A group of vendors have filed a complaint with Toronto鈥檚 ombudsman saying they were forced out of a city-led business incubator program and food hall in North York.
In the complaint obtained by the Star, the vendors of FLIP Kitchens said the city鈥檚 lack of support as well as operational problems 鈥 including insufficient electrical outlets and tables and chairs, malfunctioning doors that led to a break-in, and an uninviting storefront 鈥 led to the failure of their food stalls on Yonge Street.
The three vendors are seeking to be compensated for the $20,000 they each invested to be a part of the program as well as for the rent they paid during their time at FLIP.
Mary Freij of Teta鈥檚 Kitchen told the Star she filed the complaint last Friday, with help from the former councillor of the neighbourhood, John Filion, who recently registered as a volunteer lobbyist with the city a year after retiring from politics.
The now-empty FLIP Kitchens used to host four food stalls.
Nick Kozak / For the 海角社区官网StarA representative from Ombudsman 海角社区官网said all complaints filed are confidential and could not confirm receipt. A city spokesperson referred questions about the complaint to Ombudsman Toronto, but said it was the role of a city-procured non-profit to provide promotion and support to the vendors. The complaint, however, alleged a non-profit was not in place for long periods of time.
In the complaint, the vendors, which also include Naza Hasebenebi of Chic Peas Vegetarian Cuisine and Camille Osbourne of Da Endz, said that in 2021 they were recruited as part of a city-led project aiming to help new food entrepreneurs from marginalized communities.
鈥淗aving done so, it virtually abandoned them, failing to provide the vendors with the promised support necessary for them to attract enough business to afford rent,鈥 according to the complaint. 鈥淚n 2023, the City began insisting on the payment of rental amounts it knew the vendors would not be able to pay. On Nov. 2, 2023, with the vendors behind in rent, the City sent them a notice ordering them out of the premises within five days.鈥
鈥淓very customer who came in felt sorry for how empty the place was,鈥 said Freij, whose stall served Middle Eastern fare. 鈥淲e were promised patios, events. We (had to) put chairs outside for the past two summers. We were doing anything to get people in.鈥
鈥淚t鈥檚 weird, it doesn鈥檛 feel real,鈥 Hasebenebi told the Star, while loading bins of takeout containers, squash and onions from the now-closed food hall into her van after receiving the notice. 鈥淚 feel sad, and it鈥檚 been stressing us (vendors) out so much.鈥 The day Hasebenebi was packing up, she was supposed to participate in a week-long event to promote Black-owned restaurants.
The stall owners complained that the unused street-facing kitchen led passersby to believe the food hall was unoccupied.
Nick Kozak / For the 海角社区官网StarThe food hall opened in late 2021, but due to the lack of business, in May 2022 , totalling $110,625, from December 2021 to June 2022. In July, council adopted a motion from Filion to not charge rent for the rest of the year. In 2023 from January to September, but the vendors say they still did not see any improvements in the space and foot traffic did not increase.
鈥淚 was a flight attendant for almost nine years. I quit my job and started from the bottom and I鈥檓 still at the bottom,鈥 said Osbourne, whose stall served Caribbean food, adding that the venue鈥檚 spotty Wi-Fi led to her racking up expenses on her personal phone bill. 鈥淲e were promised an incubator program to help us start a business. As a brand-new business owner, it (has) scared me from wanting to do anything (like this) again.鈥
When the Star visited FLIP Kitchens last year during what should have been lunch and dinner rushes, the space was empty and quiet, despite the food being good, and the vendors serving cuisines unique to the neighbourhood.
The city of 海角社区官网said in a statement to the Star that the role of the non-profit, or head tenant, was to run a food-service start-up program, provide marketing and promotion support and offer food-industry expertise to complement supports made available through the city鈥檚 small-business enterprise centre.
Freij said that during much of her time there, no non-profit was providing the services promised, and the vendors were left on their own.
Filion said he spent a lot of time at FLIP when he was a councillor and that the space facing Yonge Street was meant to be used as a teaching kitchen by the non-profit head tenant, but that didn鈥檛 go as planned.
鈥淭he space right at Yonge Street in the front was supposed to be the centrepiece to attract people,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hat was fundamental. Otherwise, it looks like it鈥檚 closed and you can鈥檛 tell there鈥檚 anything going on inside. There鈥檚 no direct door off Yonge Street into the food hall.鈥
Vanessa Ling Yu, founder of the non-profit Cater Toronto, said she signed on to FLIP in late 2021 and also ran into problems. Among other issues, she said, equipment in the kitchen wasn鈥檛 properly installed, including a pizza oven too close to working counter space, and a cook-top not meant for commercial use.
Jessica Walker, Cater Toronto鈥檚 manager of operations, said that while the agreement detailed the non-profit鈥檚 role, 鈥渢he city would not cede control to us to make that happen, and it created tension between the vendors and us.鈥 Walker added that the non-profit also spent money on repairing and maintaining the space.
One year ago, Camille Osbourne was preparing dishes for her Caribbean food stall Da Endz.
Paige Taylor White / 海角社区官网Star File PhotoCater 海角社区官网left FLIP Kitchens in September 2022 after the city terminated its lease. Yu said the city did not give her a reason for the termination and said it was not obligated to do so.
That left an unused street-facing kitchen, suggesting the food hall was closed, the vendors said, while inside they struggled to attract walk-ins.
Earlier this year, the non-profit took over the space. Founder Suman Roy said an agreement couldn鈥檛 be reached with the original vendors on a new lease. The vendors said the proposed rent was higher than what they previously paid, while Roy said it was necessary to cover operational costs.
Roy said that he plans to illuminate the sign out front and open a smokehouse in the street-facing kitchen.
鈥淲e鈥檙e taking the bull by the horns and running with it,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a good location and it鈥檚 a good concept. It just needs some life and experience.鈥
Councillor Lily Cheng, of Ward 18, Willowdale, who was elected amid the turmoil at FLIP and recommended the rent abatement earlier this year says she is working with the evicted vendors to come up with 鈥渁 dignified solution鈥 but it is unclear what that would be.
鈥淟et鈥檚 call it a failure,鈥 Cheng said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 upsetting and (the vendors) didn鈥檛 get the support.鈥
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