All the businesses and recreational activities opening in Ontario today
The list of businesses and recreational activities that are allowed to reopen in Ontario is expanding to get “thousands of people” back to work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last week, Premier Doug Ford announced all the places that can be operational again on Tuesday, as part of Ontario’s first stage of its reopening framework.
On May 19, retail services not in shopping malls that have separate street entrances can reopen, as can animal services like grooming and certain household services like cleaning and maintenance can resume again.
“During the last several weeks, the people of Ontario have been called on to make incredible sacrifices to help us stop the spread of COVID-19, including staying home from work, closing down businesses and going without a regular paycheque,” Ford said on Thursday.
“We are taking a cautious, balanced approach to our economic reopening, to protect the health and safety of everyone.”
But, Ford emphasized that these places can open “only if they are ready.”
“Thanks to our collective efforts we are prepared for the next stage of reopening the economy,” the premier said.
“We are getting thousands of people back to work. We have the framework, safety guidelines and capacity in our healthcare system.”
Ford added that the risk of flare-ups “is real” and that the province must stay “vigilant” and not ignore the health advice of the provinces’ top health officials.
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Businesses and recreational activities opening today:
May 19
- Retail services not in shopping malls, that have separate street-front entrances can reopen. But there must be measures in place that can enable physical distancing, such as limiting the number of customers in the store at any one time and booking appointments beforehand or on the spot
- Seasonal businesses and recreational activities for individual or single competitors. This includes training and sport competitions conducted by a recognized national or provincial sport organization. Now, indoor and outdoor non-team sport competitions can be played while maintaining physical distancing and without spectators, such as tennis, track and field and horse racing
- Animal services, specifically pet care services, such as grooming and training, and regular veterinary appointments
- Indoor and outdoor household services that can follow public health guidelines, such as housekeepers, cooks, cleaning and maintenance
- Lifting essential workplace limits on construction
- Allowing certain health and medical services to resume, such as in-person counselling and scheduled surgeries based on the ability to meet pre-specified conditions as outlined in A Measured Approach to Planning for Surgeries and Procedures During the COVID-19 Pandemic, as well as resuming professional services such as shifting Children’s Treatment Centres from virtual to in-person.
What has reopened so far:
May 4
- Lawn centres and landscaping
- Expanded essential construction projects including shipping and logistics, broadband, telecommunications, and digital infrastructure, any other project that supports the improved delivery of goods and services, municipal projects, colleges and universities, child care centres, schools and site preparation, excavation, and servicing for institutional, commercial, industrial and residential development
- Self-serve car washes, and auto dealerships by appointment only
- Golf courses can also prepare for the upcoming season, but not yet open to the public
- Marinas can service their boats and other watercraft, but not yet open to the public
May 8
- Garden centres and nurseries reopened for in-store payment and purchases, operating under the same guidelines as grocery stores and pharmacies
May 9
- Hardware stores
May 11
- Retail stores with a street entrance can open for curbside pick-up
- Below-grade, multi-unit residential construction projects like apartments and condominiums to begin and existing above-grade projects to continue
- Provincial parks began to reopen allowing for visitors to hike and birdwatch
May 16
- Golf courses will be able to open, with clubhouses available only for washrooms and restaurants only for take-out.
- Marinas, boat clubs and public boat launches may open for recreational use
- Private parks and campgrounds may open to enable preparation for the season and to allow access for trailers and recreational vehicles whose owners have a full season contract
- Businesses that board animals, such as stables, may allow boarders to visit, care for, or ride their animal.
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