Innisfil residents will be able to enjoy a meal on a restaurant patio this weekend – but the beaches will remain closed for at least another week.
On Monday, Premier Doug Ford announced the Stage 2 reopening of businesses and facilities as of Friday of this week. That includes hair salons, nail spas, and restaurants, for outdoor seating only.
As Innisfil Mayor Lynn Dollin noted, that gave staff “three and a half days to figure out ways to make it work for our community, and keep our community safe.”
She was speaking at the special meeting of council on Thursday evening, just six hours before the planned reopening. On the agenda were the COVID-19 Emergency Patios Program, and new restrictions on parking near public beaches.
“The Monday announcement came fast and furious for us,” said Tim Cane, manager of land use planning, who explained the patio program, and the provisions that will allow restaurants that register to expand their patio space, within the guidelines of Ontario’s Alcohol and Gaming Commission and COVID-19 provisions for physical distancing.
It’s a three-part process. The first step is for restaurants who wish to open a patio to go online, and fill out a form (click here) and checklist, agreeing to follow the obligations for patios.
“It also gives us a record of what businesses are out there,” Cane said. Restaurant owners, as soon as they register, are then free to open their patios on Friday – no need to wait for confirmation from the town – as long as they can meet the guidelines.
Those guidelines make up the second step of the process, and include physically separating the patio area through the use of barriers or planters; maintaining separation between tables; and limiting seating to a maximum 50 percent of the restaurant’s indoor seating capacity.
Cane noted that the town has attempted to leave the guidelines as flexible as possible, since restaurants “literally have hours to get ready, to do what they need to do to get open.” But, he noted in response to queries from Councillors, there are certain requirements under both the COVID-19 provisions and Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, that patios must follow.
“It’s essentially an honour system” at this point, Cane said, adding that the third and final step in the process will be enforcement.
Patios will be allowed to reopen without supervision from the town, but by-law will be keeping an eye on the situation, to ensure compliance with the guidelines. The patio by-law proposes a potential fine of $5,000 for infractions.
Coun. Kevin Eisses questioned the heavy fine.
“It’s always going to be education first,” replied Cane – asking the restaurants to fix the infractions and comply with the rules – “but if there is something that is affecting public health and safety, we do want something that gives teeth… It has to be enough of a disincentive.”
Restaurants will also be allowed to expand their patio space on privately-owned property, as long as no access or driveways are blocked. There are even provisions for expansion onto public rights-of-ways – but in that case, said Cane, “There is an extra step, to apply for occupancy. There may be a slight delay for those restaurants.”
He noted that 95 percent of restaurants in Innisfil can place their patios on private property; “literally just a handful of businesses” will need to apply to use a town-owned right-of-way. The town will not be charging a fee for the occupancy permit.
Before the by-law passed, there was also discussion of the eventual re-opening of Innisfil’s beaches.
“There is no way we’re going to be able to have our beaches open for tomorrow,” said Mayor Lynn Dollin, noting that there are physical distancing provisions that must be followed, and that will take time to put in place.
“The last thing we want to do is go backwards,” and have to close again, Dollin said. “We want to open and stay open.”
Innisfil’s parks, publicly-owned boat launches and outdoor recreational facilities continue to be open for residents’ use only, with staff turning away out-of-town visitors.
To make it easier for by-law enforcement, the special meeting of council redesignated a number of parking lots at popular beach-front parks and road ends for “residents only.”
Those include the 9th Line road end, 10th Line park, 12th Line/Mapleview park and lot, 30SR North road end, Guest Road parking lot, Neilly Road lot on Shoreacres Drive, Belle Ewart Park, and all parking lots at Innisfil Beach Park.
Signage will be going up, and the town’s by-law enforcement department is now up to full complement, councillors were told, but the town’s Chief Administrative Officer asked residents to be more patient, and less militant about filing complaints.
CAO Jason Reynar noted, “People are taking it upon themselves to enforce the rules as they understand them.” And although they may have the “very best intentions,” it has led to unnecessary confrontations – like the Stroud resident challenged for using a road end in Alcona.
“Please be patient and assume that your neighbour is doing something that they think is right,” Reynar said. The evolving landscape of regulations and changing permissions is confusing, he noted. “Take a step back, take a breath. It is a very complicated time.”
Mayor Dollin agreed. “We can’t check ID. We can’t form a human chain and block the beaches.”
Redesignating the parking lots as ‘residents-only’ is one way to restrict use by non-residents, she said - but there’s no way to prevent someone from parking elsewhere and walking in.
“We have to be kind. People have to not be too militant,” Dollin said, as the town works to “figure out ways to make it work for our communities and keep our residents safe.”
Coun. Ken Fowler suggested that the town should target those who abuse By-law officers, “those that tear up the tickets and throw them at our by-law officers”
He proposed hitting abusers in the pocket book, with fines. “The majority of people are going to follow the rules,” Fowler agreed. “Those that do not put the rest of us at risk.”
He suggested that staff need more tools “to go out and protect our residents… to address the trouble-makers, be they residents or not.”
Chief Building Official, Barrie Vickers noted that staff already have the training and the procedures in place to address the abuse, including the option of calling for support from South Simcoe Police.
“In the majority of cases, we do get compliance,” Vickers said. In the case of confrontation, “our staff are trained to walk away. They are professionals.”
And anyone who tears up a parking ticket will find that they still have to pay the fines. “We write parking tickets, and then we fine them,” he noted.
Below normal temperatures are expected again this weekend, which should take the pressure off Innisfil’s parks, but “things are going to get trickier as the summer goes on,” said Mayor Dollin, as both temperatures and tempers heat up.
“I’m actually hoping and praying for a cold, wet summer.”
