Small businesses are the lifeblood of local communities. In addition to creating jobs and being economic drivers, they often also play a key role in defining the identities of the neighborhoods they occupy.

Covid-19 lockdowns, carbon taxes and collective government ineptitude have hit small businesses especially hard, and many such enterprises that have helped form the culture of their communities for years in Canada have had to shut their doors for good, sometimes after decades in business.

Angel’s Café has avoided the fate of many small businesses and has been serving Calgarians since 1998 in an industry in which very few last more than a few years, but there is no denying that they have faced their share of challenges along the way, especially in recent years.

After surviving forced Covid-19 closures, during which they provided free meals for countless Calgarians, they found themselves once again closed after Calgary’s recent catastrophic water main failure, a failure Angel’s Café owner Cathy Jacobs says would have been avoided if the city had been doing its job.

To discuss the struggles small businesses face, and Angel Café’s participation in a class action lawsuit against the city of Calgary for failing to properly maintain water lines, Adam was joined by Cathy Jacobs.