Business owners hopeful Monday’s reopening is their last one

Bars and restaurants reopening for indoor dining with capacity limits, along with gyms, theatres and museums

THE ONTARIO GOVERNMENT is scaling back Covid-19 restrictions on many businesses in the first phase of a 21-day interval reopening plan that takes effect Monday.

“We are beginning to see signs of stabilization in key public health and health system indicators,” a statement from the provincial government says. “Over the coming days and weeks, we expect these trends to continue, allowing us to begin cautiously easing public health measures.”

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As of 12:01 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 31, these settings will have a capacity limit of 50 per cent, some of which were previously closed:

• Indoor dining at restaurants, bars and other food or drink establishments without dance facilities.
• Retailers (including grocery stores and pharmacies).
• Shopping malls.
• Non-spectator areas of sports and recreational fitness facilities, including gyms.
• Cinemas.
• Meeting and event spaces.
• Recreational amenities and amusement parks, including water parks.
• Museums, galleries, aquariums, zoos and similar attractions.
• Casinos, bingo halls and other gaming establishments.
• Religious services, rites, or ceremonies.

In addition, social gathering limits will increase to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors.

Events with spectators, such as sporting events, concerts or theatres will be capped at either 500 people or 50 per cent seated capacity, whichever is less, officials say.

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Proof of vaccination — the version with the scannable QR code — and other requirements such as masking will continue to apply.

Further tweaks were made last week in preparation for reopening since the plan was released on January 20. The government says cinemas/movie theatres can sell food and drinks at concession stands.

They also said restaurants will no longer need to do contact tracing for customers.

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Next phase of reopening

In three weeks, on Monday, February 21, the province plans to ease more public health measures, including:

• Social gathering limits increase to 25 people indoors, 100 people outdoors.
• Removing capacity limits in indoor public settings where proof of vaccination is required.
• Permitting spectator capacity at sporting events, concert venues, and theatres at 50 per cent capacity.
• Limiting capacity in most remaining indoor public settings where proof of vaccination is not required to the number of people that can maintain two metres of physical distance.
• Indoor religious services, rites or ceremonies will be limited to the number that can maintain two metres of physical distance, with no limit if proof of vaccination is required.
• Increasing indoor capacity limits to 25 per cent in the remaining higher-risk settings where proof of vaccination is required, including nightclubs, wedding receptions in meeting or event spaces where there is dancing, as well as bathhouses and sex clubs.

Proof of vaccination — the version with the scannable QR code — and other requirements such as masking will continue to apply, the government says.