WBRA thanks all members who took the time to provide valuable feedback to our questions. A summary of your comments was provided to the Town so that your voices could be heard. Please note that any individual and/or business identification of the sender was removed. Your comments were appreciated and thoroughly reviewed, as is indicated in the mayor's response below.
Email to the mayor
May 7, 2020
Dear Mayor, CAO and Town Clerk,
Wasaga Beach Ratepayers Association asked members to provide their views on the upcoming May long weekend.
We are providing the comments received in the attached document, for your interest and consideration.
We feel it's important to know what the general views of our community and we hope you find them informative and helpful.
It's no easy task to determine the right thing to do in this situation, and perhaps even more difficult to manage it effectively. Good luck in your decision-making in this regard.
WBRA Inc.
Questions sent to members
With talk of relaxing some of the federal, provincial and municipal protocols put in place to try and control the COVID-19 pandemic we are interested in your views on this topic.
Should we be opening our doors wider to welcome visitors this May long weekend?
Should our struggling businesses be allowed to open, with some health restrictions in place?
Should we be closing all our public parking lots, or should we have free parking for all?
Should our Accommodation businesses be allowed to open, again with some restrictions?
Email reply from the mayor
May 7, 2020
Good afternoon,
Thank you for your email and for sharing your members thoughts.
We appreciate the feedback and I offer the following for your members understanding of the current situation in response to some of their suggestions.
-Opening of beaches, bars, restaurants, retail etc. is a decision that will be made by the Province, not the municipality. Premier Ford shares updates each day as to where things stand with regard to COVID-19.
-A task force to assist in reopening of the local economy in the months ahead had its first meeting today. While I know it has been difficult at times for our front line workers to get PPE, in response to a point made from one of your members, I will ask that this item be added to our next task force agenda for discussion as to what role the town could play in assisting business owners to get what they require.
-The comment made that “businesses who were considered essential workplaces were not allowed to be open because the Town shut them down anyways” is an inaccurate statement.
-The Town, Ontario Parks and OPP are working together with regard to enforcement of COVID-19 restrictions. I recently met with them to discuss the upcoming long weekend and the need for a collaborative approach.
-Businesses looking for more information with regard to Federal or Provincial financial assistance programs can visit our website or speak with the town’s Economic Development Officer, Tyler King.
-The Town is following the lead of the Province, Medical Health Officer and our local Health Unit.
Again, thank you for your comments. Please continue to visit the dedicated COVID-19 page on the town’s website www.wasagabeach.com for more information.
Nina