What to know
- Customers and supporters of Sneaky Dee’s spoke at a Toronto and East York Community Council meeting, urging councillors to reject a proposed 16-storey residential redevelopment at the venue’s College Street location.
- Residents fear the project could permanently displace the beloved music venue, which they describe as one of Toronto’s most welcoming and affordable cultural spaces.
- Coun. Josh Matlow says there may be room for compromise, suggesting Sneaky Dee’s could temporarily relocate during construction before returning to the redeveloped building.
- One opponent of the plan says he does not trust promises from developers, arguing there is no guarantee the venue would ultimately survive the redevelopment process.
- Supporters are organizing petitions and encouraging residents to pressure councillors ahead of the municipal election, calling on the city to take a stronger stance against the proposal.
Toronto residents are urging city councillors to stop a developer’s plan to transform iconic dive bar Sneaky Dee’s building into a residential tower, despite the developer saying there’s a chance for compromise.
Several customers of the music venue participated in a Toronto and East York Community Council meeting on Thursday, where councillors would vote to approve a zoning plan for the redevelopment of 419-431 College Street, where Sneaky Dee’s is located.
The plan was first proposed by Goldberg Group back in 2020, and is still awaiting approval from the city. It originally consisted of a 13-storey building, which was later updated to a 16-storey proposal with 203 residential units, that would encompass 419, 421, 423, 429 and 431 College Street.
However, Sneaky Dee’s customers are now taking action to urge the councillors to stop the project, fearing that the redevelopment would mean the closure of the beloved venue.
Martin Perez, long-time customer of the venue and owner of entertainment company Gigpass, was one of the residents that spoke out against the project during the meeting on Thursday.
He says residents are trying to raise attention to the issue, and hoping they can convince the City Council to reject the proposal, even if it means a legal battle with the developer and provincial government.
According to the City of Toronto’s website, if applications are rejected, the developer could make changes and resubmit the project, or appeal the decision at the Toronto Local Appeal Body (TLAB) or the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT).
“The city can always start a legal battle over this. They can deny this application, which would trigger a lawsuit from the Ontario province, which would be deeply unpopular, and I believe it’s something that the Doug Ford administration probably wants to avoid right now after the jet fiasco,” he said.
“I think there’s actually an opportunity here for the City Council to stand for Torontonians, and say, ‘Hey, no, we don’t want this.’”
Besides speaking at the meeting, some residents have started petitions online, urging others to contact their local city councillors opposing the project. Others have also been vocal on social media about the plans.
“I need Toronto to get their sh*t together and save Sneaky Dee’s and the Island please,” one resident wrote on X, in addition to sharing an email template for others to contact councillors and the mayor.
‘It’s a very welcoming space’
Perez says he has been a revisiting customer to Sneaky Dee’s since he moved to Canada 10 years ago. Throughout these years, he has spent several remarkable moments at the venue, including meeting his current partner and lifelong friends, and even playing with his own bands there.
Like him, he says the place has a special meaning for many Torontonians, who have also been reaching out to him on social media to share the sentiment that they don’t want the venue to close.
“It’s a very welcoming, accepting place. You can be from any walk of life, and then find yourself at home in Sneaky Dee’s,” he said. “It’s one of the only venues where you can have a band play, you can have emo night, you can have brunch, you can have yoga, [and] you can have a restaurant down there.”
In addition to offering a welcoming space in the community, Perez says Sneaky Dee’s also remains as one of the most affordable cultural spaces in the city, as well as one of the only alternatives to venues operated by Live Nation.
“Live Nation is eating up the entire live music industry in the city, and is a corporate foreign asset. It is not Canadian, and we’re just basically selling out our music and our culture to the Americans, a culture that we pay for with our taxes,” he said.
Councillor says there’s space for compromise
Although Perez and other residents are calling on councillors to reject the project altogether, Coun. Josh Matlow tells Now Toronto he believes there could be an alternative where both the development plan and Sneaky Dee’s could co-exist.
Matlow says councillors, the development company, and Sneaky Dee’s administration could find a way for the venue to remain open during construction and later on continue to operate in the building.
“They can return to the new building at the corner with their iconic sign, and with the same kind of environment that people love, and with a similar square footage and rent, so that Sneaky Dee’s can be there for many generations in the future,” he said.
The councillor says that while he understands that Sneaky Dee’s is important to the community, he also believes that a residential building is also needed in order to offer more affordable housing options to residents.
“I just disagree with anyone who would suggest that thoughtful people can’t focus on more than one priority at the same time…We can both focus on improving housing supply and affordability, while ensuring that we protect the iconic places that we value and love,” he added.
A representative from Goldberg Group also said during the council meeting on Thursday that the building would have a reserved place where Sneaky Dee’s could continue to operate. In addition, he said the company could also find a location where the venue could relocate during construction.
‘I am not up for compromise’: Resident
On the other hand, Perez says he doesn’t support an alternative to compromise with the developer, fearing that the company could later walk back on their promise.
“A promise is not a contract. And even if there’s a contract, they can break up the contract, and Sneaky Dee’s would have to go into this super expensive legal battle to make it work. It’s just not feasible,” he said.
Instead of compromising, he still hopes that the city will take a “bold” stance and reject the project altogether. He also says he encourages residents to reach out to their local councillors and press them into voting against the plan.
“We need a city that’s bold, we need a city that says ‘yes’ versus ‘no,’ and not ‘maybe,’” he said.
“There is a municipal election on Oct. 26 of this year, every single seat in the city council is up for re-election. You need to let these councillors know that you will be voting in accordance to the issues that matter to you.”
The development plan’s approval has been postponed by City Council until July 8 and 9.
