Businesses on Dundas Street in Toronto’s Chinatown are calling for an adjustment to on-street parking regulations after changes made in 2025 have begun to impact their bottom lines.
Changes made on Dundas Street, between McCaul Street and Spadina Avenue, saw parking removed on the north side during daytime hours, while on the south side, portions of the roadway have been changed for commercial loading, leaving only a few parking spots. The changes were made with the aim of easing traffic congestion in the area.
“The complaints are getting louder and louder, and people are saying that they are really suffering due to lost business,” Chinatown BIA chair Tonny Louie tells CityNews.
“A lot of people have a lot of concern, especially during the time when it’s not busy, more parking should be allowed because at that time you don’t see streetcars so why ban parking all day?”
Councillor Dianne Saxe says the changes were made to address problems.
“According to the TTC, more than 5,000 people a day get on and off the streetcar in Chinatown, but the streetcar couldn’t get through because it was blocked with parked cars,” she explained, adding that almost $5 million was put towards updating and renovating a Green P lot near Dundas and Spadina to provide vehicles with an alternative place to park.
“I was successful in persuading the Toronto Parking Authority to do that for Chinatown as part of the project to get transit through, and that work is underway. Some of it’s done, and some of it is still to be done.”
At Dim Sum King Seafood Restaurant on Dundas Street West, owner Kelvin Chung says the parking lot down the street hasn’t always been the easiest option for customers.
“People who cannot park, they don’t want to come, that’s the problem with Chinatown parking,” he says.
Chung tells CityNews he’s been covering the Green P parking fees for customers, a move he says has helped entice visitors to stay and dine.
“It’s not easy to get the customer to come down to Chinatown, so that’s why I make them happy, and they come.”
The Chinatown BIA says they are hopeful increased dialogue with the city will lead to readjusting hours for parking on Dundas Street, but there’s no timeline yet on if or when that will happen.