Wellington café closes over rent
A popular café on Wellington in Verdun is closing after a 60% rent increase, reviving calls for commercial rent controls. The Gazette piece includes a coda in which the café’s landlord denies asking for a 60% hike.
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Kate
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Jim 11:24 on 2026-05-11 Permalink
Sad to see them go. However, the update matters. If the landlord disputes the 60% figure, we should be careful treating one side of lease negotiations as the full story. It is still a shame, but commercial leases are business, and sometimes both sides walk away unhappy.
I understand the call for commercial rent controls, but I’m not convinced regulation is the easy fix. We see already how well-intended rules can create paperwork and compliance costs that bigger companies absorb more easily than small independents. More bureaucracy may hurt the very cafés and shops it tries to protect.
Better lease support, better advice for small tenants, and ways to help local business owners stay rooted would make more sense to me.
MarcG 11:39 on 2026-05-11 Permalink
The irony is that the café was part of the first wave of gentrification on Wellington and now they’re not bougie enough. Curious to see what type of business has the cash to pay the hiked rent – I’m thinking big chain coffee/resto.
Joey 11:51 on 2026-05-11 Permalink
Here’s hoping the reporter, Jesse Feith, gets to the bottom of this. The tenant says they were presented with a 60% increase. The landlord says “We never demanded a 60 per cent rent increase… Various market scenarios were discussed in the normal course of commercial negotiations, but a 60 per cent increase was never requested.” Someone is lying, and the truth-teller should be able to document it…