Mile End's Arts Café Says It's Closing Because The Landlord Wants To Raise The Rent By 40%

Another beloved neighbourhood spot to say goodbye to.
Mile End's Arts Café Says It's Closing Because The Landlord Wants To Raise The Rent By 40%
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The owner of Arts Café Montréal says it's shutting its doors in the Mile End due to an "unreasonable" rent hike after a four-month struggle with the building's owners.

This makes it the latest small business to risk closing due to rent hikes, following news that NDG's Shaika Café and the Mile End's S. W. Welch bookstore were facing similar fates — though S.W. Welch later reached an agreement with its landlord following mounting public pressure.  

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Gregory Paquet, who owns the cafe, told MTL Blog the building's owners demanded a non-negotiable 40% rent increase, with an additional 7% yearly increase for five years.

"We always treated [the building] like we owned it," Paquet said. "We completely redid the electricity and they didn't have to pay for anything."

Paquet said the team is going to search for new locations.

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  • Lea Sabbah
  • Lea Sabbah
    Lea Sabbah was a Staff Writer for MTL Blog. Previously, Lea was a radio host on CJLO 1690 AM and her work has been published by Global News, the Toronto Star, Le Devoir and the National Observer. In 2019, she was part of the investigative team that uncovered lead in Montreal's drinking water — a story which won Quebec's Grand Prix Judith-Jasmin. She's a graduate of the journalism program at Concordia University.

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