian Urban Institute to John Archer(Privately): Amazing!!!
12:27:48 From Ranon Soans: Great point about creative community financing! It seems critical to the sustainability/self-sufficiency of main streets today.
12:29:19 From Max Materne to All panelists: What about funding technical innovations that support small business competitiveness vs reducing business expenses? Increasing the top line vs decreasing bottom line? Tech can do much to help small businesses both access programs and access tools to help them sell to their consumers.
12:29:53 From paul mackinnon to All panelists: Major banks have NOT been helpful. Especially for restaurants. Would be interested to know if Vancity model could be replicated in other cities.
12:30:15 From Canadian Urban Institute to Max Materne and all panelists: Hi, Max! Can you change your chat settings to all panelists and attendees? We want everyone to see your comment/question. Thank you!
12:30:23 From John Archer to Canadian Urban Institute(Privately): Agree. Max. need to be forward opportunity seeking
12:30:28 From paul mackinnon to All panelists: Antoinette, how did you measure the success of pedestrian streets? Did you track foot traffic, sales? What about pushback from non-restaurants?
12:30:31 From Canadian Urban Institute to paul mackinnon and all panelists: Hi, Paul! Can you change your chat settings to all panelists and attendees? We want everyone to see your comment/question. Thank you!
12:30:51 From paul mackinnon: Major banks have NOT been helpful. Especially for restaurants. Would be interested to know if Vancity model could be replicated in other cities.
Antoinette, how did you measure the success of pedestrian streets? Did you track foot traffic, sales? What about pushback from non-restaurants?
12:31:17 From Max Materne: What about funding technical innovations that support small business competitiveness vs reducing business expenses? Increasing the top line vs decreasing bottom line? Tech can do much to help small businesses both access programs and access tools to help them sell to their consumers.
12:31:27 From John Archer: Max. agree. we need to be future opportunity oriented
12:34:20 From Abby S: @paul agree 100% that banks have not changed their behaviour or risk profiles in any way…
12:35:17 From Abby S: Banks do not incorporate community into their assessments a we all know…nor to they evaluate the overalll importance of main street, they look individually n to holistically at a neighborhood.
12:37:24 From Ranon Soans: Yup. The banks are also an issue we see in Edmonton. Especially when Toronto-based financiers aren’t likely to know anything about a recovering/growing main street or neighbourhood in western Canada.
12:42:40 From sue uteck to All panelists: In Nova Scotia , headed up by the Chamber of Commerce we formed a Business and Economic Coalition which included reps from all 3 levels of gov’t, (MPS, MLA, Mayor etc), all BIDS across the province, our Economic Wing (Greater Halifax Partnership, Tourism , CFIB etc) By mobilizing and having direct contact with government who relied on our observations we were able to effect change quickly.
12:44:58 From paul mackinnon: Judy, is there any commitment to incorporate BBMS recommendations into the Hamilton’s official recovery plan? That is what we’re pushing for, here in Halifax.
12:45:00 From Canadian Urban Institute to sue uteck and all panelists: Hi, Sue! Could you change your chat settings to “all panelists and attendees” and repost your comment? It would be great if all attendees can benefit from your comment. Thanks!
12:46:50 From Patricia Barnes: Small businesses also enable socialization for those who are isolated so very important part of the community
12:47:55 From sue uteck: In Nova Scotia, headed up by the Chamber of Commerce we formed a Business nd Economic Coalition which included reps from all 3 levels of gov’t. (MPS, MLAS, MAYOR ETC) all Bids across the Province, our Economic Wing -Greater Halifax Partnership, Tourism, Cfib etc) By mobilizing and having direct contact with government who relied on our observations we were able to affect change quickly.
12:48:26 From DeeDee Nelson: Sue that sounds amazing!
12:52:50 From DeeDee Nelson: Well said Alexandra about the City of Vancouver being more nimble and not getting bogged down with the ‘system’ policies.
12:53:42 From DeeDee Nelson: And looking at all the neighbourhoods, not just downtown.
12:54:37 From DeeDee Nelson: Still much needed.
12:55:29 From Max Materne: Agreed Antoinette! There needs to be a robust e-commerce tool they can switch to so they can sell their products that way all the time or switch to full time if needed.
12:56:13 From Canadian Urban Institute:
Read the full report from 360 Collective: Supporting Main Street Recovery through Small-Business-Friendly Policy https://bit.ly/3lRBpMl
360 Collective https://www.360collective.co/
To read this and other solutions briefs, visit:
https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/solution-briefs
https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/action-report
Register for other sessions this week at: https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/action-week
You can find transcripts and recordings of today’s and all our sessions at https://www.canurb.org/citytalk
Keep the conversation going #BringBackMainStreet #citytalk @canurb
What did you think of today’s conversation? Help us improve our programming with a short post-webinar survey – https://bit.ly/3k3nLFe
To support CityTalk and the Canadian Urban Institute’s other city building initiatives, please donate at www.canurb.org/donate.
12:56:37 From Lisa Cavicchia CUI: Here’s an article on Montreal’s eco friendly bike service for small biz: https://www.timeout.com/montreal/montreal-news/the-city-of-montreal-has-launched-an-eco-friendly-bike-delivery-service-for-small-businesses-041720
12:57:43 From DeeDee Nelson: Thank you Lisa I love that!
12:58:36 From Lisa Cavicchia CUI: check out citysharecanada.ca for other great initiatives happening on main streets in Canada & internationally
12:58:41 From Tom Hawkett to All panelists: I know this is a small piece but the video below is a link to a clip from Global News Tuesday Oct 6th News about our new safe space offering for Washrooms to Help restaurants provide a safe place for patrons/ customers
12:58:56 From Khurram Farid Bargatt to All panelists: 👍👍
12:59:35 From Khatereh Baharikhoob to All panelists: What about public realm along Main Street? Streetscaping, tree planting, vegetation, all season street furniture, winter-friendly places ? Main Streets are beyond retails, business and food and cafes…they are also about placemaking with landscape architecture and urban design…
12:59:40 From DeeDee Nelson: Very good, will do.
12:59:47 From Canadian Urban Institute to Tom Hawkett and all panelists: Hi, Tom! Could you share that with everyone by resending it and changing your chat settings to all panelists and attendees? Thanks for sharing!
13:00:38 From Lisa Cavicchia CUI: Also check out our toolkits on https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/ including one on placemaking and another on design & planning
13:00:51 From Canadian Urban Institute to Khatereh Baharikhoob and all panelists: Hi, Khatereh! Can you change your chat settings and repost your comment. Thanks for sharing!
13:01:04 From Khatereh Baharikhoob: What about public realm along Main Street? Streetscaping, tree planting, vegetation, all season street furniture, winter-friendly places ? Main Streets are beyond retails, business and food and cafes…they are also about placemaking with landscape architecture and urban design…
13:01:30 From DeeDee Nelson: It all really becomes a philosophical idea about how we want to live our lives.
13:01:48 From DeeDee Nelson: Yes Khatereh!
13:01:52 From Canadian Urban Institute: Read the full report from 360 Collective: Supporting Main Street Recovery through Small-Business-Friendly Policy https://bit.ly/3lRBpMl
360 Collective https://www.360collective.co/
To read this and other solutions briefs, visit:
https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/solution-briefs
https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/action-report
Register for other sessions this week at: https://bringbackmainstreet.ca/action-week
13:01:59 From Leandro Santos: Thank you to all the panelists!
13:02:03 From DeeDee Nelson: Thank you everyone!
13:02:07 From Mary Rowe: great session!
13:02:33 From Ralph Cipolla: thank you all
13:02:35 From Khurram Farid Bargatt to All panelists: 👍👍👍👍👍
