Church Street pedestrian pilot

Toronto officials are weighing a summer pilot that would close two blocks of Church Street to cars in the heart of the Church-Wellesley Village. (cbc.ca) The proposal would pedestrianize Church Street between Wellesley Street East and Alexander Street from June 19 to Aug. 21, if council signs off. Toronto councillor Chris Moise is backing the plan. (cbc.ca) (nowtoronto.com) The file is scheduled to go to Toronto and East York Community Council on April 30, with a full city council vote set for May 20. CityNews reported the pilot would cost about $50,000 to $80,000, with funding proposed through sponsorships and grants. (seekyoursounds.com) (toronto.citynews.ca) The test is aimed at a stretch that already functions like an event space during Pride, but returns to regular traffic for most of the summer. Supporters told CBC the closure could give pedestrians more room to gather and give restaurants and bars more spillout space. (cbc.ca) The timing also lines up with a broader push to remake Church Street before a larger reconstruction project expected within the next five to 10 years. Toronto Centre Projects says the corridor between Gloucester and Carlton streets is slated for reconstruction alongside an overdue watermain replacement. (torontocentreprojects.ca) That longer-term work has been in discussion for years. The Church-Wellesley Village Business Improvement Area ran consultations in 2021 and produced a Streetscape Masterplan in 2022 for changes along Church Street. (torontocentreprojects.ca) (cwna.ca) City staff are also still building citywide rules for pedestrian-only streets. A City of Toronto background report published in 2025 said staff lacked a clear policy, standards and implementation strategy for deciding where pedestrianization should happen and how it should be run. (toronto.ca) The Village has argued for more public space for years in a neighbourhood with little parkland and heavy event use. CBC reported in 2024 that only 2.97 hectares of park space sit in the Church-Wellesley neighbourhood, based on city figures cited at the time. (cbc.ca) Not everyone is focused on festivals and patios. The city has also been dealing with construction and street access problems in the area, and some businesses on Church Street told CBC this year that blocked access was already hurting revenue. (cbc.ca) For now, the question at city hall is narrower than a full redesign: whether Church Street should get a two-month summer trial, and whether that trial changes what Toronto does with the corridor next. (cbc.ca)