Adam Vaughan proposes a Parkdale-style bar ban on Kensington Market

Once quaint and charmingly grungy Kensington is rapidly gentrifying. New gourmet food shops, including Thomas Lavers, Hooked and the refurbished Sanagan’s, are bringing in an artisanal ethos; new indie coffee houses are popping up alongside neighbourhood spots; and trendy new bars and restaurants, like Via Mercanti, Thirsty and Miserable and Cold Tea, are bringing with them a boozy evening social scene that’s troubling residents, and Adam Vaughan. His objection: the influx of watering holes could drive up rents and force out the market’s mom-and-pop food stands. The city councillor is currently advocating for a staff report on the feasibility of restricting the number of new food-and-drink spaces, something similar to the restaurant moratorium in Parkdale, which could soon become permanent. Of course, Vaughan had to make the point with his standard rhetorical swagger: he equated evil bars to evil Walmart and dubbed the transforming market the “Kensington Entertainment District.” [CBC]