South Edmonton business vows to open this week despite permit delay: ‘I’d rather take that risk’
Posted September 22, 2026 11:04 am.
A business in south Edmonton says it’s been ready to open its doors to customers for three weeks. So why are the lights still off?
The co-owner of Lokma Dessert Bar & Grill, on Gateway Boulevard, tells CityNews that the City of Edmonton is delaying its occupancy permit, leaving the business in limbo.
Sayem Talukder says he can’t afford to wait any longer as he’s losing $2,500 in revenue every single day.
“I have seven individuals that are relying on us to open our operations so they can live,” Talukder said.
Talukder was hoping to open Lokma by early September. He says it’s been more than three weeks since he applied for the final occupancy permit, which confirms that his space is up to code and ready for use.
But he’s yet to receive an approval.
“I lost $20,000 from that, and then revenue, every day, I’m losing about $2,500 in revenue,” he said.
In a statement to CityNews, the city says “completed documentation has yet to be submitted.”
“Once a complete and compliant submission is received from the business, we can conduct final occupancy inspections,” the city’s urban planning and economy department said.
It says the duration of the permit process “relies heavily on receiving documentation in a timely manner” and adds “this file has undergone multiple expedited reviews.”
Talukder says as a local business owner, he’s frustrated with the process. As he cannot afford to keep Lokma’s doors closed, he says he will be operating even without the city’s final occupancy permit.
“I literally have no choice but to open regardless, and it was difficult to make this decision because there’s risk involved,” he said. “If I’m currently losing $10-20K a month, whatever, I’d rather take that risk. Because if they shut me down for one day, that’s $2,500 of revenue that I lose. Better than losing $10,000 for the whole month.”
The new franchise location is the first in Western Canada. Talukder says he’s hoping to open as early as this week.
