By Greg Hoekstra
Some Sparks Street businesses are refusing to make their signage bilingual, despite recent appeals from the federal government.
“That will cost money, and being in small business there is not a lot of money to go bilingual,” says Eric Schwartz, owner of Ottawa Leather Goods.
Yet many of these businesses may be forced to comply.
Public Works Canada, which owns most buildings on Sparks Street, included a clause in their commercial leases in 2000 requiring tenants to provide signage, menus, promotional documents, and websites in both official languages.
But the push for such requirements has been felt only recently, after letters were sent to businesses in the National Capital Region this summer reminding them of their obligation.
This move has left small-business owners like Schwartz feeling as though the government is trying to undermine them.
“We’re all here to do business, that’s the important part. If someone tells you what to do, or how to do it, that’s when it becomes a problem,” he says.
Public Works spokeswoman Lucie Coté says this is exactly the type of reaction the government was hoping to avoid.
“Our intention was never really to tell them how to run their business,” says Coté. “We’re taking leadership and trying to foster and enhance bilingual services. It’s our responsibility as the federal government to promote and encourage the use of both official languages in the National Capital Region.”
These sentiments echo a statement released last month by federal Public Works Minister, Scott Brison.
Brison says he has asked his officials to send follow-up letters, assuring that Public Works will “work in collaboration to help (commercial tenants) meet the spirit of Canada’s official language policy, without any attempt to interfere with how they run their businesses.”
Still, businesses question the need for bilingual signage.
John Coles, owner of the Astrolabe Gallery, says he hasn’t complied because he doubts the change would benefit him.
“One of the points made in the letter they sent us was that if we had bilingual signage it would increase our business, so I’m now asking them to prove that would be true,” Coles says.
Despite not having bilingual signage, Coles says Sparks businesses always do their best to accommodate customers.
“I speak French to a degree. I’m not perfectly bilingual, but nevertheless it’s never been a problem,” says Coles, adding, “we get far more German and Spanish-speaking tourists than French-Canadians.”
Though bilingual signage is stipulated in all leases, business owners such as Coles question the legality of the requirement.
Coté refused to comment specifically on how the requirement would be enforced or the consequences non-compliant businesses might face.
“We’ll have to take it when these situations arrive and deal with it on a case to case basis.”