AGCO hears Fiona’s case

By Will Tremain –

Chun Bo Wang may have a hard road ahead, with concerned residents and police one side, and drug dealers and prostitutes on the other.

On May 17, the owner of Fiona’s CC Restaurant and Bar at Queen Street East and Pape Avenue pleaded her case for a liquor license at an Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario board hearing.

Wang only bought the business Dec. 2006. She may not get the license, even though she invested money and time in redecorating the premises and advertising, and changed the food to feature Chinese regional cuisine with a delivery service.

Testimony from local residents and police may outweigh Wang’s plea for support of small business and assurances that she can handle difficult clientele in an area rife with drug and prostitution problems.

Wang has two years of experience working in bars in Toronto and a business partner who has experience as a bar manager, she says.

Wang said she was not aware of the history of problems at the restaurant when she bought the business, and applied for her license before learning of them. She also wrote a letter to residents in January indicating she would not pursue the license application. But as she paid over $1,000 for the license application, and needs the profit from sales of liquor, she then decided to keep the application open, she said during her board testimony.

The liquor license for the resto was revoked previously when the previous owner operated it as the Dang Restaurant. It seems things have changed since the liquor stopped flowing, and local residents appreciate the change.

“I’ve unfortunately gotten to know the people who used to frequent the Dang Restaurant – dealers, addicts, drunks. They walk by, I still see them, but they don’t go in,” testified Boris Mojsovski, an area resident.

“They’d come out late at night, there would be fights, extremely noisy. Since the liquor license was revoked, and since the new owner purchased it, there are none of these problems,” added Mojsovski.

“It’s been a bonus not to have the establishment licensed,” said Patricia Abrams, another resident.

“I feel if they are granted a license the problems will return. The dealers and prostitutes are very, very aggressive people. They don’t even respect our property,” added Abrams.

Det. Const Rod Benson is with the Toronto Drug Squad and worked with 55 Division of the Toronto Police Services for the previous eight years.

“The restaurant has been the most problematic establishment in the area,” Benson testified.

“It is the hub of drug activity in the area, of crime and illegal activity which extend into the front and back yards of residents of the area. It’s impossible for residents to not be affected,” Benson said.

“Toronto police have undertaken surveillance in the area, prostitution-related operations in the area, drug-purchasing operations in the area. We’ve committed a tremendous amount of resources to the problems at 99 Pape,” Benson added.

“We’ve had much more success in purchasing drugs and making arrests in the area since the liquor license was revoked. Drug dealers are not longer able to have safe haven at 99 Pape,” Benson said.

“In this case the granting of a liquor license is ill-advised. The way that business is set up now, with no liquor license, is the best way you can run it. A liquor license will bring you problems,” said Benson to Wang.

“The police have never said this about any other location. If we were to close down and revoke the license, this is the one. This is extraordinary. Our community was right,” said Toronto city councillor Paula Fletcher (Ward 30, Toronto-Danforth), who also testified for the city.

The AGCO board hasn’t decided yet if they will grant a license to Fiona’s CC Restaurant. Wang will receive a decision in writing in the near future.