Info for Participants

Get BIG on Bloor! July 20th and 21st, 2024, Bloor Street West will be “car free” from Dufferin to Lansdowne Avenue, from Noon to Midnight. Many activities will be happening in the neighbourhood. Come celebrate local community, business, arts and culture. Rent one or more tables and join the festival. Sell something, share something, teach something—use your imagination!

Bring something BIG to the table. What would YOU like to bring?  Maybe it is a NEW thing, a BIG thing, a BIG idea, or a BIG meal. Whatever you can dream up! Make it BIG.

PLEASE NOTE: The festival is always changing. This year we are focussing more on Arts and Culture and more on local artists and atrtisans. The name has been changed to BIG on Bloor; Bloordale's Festival of Arts and Culture. We are reducing the number of available spaces this year. There will be less vendors from outside Bloordale. We will not allow grilling of food at the festival.

We are working towards a Zero Waste event. This means that anything you bring to the festival should go either into the green or blue bin. The Festival reserves the right to refuse any vendor if they do not fit our criteria. If you are unsure, please contact the festival staff to find out.

Schedule for Saturday -

8:00 am  start street closure and table setup
9:00 am  street closed, tables ready for vendors
11:00 am  street closed, all vendors vehicles cleared, tents and spaces near finished installing.
Noon  festival starts, stage entertainment starts, children’s activities start
7:00 pm

Most festival activities end, start clearing street, cleaning up garbage, and removing barriers while accessing side streets, keeping the street open and car-free during other activities.

Further programming continues for Bloordale Businesses until late, but Community Market, Art Activities and Play-Fair comes to and end.
9:00 pm

Night time festival activities begin, including parades, projection presentations, beer gardens and continued Main Stage performances.
Midnight

All festival activities end, start clearing street, cleaning up garbage and vendors allowed for strike. *NO VEHICLES ON BLOOR
1:00 am

All patios come to a close, all remaining vendors must prepare for overnight. We encourage you to lower your tent, blanket or wrap your tables/set-ups and take home any extremely valuable items. There will be roaming security, but we are not held responsibile for any missing or stolen items.
OVERNIGHT

Security roams the strip, remaining car-free

Schedule for Sunday -

DAY TWO
9:00 am  street reopens for vendors
11:00 am  street closed, all vendors vehicles cleared, tents and spaces finished installing.
Noon  festival starts, stage entertainment starts, children’s activities start
7:00 pm

Most festival activities end, start clearing street, cleaning up garbage, and removing barriers while accessing side streets, keeping the street open and car-free during other activities.

Further programming continues for Bloordale Businesses until 9pm, but Community Market, Art Activities and Play-Fair comes to and end.
9:00 pm

All festival activities end, start clearing street, cleaning up garbage and vendor vehicles allowed for strike once approved by Festival Staff (as judged by amount of people still on roads)
Midnight

All patios come to a close, all remaining vendors must clear the street, all barriers removed.

Streets fully cleared; beginning to reopen the streets for vehicles
2:00 am

Street re-opens

Details

Loading/Unloading to Bloor Street:

  • There are parking lots surrounding the festival boundaries. Please utilize these. Do NOT rely on driving your vehicle to your booth site, instead parking a distance away, and walk over your supplies using a cart. Refer to map for closest Green P Parking and Dufferin Mall lot.
  • By 11am all vendor carts, vehicles, and other transportation should be cleared off the street and focus on setting up the spaces for festival opening.
  • Saturday night the street is car-free. Despite activities ceasing at 9pm and completely at Midnight, vendors are not permitted to drive vehicles to their booth to do overnight load until AFTER Midnight. Instead, walk a cart to nearest parking spots, or pull vehicle up to the barriers from any of the side streets - NOT Lansdowne or Dufferin.

For existing Bloor Street retail stores - waived fee

  • the activity will all be out on the street, you can join online by reserving a space for free!
  • sign up online or by mail
  • no additional permit is required to sell on the street for the festival
  • you can sell any merchandise that you usually sell in your store
  • sell it BIG (think of a way to be unique, or literally BIG with your service / presentation)

For all participants / vendors - starting at $500 fee

  • rent a table or more, sign up online or by mail
  • sell it BIG (think of a way to be unique or literally BIG with your service / presentation)
  • you will receive updates by email as we get closer to the festival
  • there will be monthly public meetings as we get closer to the festival
  • you will receive a table number and location and a vending permit for the festival about a week before
  • the street is gratefully insured for liability by the Bloordale BIA. Any further insurance is your own responsibility, but not mandatory for participation
  • It is not recommended to leave artwork overnight on the Saturday. We do have security and lock the tennis courts up, but it is a risk easily avoidable by simply removing works and reinstalling the next morning between 9am and noon.

Other food vendors - $800 fee

  • a Toronto Public Health permit is required for all food prepared and sold on the street
  • there are no grills for food allowed at the festival, they are too messy and annoying
  • sign up for a table to reserve your space
  • bring your own tent, if you have one, in case of rain
  • we are expecting big crowds, please make sure you have enough food
  • sell a special NEW meal, treat, or drink for the day
  • make arrangements to reduce as much as possible, and remove any leftover garbage on the street after the festival