Two of the busiest blocks in the Church-Wellesley neighbourhood have reopened to motorists after being closed for a nine-week pedestrianization pilot project. Now, residents, business owners and some elected officials say they would like to see it expanded next year.Starting in June, a small stretch of Church Street was closed to vehicle traffic in order to give pedestrians more space in the heart of The Village. The project was inspired by other pedestrianized areas across Canada, in cities like Montreal and Vancouver.While some critics at Toronto City Hall were skeptical of the plan at first, Chris Moise, the councillor for Ward 13 Toronto Centre who championed the project, called it “a huge success” in an interview with CityNews on Monday.“We had over 100 volunteers who signed up to help us with the pedestrianization,” he said. “I walked there a couple of times a week just to experience it myself, and it was a great feeling just to see so many people on the street.”Moise said he’s sad to see the project end and called it one of his “top accomplishments” as councillor for the area.“There were a lot of conversations with my colleagues behind the scenes, you know, pleading with them to support it,” he explained. “So for me, it’s a great accomplishment.”Moise said he faced pushback from “every city department,” including police and transportation officials who waited until the final hour to sign off on the project.“Initially, they wanted us to have 24/7 policing there at a cost of $3,000,000 and I said, that’s not feasible.”Police initially made the request citing the 2SLGBTQ+ communities’ increased risk for hate-motivated violence. In the end, Moise was able to negotiate a deal to have 24-hour security, which brought the final price tag closer to $500,000.According to Moise, the cost of the project was covered by the Church-Wellesley Business Improvement Association and community donations, at no expense to taxpayers.“The city’s not going to pay for it. So, hopefully next year we’ll get more sponsors,” he said.Business report increased sales and new customersWhile officials are still crunching the numbers to see how many people visited the area through the project’s nine-week run, and determine how much revenue was generated, several local businesses said they saw an increase in sales and new customers walking through their doors.The Church-Wellesley BIA’s executive director, Jaret Sereda, said the area usually experiences a lull in business after Pride month, but that didn’t happen this year.“When you speak to the businesses, truly after Pride, it’s like a ghost town,” Sereda explained. “It’s pretty quiet with people on vacation and such. So, it certainly helped bring a lot of people down to check it out because this is the first time this has ever been done before in Toronto.”Businesses like vegan burger shop, Soy Boys, say they experienced a big increase in sales during the pilot. Employees say they saw plenty of first-time customers come through the door, with the pedestrianization helping bring more people into the area.“In terms of business, it went from like a 10 to 20 per cent increase in business,” George Mitri, a line cook at Soy Boys, told CityNews. “There was a bit more freedom, a bit more walkability and basically a bigger community around the area.”Overwhelming neighbourhood responseRodney Chan, a community advocate who brought the pedestrianization idea to Moise’s attention last year, said he spoke to hundreds of people during the project’s nine-week run who overwhelmingly supported the initiative.“A lot of people have told me how much this has meant to them, and it’s been really heartwarming to hear,” Chan said. “Most queer spaces in the city revolve around drinking and nightlife, so having a peaceful space to go to during the day has really been welcomed by people.”Chan believes the pilot has been significant in moving the needle with regard to urban planning in the city and thinks there’s potential to expand seasonal pedestrianization to other areas throughout the city.“I’ve heard from a lot of people who want a pedestrian street in their neighbourhood, especially in easy contenders like Cumberland Street in Yorkville or Baldwin Street in Kensington Market,” he explained. “This is an obvious thing to do.”With minimal safety issues and support from the community, Chan hopes the project will run again next year for a longer duration, potentially from May 1 until the end of October.“I’d love to see it go from at least Pride until Halloween,” he said. “I would also love to see it be longer, and we could add a few blocks.”But in order for the project to return next year, Chan says city officials need to be more supportive of the initiative.“They need to work with us on things like hostile vehicle mitigation, garbage pick-up and other kinds of practical logistics,” he added. “But also funding, because a lot of this has been paid for by the BIA and by sponsors.”