Haldimand-Norfolk cleared for Stage 2 of reopening
This time, Kristal Chopp said, the province listened.
The mayor of Norfolk County was celebrating on Monday after Premier Doug Ford announced that Haldimand-Norfolk would be among the regions moving into Stage 2 of reopening on Friday, one week after most of the province saw some COVID-19 restrictions lifted.
“This announcement is critical for our small businesses in both Haldimand and Norfolk, many of which I have received desperate emails and phone calls from over the last number of weeks asking me to do whatever I could to push their agenda forward,” Chopp said. Chopp and her Haldimand counterpart, Ken Hewitt, were so piqued by their region being stuck in Stage 1 last week that they had local hairdressers cut their hair outside town hall in Simcoe to protest businesses having to remain shuttered while bordering counties could open up.
The protest drew the ire of Ford and the province but evidently didn’t lead to retribution, since as of this Friday, beaches, pools, hair and nail salons, tattoo parlours, restaurant patios, libraries, community centres, campgrounds, shopping malls and banquet halls in Haldimand-Norfolk will be able to reopen.
Ford said a provincial downward trend in COVID-19 cases, even as test volumes increase, prompted the chief medical officer of health to recommend loosening restrictions. Only Toronto, Peel and Windsor-Essex will remain in stage one.
“This announcement is recognition of all the hard work and sacrifice made by our community over the last three months,” Chopp said.
“I would like to recognize the fact that this time, unlike last, our local medical officer of health was consulted by the province prior to this decision being made. (Dr. Shanker Nesathurai) was able to provide the province with critical data and insights from here on the ground, particularly as it relates to the migrant worker outbreak at Scotlynn Farms, so that decision-makers in Toronto had a better understanding of what is happening here in our community.” The health unit reminds residents to continue practicing physical distancing as a way to stop the transmission of COVID-19, which has infected 414 people in Haldimand-Norfolk, killing 31.
Six Nations moves to Stage 2
The barricades have come down at Six Nations of the Grand River as the Indigenous territory bordering Haldimand-Norfolk entered into Stage 2 on Monday.
Non-residents can now enter the territory without being stopped at a checkpoint, and non-essential businesses such as dentists and optometrists, hair and nail salons, tobacco shops and craft stores, and warehousing operations can reopen.
Public parks are open again, though play structures remain off-limits, and groups of 10 or fewer can use sports fields.
“As a community, we have to start balancing health and safety with sustaining our livelihoods as a whole,” Six Nations elected band council said in a statement.
“Through these new measures, we are creating a situation where all families can prepare for the fall and winter, should a second wave hit us.”
Council said the emergency control group would continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation on Six Nations, especially as band members will be visiting areas that have also loosened restrictions.
“Should we see an increase in their cases, we will adjust our plans to ensure the safety of all,” council said.
J.P. Antonacci’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative. The funding allows him to report on stories about the regions of Haldimand and Norfolk.