Provincial Amendment to COVID-19 Regulations – Letter from the Reeve

May 9th, 2020 –
Dear Resident(s),
I participated on a call with Premier Ford this past Wednesday when he consulted with cottage country mayors. Premier Ford said, and Council agrees, that the Health and Safety of all residents is and will continue to be our top concern. However, it was clearly communicated to the Premier that ALL residents need have access to our properties to check on them after the winter season. On Thursday, the Township of The Archipelago Council had a delegation with our MPP Norm Miller where the same concerns were voiced.
Yesterday, the Province updated the “List of essential workplaces”. The Province updated paragraph 5.(1) 3.i. “Marinas must ensure that only the following services are provided: Any other services that may be required to: enable individuals to access their place of residence or their other property.”
https://www.ontario.ca/page/list–essential–workplaces.
Access to marinas for recreational boaters and non–residents will continue to be prohibited.
This does NOT mean that everything will go back to normal. The Province requires marinas, like other businesses that were allowed to open, to implement strict social distancing and health and safety measures that must be respected by all parties. The Township of the Archipelago is also strongly advocating this Provincial direction to help prevent the spread of the COVID–19 virus. Marinas in the Township were only given notice today and it may take them a few days to put in place
procedures to ensure their staff and customers meet the social distancing requirement. They will need time to accommodate residents who want to check on their property so please be patient.
The Township water access ramps will continue to remain closed to follow the Provincial direction of prohibiting “Recreational boaters and non–residents”. On behalf of Council, thank you all for your patience and support during these unprecedented times. Please continue to help flatten the COVID–19 curve through social distancing and utilizing only essential services.
Social Distancing Saves Lives, Thank You for Your Patience and Support
Sincerely,
Reeve Bert Liverance
Township of The Archipelago