Retail stores to reopen for curbside pickup
Hardware, supply shops get green light to open fully starting on Saturday
Ontario is slowly opening up for business after almost two months of being locked down because of COVID-19.
Premier Doug Ford said that all retail stores with a street entrance can reopen Monday to provide curbside pickup and delivery.
Ford also said hardware and safety supply stores, which had been restricted to curbside shopping since April 4, will be allowed to open fully on Saturday. As well, nurseries and garden centres, which are limited to serving customers for pickup only, can be back in bloom on Friday.
“As the trends improve, we can move forward with reopening more and more of our economy and getting people back to work,” the premier said Wednesday.
Ontario’s chief medical officer said store openings for curbside pickup could pose challenges in downtown Toronto, where retailers are often bunched closely together.
“It’s going to take some creativity,” said Dr. David Williams, suggesting stores should have customers call in for appointment times so they don’t bunch up outside, and that shoppers consider wearing masks.
The LCBO said as of May 14 it would be extending its hours so some 360 outlets will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. Stores will remain closed Mondays for thorough cleaning.
The government has also further liberalized Ontario’s liquor laws as a prescription for helping an ailing restaurant sector stricken by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario lowered the minimum price that restaurants and bars are allowed to sell gin, rum, tequila, vodka and whiskey.
At the same time, the provincial licensing agency extended measures that allow restaurants and bars to sell beer, wine and spirits to go with takeout meals until the end of this year.
That provision was put in place on March 26, a little more than a week after Ontario was placed in a state of emergency, which restricted restaurants and bars to serving food for takeaway only.
During the emergency that was declared March 17, supermarkets, pharmacies and liquor and beer stores have been the only retailers allowed to fully serve the public.
The AGCO also announced it is making it easier for cider producers to sell directly to consumers by removing the requirement for cideries to have five acres of planted fruit in order to qualify for a store at their facility.
Jean Major, the commission’s registrar and CEO of the commission, said all the new measures would be revoked on Jan. 1.
Under the changes, a restaurant or bar can sell spirits for as little as $1.34 per 29 mL — down from the previous floor price of $2 for that amount.
The previous minimum price for a 750 mL bottle of liquor sold by a restaurant was $51.72. It now falls to $34.65, which is closer to the retail price consumers pay at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario.
Should the emergency be over before year’s end and restaurants and bars permitted to serve on the premises, they would have to charge the higher price. However, takeout drinks would still be cheaper.
Licensed restaurants and bars in Ontario can sell alcohol with food takeout and delivery orders between the hours of 9 a.m. and 11 p.m.
Senior officials in Ford’s government have confided that it will be difficult to return to more restrictive rules once the pandemic is over because consumers are welcoming the additional choice and selection of buying booze to go.