TORONTO — Thick smoke from wildfires burning across northwestern Ontario has engulfed the Greater Toronto Area this week, delivering some of the world’s worst air quality and hammering businesses reliant on summer outdoor activity.Businesses with outdoor components — from restaurant patios to vineyard tours — faced immediate challenges. Operators reported customers cancelling reservations or avoiding streets altogether due to the haze and smell.City officials closed all outdoor pools and wading pools and cancelled Camp TO field trips. Similar shutdowns struck recreation programs in surrounding municipalities. These moves directly slashed revenue for restaurants, bars, event venues and tourism-related businesses that depend on warm-weather crowds.Patio seating, a key summer lifeline for many GTA eateries, sat largely empty as diners sought indoor alternatives or stayed home..The pattern extends outside the GTA as well, such as nearby Niagara, where wine tour operators like Grape Escape reported a surge in cancellations for outdoor experiences as tourists voiced concerns over the lingering smoke. Co-owner Rich Mell spent much of a recent day fielding calls and has responded by pivoting to e-bikes, vehicle tours and more flexible rescheduling policies to salvage bookings.At Henry of Pelham winery in St. Catharines, co-owner Paul Speck was forced to move a private gathering indoors earlier in the week as smoke thickened.Further west in London, organizers of the popular Rock the Park music festival were forced to end the event early due to safety concerns over the thick wildfire smoke. The abrupt cancellation deprived local restaurants, bars, hotels and vendors of expected crowds during what is typically a major summer revenue boost for the city’s hospitality sector.The cumulative effect has left many operators contending with higher operational costs for enhanced ventilation while revenue from outdoor seating evaporates..Geoff Knight is Ontario Legislative Reporter of the Western Standardgknight@westernstandard.newsTwitter: @GeckoJCKnight
