Return of bars, restaurants set to occur June 8
Gatherings also being expanded to 15 people inside and 30 outside
If all goes well, Saskatchewan residents can eat a meal at a restaurant, quaff a pint at a pub and work out in a gym starting June 8.
The Saskatchewan government announced the date for the third phase of its reopening plan on Thursday, just three days after the start of the second phase.
The third phase includes restaurants and bars, which can open at half capacity, gyms and fitness centres and personal service providers like manicurists and tattoo artists.
Premier Scott Moe said details of the new rules businesses must follow to prevent the spread of the COVID -19 pandemic will be made public today.
“I want to emphasize that June 8 is a target date,” Moe said at his daily briefing.
“We hope to begin Phase 3 on June 8, but that date can change in all or in part or in areas of the province, depending on the situation with COVID -19 over the next couple of weeks.”
Moe admitted it was too early to gauge the success of Phase 2, but said setting a Phase 3 target date allows businesses to prepare.
The government also announced new gathering limits for Phase 3, increasing the size of permitted gatherings from 10, which was set in March. In Phase 3, gatherings can increase to 15 people indoors and 30 outdoors, while still maintaining two metres of distance.
Moe said the new outdoor limit will allow for small weddings and graveside funeral services. New rules for places of worship and child care facilities are also being developed for Phase 3.
The province also had good news for people with used cans and bottles piling up: SARCAN recycling depots will open for commercial and bulk customers on June 8 and for the general public on June 15.
The target dates were announced on a day when the province announced two new COVID -19 cases, both in the far north region, where the largest number of cases has been diagnosed.
The first phase of the government’s reopening plan has yet to begin in the far north due to the outbreak there.
The new cases pushed Saskatchewan’s total cases to 622, while 15 more recoveries boosted that total to 509. That left 105 active cases, including 93 in the far north.
Five people remained in hospital, including three in intensive care. On Wednesday, the province registered its seventh death related to COVID-19.
Moe said it’s too early to determine how long the 50 per cent capacity limit for restaurants and bars will stay in place.
“Once we move into restaurants and gyms, they’re a bit different than retail environments and I think we need to proceed cautiously to make sure that reopening is a success,” Saskatchewan’s chief medical health officer, Dr. Saqib Shahab, told reporters.
Shahab said it will take two to four weeks of observation to determine the success of reopening these establishments.
Moe said he’s confident that reopening can happen safely during the pandemic. The Saskatchewan Health Authority is preparing for a surge in cases, he said.
“And we must remember that our initial goal was not to eradicate COVID-19,” Moe said. “Our goal always has been to ensure that we keep the infection rate at a low enough level that our health-care system can manage that.”
Expanded COVID-19 testing to include anyone working outside the home begins on Monday. While testing rates in Saskatchewan were once touted as among the highest in Canada, the province’s rate of 32,638 people tested per one million in population lags behind the national rate per one million of 36,525 tested.
Moe also revealed on Thursday that the Saskatchewan Party government has provided the NDP Opposition with a proposal to reopen the legislature.
He called the option proposed by the government the “most comprehensive” in the country to allow for scrutiny.
Presenting a full budget remains a priority for his government, he added.
NDP Opposition Leader Ryan Meili held a news conference Thursday on the steps of the legislature to push for a return of sittings by the legislative assembly.
“We know that this is a unique moment,” Meili said. “We know there are challenges. We’re prepared to negotiate on how we do this work, on how we do it right, on how we do it safely.” The NDP is expected to respond to the government’s proposal on Friday.