As Toronto Islands reopen, drowning businesses rejoice

Amid suspended ferry services and muddied beaches, Derek Davis and his fleet of voyage canoes have cartedtourists to and from the mainland since the spring.

But for monthsthere haven't been many of them to transport, he says.

Despite keeping the canoe taxi serviceopen all season, Davis had to cut staff, struggling to stay afloat during the upheaval caused by widespread flooding.

"It's ironic," Davis laughed, "I operate a canoe business and I'm complaining about the water."

Today, he hopes to see lines around the block as island attractions open to the public, and he's rehired his staff to prepare.

Davis is just one of Toronto Island's seasonal operators, and he's no anomaly, despite his independence from the ferry. Cafes, bike rentals and the iconic amusement park allremained dark and quiet through the summer season.

Some, valiantly, tried to overcome the hardship.

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"We've remained open but we've suffered terribly," said Island Cafeowner Maura McIntyre, who's been operating the restaurant for eight years.

She says she's never encountered such a hit, adding she had to lay off her summer staff.

"We're hanging on by our fingernails," she said. "Now we're stocking up, staffing up, just getting ready for customers."

Across the newly-formed ponds, Toronto Island Bike Rental will open its doors for the first time this season. They've got a fleet of new bikes and about a dozen "quads," shaded four-wheeled contraptions, ready to spin.

But co-owner Hari Rao, who's been renting out bikes here forover 30 years, says he's never experienced anything like this summer.

"August is the only month we have," Rao said. "There are two families depending on this business."

Rao originally lost a bid to run the rental business earlier this year, but the winner backed out after Rao had liquidated his assets, selling most of his bikes at a fraction of their full value.

Rao maintains a sense of optimism despite his misfortune. "I think people are waiting to go on the island," he said. "We think there will be a lot of traffic."

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Centreville Amusement Park, which brings in millions of dollars in an average season and usually hires about 400 summer staff,is decidedly unmerry about their losses.

Missing out on over $6 million in revenuethis year means BillBeasley, president of the company that owns Centreville,had to sell one of the park's dearest assets.

The 110-year-old carouselwill make its last rounds on the island this fall before shipping off to its new home in Indiana.

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While most of Centreville's rides will be open and running this week, residual damage from flooding means some of the farm animals can't be brought to the island, Beasley said.

Still submerged is one of the park's main attractions."The biggest hit we've had is to the train ride," he said."A lot of the tracks are still under water."

As for Monday,Beasleysays the park hopes for visitors, but not so many that the crowds overwhelm his staff. He's hired almost 200 new workers, mostly teenagers needing a summer job.

Others, in contrast to Beasley, wouldn't mind crowds. "We're hoping for a bit of a rush," said Jaclyn Palmer, program coordinator with the Sunshine Centre for Seniors, which offers golf-cart tours and crafts for mainland residents.

"We're not-for-profit, so we need to have people over to keep the program running," Palmer said.

Given the financial burden of the season's floods, the city says it's working with businesses to alleviate some of the pressure.

"We did take some steps to forgive some of the royalties and payments and fees that are normally collected by the city as a means of helping these people carry on," Tory said Monday morning."What it becomes is a cash flow problem."

Licence fees for island leaseholders may be deferred by city council, Wynna Brown, city spokesperson, told CBC Toronto.

But Beasley and Rao are looking for more: they hope to see at least of a portion of their rent waived this summer.

Brown did not comment on whether the city was currently considering dropping those fees.

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Brown said some parts of the island will be blocked off to the public as it recovers. In the ongoing battle for dry land, the city has used 27 water pumps and over 45,000 sandbags to stymie the encroaching shoreline.

Olympic Island will remain closed to visitors, but Ward's and Centre Island including the theme park, bike rental and all three beaches are open to the public starting today.

On a typical warm-weather weekend, Tory said, the islands welcome about 20,000 tourists.