9 privately run ServiceOntario outlets moving to Staples stores, province says

The provincial government is moving nine privately run ServiceOntario outlets to Staples Canada stores this year, the minister of public and business service delivery said Monday.

Todd McCarthy announced the impending changes at a morning news conference in Oakville, where he said the move will mean longer operating hours and better parking for Ontarians who need to access government services.

Six locations will open by Feb. 1, with three additional outlets expected in Staples stores within the coming months.

The first six locations are:

• Oakville, 2460 Winston Churchill Blvd.

• Newmarket, 17810 Yonge St.

• Toronto (Scarborough), 1980 Eglinton Ave. E.

• Strathroy, 425 Caradoc St. S.

• Tillsonburg, Tillsonburg Town Centre, 200 Broadway St.

• Welland, Seaway Mall, 800 Niagara St.

The three further outlets will be in Hamilton, Keswick and the Leaside neighbourhood of Toronto, according to the province.

McCarthy confirmed earlier reporting by CityNews that the government covered 100 per cent of the costs of retrofitting the Staples stores with ServiceOntario kiosks, though he would not provide specific figures for those expenses.

He said that including those costs, the plan is expected to save between $900,000 and $1 million over three years in operating expenses compared to the service centres remaining at their previous locations.

The sole-sourced contract with Staples is a pilot project that will be evaluated on customer wait times and the efficiency of service delivery. For the past 15 years, the province has also operated ServiceOntario outlets in some Canadian Tire stores, IDA grocery stores and Home Hardware locations.

The agreement with Staples is part of a broader push to consider new locations for all of the stand-alone, privately run operations of the provincial provider, McCarthy said.

As contracts with remaining privately operated ServiceOntario locations approach expiry, the government will be reviewing them to determine if they should continue to operate in the same way or if they should be closed and moved into retail outlets, libraries or municipal offices.

There are some 190 privately run ServiceOntario outlets in the province, making up roughly 71 per cent of all locations.

No changes are being contemplated for the more than 80 government-run ServiceOntario centres.