STAFF REPORT May 12, 2006 To: From: Subject: Economic Development and Parks Committee Donald G. Eastwood, General Manager Economic Development, Culture & Tourism Nuit Blanche Toronto September 30 - October 1, 2006 -- Information and Requests for a Non-Objection Letter for the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario. All Wards Purpose: This report seeks to inform Council about Nuit Blanche Toronto and requests Council declare Nuit Blanche Toronto 2006 an event of municipal significance in order for Toronto Special Events to apply for a Liquor Sales Licence Extension of Hours By Event Organizer for establishments partnered with the event to extend hours for the sales and service of alcohol for the duration of the event. Financial Implications and Impact Statement: There are no financial implications resulting from the adoption of this report. Recommendations: It is recommended that: (1) Nuit Blanche Toronto be declared an event of municipal significance, for Liquor Licence Board of Ontario (LLBO) and Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) purposes and indicate that there is no objection to Special Events applying for a Liquor Sales Licence Extension of Hours as the Event Organizer for Nuit Blanche on September 30 through to October 1, 2006; (2) A letter from the Clerk indicating that the establishments listed in Attachment #1 are officially endorsed by Nuit Blanche Toronto and Toronto City Council has no objection to these establishments being included in Toronto Special Events application for a sales
- 2 - licence extension of hours with the AGCO for the purpose of Nuit Blanche on September 30 through to October 1; and (3) The appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto. Background: In June 2003, Toronto City Council adopted the Plan for the Creative City to help guide the city's cultural development. The goals of the plan were to position Toronto as an international cultural capital and to define culture's role at the centre of the economic and social development of the city. It called for Toronto to use its arts, culture and heritage assets to position itself as a Creative City, a global cultural capital. The Live With Culture campaign was launched in conjunction with the 40 th Anniversary of City Hall on September 13. The 16-month marketing and event campaign running from September 2005 to December 2006 promotes and celebrates Toronto's vibrant arts industry at a time when an unprecedented number of new architectural landmarks are driving what is being called a Cultural Renaissance within the city of Toronto. One of the events being produced by Toronto Special Events as part of the Live with Culture Campaign is Nuit Blanche. The brainchild of the Mayor s office in Paris France, Nuit Blanche is an all-night annual contemporary arts festival. The City of Paris produced the first Nuit Blanche in 2002. By 2004, the City of Paris and Nuit Blanche producers commissioned a total of 50 outdoor site specific projects and had the participation of over 80 arts organizations. Of the 130 projects 40 were large scale original pieces created specifically for the festival. Fifty percent of the commissions featured international artists. This all-night contemporary arts festival was such a huge success that Brussels, Rome and Montreal decided to follow suit and fashion similar festivals under the Nuit Blanche name. Comments: Toronto Special Events has been working with the City of Paris to bring Nuit Blanche to Toronto. Given the success of the festival concept in Paris and around the world, criteria have been developed in order to ensure that Nuit Blanche, wherever it takes place, maintains elements key to its integrity. As such, Nuit Blanche must: Take place at night and operate from 7pm until 7am Be free Focus on contemporary art Take place in public spaces Encourage encounters between contemporary art and the public Include walking trails in the City, close to one another Discover isolated and unknown venues and rediscover sites that reflect the City s life and values
- 3 - Nuit Blanche strives to engage the city its art communities and its residents. Toronto Special Events has mapped out the key elements in moving the event forward and engaging various communities in the development process. Nuit Blanche Toronto is a free all-night, city-wide celebration of contemporary art. From sunset on September 30 to sunrise on October 1, Torontonians and tourists are invited to encounter the city in a new way - to rediscover Toronto through the Nuit Blanche Contemporary Art Exhibition and Programming. Nuit Blanche Contemporary Art Exhibition Under the direction of the Nuit Blanche curatorial team, the City of Toronto will commission and fund up to 30 site-specific public art works by local, national and international artists. The exhibition is located within three temporary sites or public zones. As a part of and in response to Toronto s cultural renaissance, the Nuit Blanche zones connect developments within the city to inspire dialogue by engaging the public to examine its significance and impact through contemporary art. The three Nuit Blanche zones or curatorial projects include: (a) West Queen West from Dufferin to Trinity Bellwoods (b) McCaul/University Avenue from Queen St to College St (c) Bloor/Yorkville Nuit Blanche Programming The City of Toronto invites the art community to transform Toronto into a site of contemporary art through all night access to exhibitions and programs. By joining forces with cultural institutions, galleries, artist-run centres, and independent artists, curators and organizations, Nuit Blanche Programming illuminates Toronto s cultural hot spots and creative communities, inviting the public to encounter the city and contemporary art in a new way. There are three levels of involvement in Nuit Blanche Programming: Participants, Partners, and Special Projects: Participants offer all night access to existing contemporary art exhibition or project (i.e. the regular exhibition hours change and the gallery or venue stays open all night). Participants must be located in the city of Toronto and free to the public. Partners present all night access to contemporary art programming (i.e. a program developed specifically for Nuit Blanche located inside the gallery or venue). Programming Partners must be located in the City of Toronto and free to the public. Special Projects are a site specific project from sunset to sunrise created by an individual artist, collective or art organization located in public space within the three zones (i.e. an artist intervention in the alleyways of Queen Street West). Special Projects must be located in a Nuit Blanche zone within the City of Toronto and free to the public. Programming Guidelines All Nuit Blanche projects must critically engage with the Nuit Blanche mandate to bring forward contemporary art while addressing public space and its relationship to the city. From exhibitions
- 4 - to performances to video installations, Nuit Blanche programs are free to the public, accessible from 7:01pm to 7:15am and located in the City of Toronto. The cost of programming is the responsibility of the institution, organization or artist. The City of Toronto will be further animated during this event with the inclusion of a select number of restaurants and bars that will be invited to remain open within the three predetermined zones to offer all-night dining and service. This all-night dining component is integral to the overall animation of Nuit Blanche and has been met with tremendous success in other international cities hosting Nuit Blanche. Conclusions: Securing permission for the use of the Nuit Blanche name as part of Toronto s Year of Creativity/Live with Culture is a significant achievement by City staff and is testimony to Council s efforts to position Toronto as an International City for cultural and special events. Staff are requesting that Nuit Blanche be declared an event of municipal significance by Toronto City Council as well as seeking a non-objection letter from Toronto City Council in order to apply for a liquor sales licence extension of hours from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission for Nuit Blanche. This declaration will assist staff s efforts to secure permission from the AGCO to extend the hours of sale and service of alcohol for participating restaurants and assist in bringing a dynamic experience to the streets of Toronto while contributing to local economies. Contact: Jaye Robinson Director of Events Tel: 416-395-7310 Fax: 416-395-0278 E-mail: jrobinso@toronto.ca Donald G. Eastwood General Manager, Economic Development, Culture & Tourism List of Attachments: Attachment #1 Participating Establishments Attachment #1 Participating Establishments 360 Restaurant/CN Tower Neil Jones, Director of Operations 301 Front St West, Toronto M5V 2T6
- 5 - Alumnae Theatre Fiona Newman, Bar Manager 70 Berkeley St, Toronto M5A 2W6 Amber Toufik Sarwa, Owner 119 Yorkville Ave, Toronto M5R 1C4 Babaluu Vanina Florance, Manager 136 Yorkville Ave, Toronto M5R 1C4 Babur Manpreet Singh, Manager 273 Queen St West, Toronto M5V 1Z9 Bar One Aldo Barone, President 924 Queen St West, Toronto M6S 1G6 Bloor Street Diner Jackie Brown, Operations Manager 55 Bloor St West, Toronto M4W 1A5 Camera Bar Sanaz Mazinani, Manager 1028 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1H6 Dimmi Bar and Trattoria Raymond Commibbo, Manager 140 Cumberland St, Toronto M5R 1A8 Drake Hotel Bill Simpson, General Manager 1150 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1J3 Ein-stein Café & Pub Ojars Kness, President 229 College St, Toronto M5T 1R4 Flow Restaurant Lounge Tony Longo, President 133 Yorkville Ave, Toronto M5R 1C4
- 6 - Gabby's Mike Dalley, General Manager 783 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1C1 Gabby's Bar & Grill Mike Dalley, General Manager 194 Bloor St West, Toronto M5S 1T8 Gladstone House Ltd Rick Knapp, Bar & Banquet Manager 1214 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1J6 Hart House Catering Arlene Stein, Catering Manager 7 Hart House Circle, Toronto M5S 3H3 It's not a deli Eduardo Dellaforesta, President 986 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1H1 Jamie Kennedy at the Gardiner Dan Donovan, Vice President of Operations 111 Queens Park, Toronto M5S 2C7 Lot 16 Bar Penelope Rose, Co-owner/President 1136 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1J3 O'Grady's Tap & Grill Blair Ridsdale, General Manager 171 College St, Toronto M5T 1P7 Panorama Jackie Brown, Operations Manager 55 Bloor St West, 51st Floor, Toronto M4W 1A5 Pure Spirits Oyster Bar & Grill Peter Trajkovski, General Manager 55 Mill St, Building 62, Toronto M5A 3C4 Remys Restaurant Gerald Lorenzetti, President 115 Yorkville Ave, Toronto M5R 1C1
- 7 - Rivoli David Stearn, Owner 332 Queen St West, Toronto M5V 2A2 Royal Ontario Museum Colin MacPherson, Hospitality Services Manager 100 Queens Park, Toronto M5S 2C6 Saigon Flower Restaurant Muoi-Vuong, Owner 1138 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1J3 Sweaty Betty's Pol Cristo-Williams, Owner 13 Ossington Ave, Toronto M6J 2Y8 The Boiler House Restaurant Peter Trajkovski, General Manager 55 Mill St, Building 46, Toronto M5A 3C4 The Social Richard Lambert, Owner 1100 Queen St West, Toronto M6J 1H9 The Sparrow Pol Cristo-Williams, Owner 92 Ossington Ave, Toronto M6J 2Z4 Ultra Supper Club Brenda Lowes, Vice-President 314 Queen St West, Toronto M5V 2A2 Village Idiot Pub Atef Girgis, Owner 126 McCaul St, Toronto M5T 1W2