Downtown businesses counting losses in wake of gas leak

Restaurants and cafsin downtown Ottawa were struggling to do business without the use of stoves and ovens Wednesday, 24 hours aftera construction mishap connected to the city's light rail transit project severed a gas main at Queen and O'Connor streets.

• Gas line rupture tied to Ottawa's LRT project
• Close calls mar Ottawa's LRT project

One of Rideau Transit Group's contractorsruptured the gas lineTuesdayduring work onQueen Street. Thousands of workers were forced from downtown office buildings as the hissing of escaping gas could be heard for blocks.

I couldn't bake. I can't cook. It's a disaster.- AndreKachi, Marcello's Market & Deli

Enbridge shut off gas to 34 properties, restoring service to just six overnight. Technicians went door-to-door to relightsome appliances Wednesday, but othercases werecomplicated because HVACcontractors hadto be brought in to help, the gas company said.

Marcello's Market & Deli in the Sun Life Financial Centre is one of many storestaking a financial hit. Owner AndreKachihad to apologize to customers who showed up Wednesday expecting a hot lunch.

"My buffet is empty," said Kachi. "I couldn't bake. I can't cook. It's terrible. It's a disaster. We can't operate, so we mightas well go home and shut the doors. It's just total loss."

'They don't care about us'

The gas leak is just the latest incidentrelated to work on the city's light rail project that Kachi saidishurting his bottom line.

Kachi estimates he's lost more than $200,000 over the past year because of the construction mess outside his business, located above the future Parliament LRT station.

"They don't care about us, honestly," he said."I'm working for free. I don't pay myself, I don't pay my wife. We work as a family for free, just to keep up. How long I can last?I don't know."

Businesses asking for compensation

Kachiisone of several business ownersasking the City of Ottawa to reimburse them forrevenuethey lost because of Tuesday'sgas leak.

Stelios Doussis, general manager of Riviera, said the Sparks Street restaurant was forced to close itsdoors at 3 p.m.Tuesday after emergency crews temporarily blocked access to the business.

Doussissaid staff had to call customers to cancel theirreservations, and with no gas when it reopened Wednesday, the restaurant could only offer a light lunch.

"We're a pretty busy restaurant. It affected a pretty good chunk [of business]yesterday," said Doussis.

Doussisis planningto meet with the Sparks Street business improvement association Thursday to explore the possibility of compensation from the city.

'It's very difficult'

KarinaHayston, owner ofMoulinde Provence, is hoping to do the same. On Wednesday thecaf'sdisplay cases were looking empty, and staff had only a single electric oven to warm up food.

"It's very difficult," said Hayston. "You're trying your best to run a business, create jobs, and please your customers, and issues like this are definitely hard."

The chair ofthe Sparks Street business association,AntoineKano, saidas bad as things were Tuesday, he doesn't anticipate the financial fallout will be as severe as it was during last summer's sinkhole on nearby Rideau Street.

More than 30 downtown businesses filed claims for compensation from the city after the road collapsed on June 8, 2016.

• More than two dozen businesses want the city to pay for losses due to Rideau sinkhole

Kanosaid he plans to talk to members this week to figure out how much money they lost due to the gas leak.

The city of Ottawa's solicitors offices says that owners can submit a claim for compensation, which the city would probably direct toward the contractor.