Mayor John Tory thinks rejecting a Christian group's request to have a concert in Yonge-Dundas Square is "a bit overboard."

During a Rogers TV town hall on Tuesday night, Tory was asked about Yonge-Dundas Square management's refusal to grant a permit to the Voice of the Nations (VOTN) to hold a concert next year.

The group has been granted permits in the past but VOTN says it was told the 2016 permit was rejected because "proselytizing" events weren't allowed in the square.

"I respectfully disagree with (Yonge-Dundas Square's) decision," Tory said. "There is a city policy that says you're not supposed to make people feel uncomfortable by having a kind of what I'll call a 'hard sell' on religion or any other kind of matter in public squares and I understand that."

But based on the song lyrics he's seen, Tory argued he didn't see a problem with the group having a concert in the square.

"We would never think of not allowing people to have a Christmas carol service in Yonge-Dundas Square. And when people are getting up and singing the chorus to O come let us adore him, O Come All Ye Faithful, O come let us adore him - the words were like that, praise the Lord and whatever. And I say, 'Well, so fine then are we going to ban Christmas carol services too?'" he asked.

"I think this is a bit of how the world has gone a bit overboard on some of these things."

Representatives of VOTN have said they intend to appeal the decision to the Yonge-Dundas Square Board of Management at City Hall on Dec. 10.

"I hope that those people will reconsider and perhaps just say, 'Look, we're counting on you to act responsibly,'" Tory said. "I hope they get their permit and I hope that people understand this is no different than a Christmas carol service."

The woman who asked Tory the question approved of his answer.

"Praise the Lord," she told him.

Asked by town hall moderator Royson James if he'll do anything about the permit, Tory said he's "still learning" about what is proper for him to intervene on and what isn't.

"I'm quite happy if it is proper for me to call, to call and say this is my view," he said. "I don't think these people pose any threat, I really don't."

Yonge-Dundas Square general manager Taylor Raths confirmed the VOTN permit application was not approved by staff.

"There is an appeals process in place, which is to write directly to the Yonge-Dundas Square Board of Management. If we receive a request for reconsideration the Board will consider it at its next regularly scheduled meeting," Raths said in an e-mail Wednesday.

"Beyond that, we generally don’t discuss confidential information about our clients or applicants."

Raths did confirm "the open practice of religious beliefs and practices is freely allowed in Yonge Dundas Square, and is compatible with the YDS-Guidelines.

"The YDS-Guidelines restrict the use of Yonge-Dundas Square to exclude advocating of a specific religious or political point of view only where it is undertaken for the purposes of proselytizing," he said.

don.peat@sunmedia.ca