Dear editor:

Temporary restaurant patios on Queen and King streets in Old Town NOTL are filthy, ugly, unfair, unsafe and they take up valuable parking spaces, including those for people with disabilities.

These COVID-era patios give unfair preference to half a dozen already-successful businesses, at the expense of all others in the area.

They create road hazards for vehicles and pedestrians alike, because they obstruct the views of the street.

They reduce parking revenues for the town by taking over parking spots.

For most days of the year, these ugly, poorly built and poorly maintained structures sit depressingly empty, providing shelter for stray garbage, skunks and other vermin.

Let’s bring back the displaced flower beds, lawns, street parking, and straight, beautiful lines of Queen and King streets, by getting rid of these COVID-era blights

Rob Bongard
Toronto