Step 2 of Sask. reopening plan begins Sunday
Certain public health measures will be loosened this weekend as Saskatchewan enters Step 2 of its reopening roadmap on Sunday.
Nearly three weeks ago, the province reached its targeted vaccine threshold to enter the next reopening phase – 70 per cent of people age 30 and older received their first dose.
In Step 2, there will be no capacity limits at retail stores and personal care services, but physical distancing must be maintained.
Restaurants and bars will no longer have a limit on the number of people permitted to sit at a table. All tables must still be two metres apart or have a divider between them.
Thomas Siarkos, the owner of Memories Dining & Bar, said his staff is excited for Sunday to hit.
“We feel like finally it’s back to where we should be,” he said. “It’s going to give (us) the opportunity to utilize most of our tables and have bigger parties, which we’ve missed dearly.”
He said customers have also been voicing their excitement for the table limit to lift.
“Right now, for next week and for July and August, we’ve got a lot of 20s and 30s. People are booking small weddings because it’s going to be very difficult to find the space,” he said.
Capacity at event facilities, casinos, bingo halls, theatres, art galleries, libraries and recreational facilities will be capped at 150 people but physical distancing must be maintained.
The Mackenzie Art Gallery is keeping its capacity limits lower than the permitted amount for right now, but said it will likely expand later in the summer.
“We are looking at increasing our capacity from 30 to 50 as of June 23,” Allison Weed, the communications manager for the Mackenzie Art Gallery, said. “The decision was made after consulting with staff and just hearing about their comfort level around safety, so we are taking a bit more of a measured approach in increasing our capacities.”
Casinos Regina and Moose Jaw have been closed since December because of the public health orders. Both will open again on Sunday.
“This closure is about three months longer than our original closure back in March [2020],” Shanna Schulhauser, the director of communications with the Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation (SGC), said. “We’re really excited to get things back open and to get our staff back in here and our guests back.”
The SGC experienced about 570 layoffs during the pandemic. Schulhauser said about 240 of those employees have been recalled, and once Step 3 hits, they will all be brought back.
When the casinos open on Sunday, she said there gaming and food options will be slightly limited.
“Things like, for example, our live-felt play on our table games, so things like poker and being able to sit down at a blackjack table or a roulette table - we’re unable to do that in this step, but for Step 3 that’s something we’re working towards,” she said.
Long-term care and personal care home residents will be permitted to have four visitors indoors and nine outdoors.
At private indoor gatherings, up to 15 people will be permitted. At both public and private outdoor gatherings, there will be a 150 person limit.
All restrictions on youth and adult sports will be lifted.
Step 3 of the reopening roadmap will come three weeks after 70 per cent of people age 18 and older receive their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Why these immigrants to Canada say they're thinking about leaving, or have already moved on
For some immigrants, their dreams of permanently settling in Canada have taken an unexpected twist.
DEVELOPING Live updates from the Trump hush money trial: Stormy Daniels, bookkeeper testify
Adult film star Stormy Daniels is on the stand a second time Thursday as former U.S. president Donald Trump’s hush money case continues in Manhattan. Follow live updates here.
Ontario family receives massive hospital bill as part of LTC law, refuses to pay
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Here are the ultraprocessed foods you most need to avoid, according to a 30-year study
Studies have shown that ultraprocessed foods can have a detrimental impact on health. But 30 years of research show they don’t all have the same impact.
Ontario man frustrated after $3,500 paving job leaves driveway in shambles
An Ontario man considering having his driveway paved received a quote from a company for $7,000, but then, another paver in the neighbourhood knocked on his door and offered half that rate.
BREAKING Sheldon Keefe out as head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have fired head coach Sheldon Keefe. The team made the announcement Thursday after the Original Six franchise lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Boeing 737 catches fire and skids off the runway at a Senegal airport, injuring 10 people
A Boeing 737-300 plane carrying 85 people skidded off a runway at the airport in Dakar, Senegal's capital, injuring 10 people, according to the transport minister, an airline safety group and footage from a passenger that showed the aircraft on fire.
Breast cancer screening should start at age 40, Canadian Cancer Society says
The Canadian Cancer Society says all provinces and territories should lower the starting age for breast cancer screening to 40.
Man accused of killing two children at Quebec daycare to stand trial in April 2025
The man accused of murdering two children and injuring six others after a city bus crashed into a Montreal-area daycare is scheduled to stand trial over five weeks beginning in April 2025.