11 ServiceOntario locations to close as Staples gets sole-sourced deal for kiosks

At least 11 ServiceOntario locations in southern Ontario are being closed and replaced with kiosks inside some Staples Canada stores.

CityNews has learned among the locations closing are centres in Toronto, Mississauga, Hamilton, London, and Newmarket.

The government also confirmed that Staples Canada got a sole-sourced deal to open ServiceOntario locations inside some of its Ontario office supply stores. The deal was not put to tender so other companies were not able to openly bid for it.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson within the premier’s office said the government conducted lengthy consultations with retail partners and that Staples Canada was selected due to the size of its stores, parking availability, number of locations across Ontario, and willingness to participate.

“What’s concerning to me about this is how did the government come to the decision to turn to a US-owned corporation like Staples to provide this service to Ontarians?” said Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles. “What are the implications of that? I certainly want to know the details of that deal and how and why they chose Staples when there are certainly already small businesses in Ontario that have been providing this kind of service for some time.”

The kiosks, where Ontarians will be able to do things like renew driver’s licences and health cards, are part of a pilot project first announced in December 2023 to “reduce the overall cost to deliver government services to the public.”

“It fits within the government’s overall strategy of corporatizing government services,” said Liberal MPP Adil Shamji. “I’d be curious to know whether there are any investors or donors who have been pushing for this, but I simply don’t know. I’m keen to learn as much as I can about this.”

Some of the soon-to-be-shuttered locations have been family businesses for decades and owners were given just 70 days’ notice that their business was being closed.

Sources tell CityNews the following 11 ServiceOntario locations will be closing:

A map showing the 11 locations where ServiceOntario centres will be closed and replaced by a kiosk within a Staples Canada store. CITYNEWS