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Timmys draws a crowd

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1608timP2 Emelie Peacock/NNSL photo Sales associate Darlene Tsetso-Harassi, left, and manager Evangeline Kapotaon say they have seen a lot more foot traffic, and business, to their Bootlegger store since a Tim Hortons franchise opened in the Centre Square Mall last week. (August 14, 2017)

Tim Hortons has been open in the downtown Centre Square Mall for less than a week and some retailers are already seeing more people visiting their stores.

Darlene Tsetso-Horassi says the Bootlegger she works at has seen a lot more business in the past week as a result of Tim Hortons opening. She would like to see more food options, perhaps a food court, in the Centre Square Mall. Emelie Peacock/NNSL photo

“Foot traffic has gone up,” said Darlene Tsetso-Horassi, sales associate at clothing store Bootlegger. Her manager, Evangeline Kapotaon, noticed right away how loud it got after the coffee franchise opened up. The two quickly pointed out that the noise is positive and not associated with drunken behaviour or other issues that have plagued the mall in the past.

Kapotaon said the sales have also gone up and the amount of Tim Hortons cups in people’s hands while they browse the store links those sales to the opening of the coffee chain.

“I can't believe the amount of people that are coming in. It's always busy,” she said, adding she hopes the momentum keeps going.

Greg Barton, co-owner of the downtown Tim Hortons franchise together with Deborah Barton and Suzanne Desfosses, said retailers have approached them in the mall to thank them for bringing the foot traffic. Some have told him the amount of people coming in has doubled or tripled in a matter of days.

“It's all positive traffic of people that are actually buying things and there's a lot more activity in the mall, so it’s been quite well received,” he said.

A single franchise moving downtown won’t make a huge difference, said city councillor Adrian Bell, but taken with other new arrivals such as Birchwood Coffee Ko and YK Hotpot, the opening may be a positive sign for the area.

“Maybe this is in fact a trend and maybe we can look at this as the signs of life of a retail sector that has been struggling for quite a while,” he said.

Not all retailers are reporting an upswing in sales. Dan Hayward, owner of Dan's Place on the upper level of the mall, said he’s seen virtually no change since the franchise opened.

“Most of the people that want coffee and donuts are going to be the people working in offices in and around this area. They're not shoppers,” he said, adding he’d like to see a department store or large retailer move in.

“There's only one thing that's going to make this mall work and that is if we can get a major (tenant),” he said.

According to Tai Tran, owner of P and T Alterations and Embroidery, there has been another big change in the mall this summer - the fights, loitering and public intoxication have mostly dissipated.

He attributes the change not to Tim Hortons, but to the security company North Star Security and Investigations that took over security of both the upper and lower levels of the mall in May.

Right after moving in, the company became the subject of controversy over a number of incidents between security officers and homeless people inside the mall.

A representative from Centre Square Mall ownership could not be reached for comment as of press time.