Today Ontario is moving into step one of its Roadmap to Reopen which allows restaurants to offer outdoor dining, and non-essential shopping with capacity restrictions. Reopening has been long awaited, and Main Street is ready to be open for business like never before, starting with the expansion of its pop-up patio program.
In 2020, King Township piloted two pop-up patios on Main Street. These were exceptionally well received, with 94 per cent of respondents in an end-of-season survey saying the pop-up patios helped improve the experience of people dining on Main Street, with one respondent commenting that they added a wonderful vibe.
With the success of the 2020 Pop-up Patio Program, King Township has expanded this year’s program to four pop-up patios that are now placed in front of Grackle Coffee House, Craft Kitchen and Beer Bar, The Scruffy Duck and Leonardo’s Pizzeria and Smokehouse.
“In addition to our amazing pizza and smoked meats, now we are also selling Kawartha Dairy Ice Cream,” said Jordan Lindner, owner of Leonardo’s Pizzeria and Smokehouse. “I can’t wait to see people enjoying their pizza, scoops and cones on our patio in this summery weather.”
There are a few new elements being added this year. The pop-up patios now incorporate bicycle parking racks. Visitors should also keep an eye out for a new mobile self-cleaning public restroom that will be installed shortly close to the Community Hall. This will prove particularly useful for families visiting Main Street, as well as the large cycling community that comes through Schomberg every weekend.
“Cyclists are a huge part of Main Street culture,” said The Grackle Coffee House. “Between the pop-up patios, the added bicycle parking and the mobile self-cleaning washroom, Main Street has made itself a very welcoming place for cyclists.”
“King Township is proud of this partnership project, we would like to thank Central Counties Tourism for their funding support for this program,” said Aimee Artinian-Wong, Economic Development and Main Street Coordinator. “We would also like to thank the four businesses participating in the pop-up patio program and acknowledge their support and contribution to bring Main Street back to life.”
Non-essential shopping also reopens today, and no-one could be happier than Judy Duffy from The Scottish Nook and The Quilter’s Nook.
“We are delighted with our new home here in the Olde Mill at 357 Main Street,” said Ms. Duffy. “We are coordinating our hours with The Olde Mill Art Gallery and Shoppe to both be open Wednesdays through Sundays 11-5, so between the great shopping and The Scruffy Duck’s fantastic food and beautiful patios, 357 Main Street is the place to be this weekend.”
For more information on “what’s going on” on Main Street, visit www.schombergmainstreet.ca.
To learn more about the Main Street Revitalization project, visit www.destinationschomberg.ca/main-street-revitalization-project.
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Media contact
Jason Ballantyne, communications officer | Phone: 905-833-4573 | Email: jballantyne@king.ca