Indoor dining, art galleries, and expanded capacity limits – Ontario has now officially entered Step 3 of the province’s reopening plan.
The latest easing of COVID restrictions includes expanded capacity for outdoor event and a larger number of indoor activities.
Chatham-Kent Mayor Darrin Canniff says it is great news for the local economy.
“It’s huge that we can now go into restaurants, we can now go into movie theatres, we can now go to the casino if you choose to,” Canniff says. “With this, most everybody can be back in the economy again, which is really exciting, and we just need to just keep on getting those shots to make sure we, as a community, are well set up to avoid that fourth wave.”
Medical Officer Dr. David Colby echoes those sentiments, saying we can’t let our guard down.
“Everybody’s happy about the restrictions coming off, but this is based on the presumption that vaccination rates will continue. We’ve got to continue moving forward and get as many people vaccinated as possible, or else our progress will be jeopardized.”
Among the new rules in Step 3:
- Outdoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 100 people with limited exceptions;
- Indoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 25 people;
- Indoor religious services, rites or ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services permitted with physical distancing;
- Indoor dining permitted with no limits on the number of patrons per table with physical distancing and other restrictions still in effect;
- Indoor sports and recreational fitness facilities to open subject to a maximum 50 per cent capacity of the indoor space. Capacity for indoor spectators is 50 per cent of the usual seating capacity or 1,000 people, whichever is less. Capacity for outdoor spectators is 75 per cent of the usual seating capacity or 15,000 people, whichever is less;
- Indoor meeting and event spaces permitted to operate with physical distancing and other restrictions still in effect and capacity limited to not exceed 50 per cent capacity or 1,000 people, (whichever is less);
- Essential and non-essential retail with with capacity limited to the number of people that can maintain a physical distance of two metres;
- Personal care services, including services requiring the removal of a face covering, with capacity limited to the number of people that can maintain a physical distance of two metres;
- Museums, galleries, historic sites, aquariums, zoos, landmarks, botanical gardens, science centres, casinos/bingo halls, amusement parks, fairs and rural exhibitions, festivals, with capacity limited to not exceed 50 per cent capacity indoors and 75 per cent capacity outdoors;
- Concert venues, cinemas, and theatres permitted to operate at:
- up to 50 per cent capacity indoors or a maximum limit of 1,000 people for seated events (whichever is less)
- up to 75 per cent capacity outdoors or a maximum limit of 5,000 people for unseated events (whichever is less); and up to 75 per cent capacity outdoors or a maximum of 15,000 people for events with fixed seating (whichever is less).
- Real estate open houses with capacity limited to the number of people that can maintain a physical distance of two metres; and
- Indoor food or drink establishments where dance facilities are provided, including nightclubs and restobars, permitted up to 25 per cent capacity or up to a maximum limit of 250 people (whichever is less).
The province will remain in Step 3 for at least 21 days – if the target vaccination rates and other public health indicators are met, provincial officials say the vast majority of public health and workplace safety measures will be lifted.