Premier Doug Ford says that he doesn’t think people heading to their cottages for the Victoria Day weekend will pose a “massive issue” when it comes to the spread of COVID-19, especially if those cottage-goers “bring their own supplies” and keep to their properties as much as possible.
Ford made the comment during a press conference at Queen’s Park on Tuesday as he discussed an upcoming meeting with cottage country mayors, some of whom have expressed concerns about an exodus of people from Toronto to Muskoka Region and other popular cottage destinations.
His comments come after CTV News Toronto obtained a memo that Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams sent to his counterparts over the weekend. In the memo, Williams said that officials should continue to “discourage” the use of cottages but he ruled out issuing any sort of formal ban as the summer cottage season picks up.
“People are cooperating so we have to give a little bit of leniency,” Ford said on Tuesday. “If you put down the hammer and say you just aren’t coming people aren’t going to listen, so I want to make sure that we have collaboration from all the communities and all the mayors. Look, be prepared because people are coming up on May 24 but having said that I truly believe that people are going to bring their own supplies, they are going to stay at their cottage and people won’t be going into town as much.”
Ontario public health officials have previously discouraged residents from travelling to their cottages during the COVID-19 pandemic but on Monday Ford told reporters that he couldn’t “hold back taxpayers back from going to their cottages” indefinitely.
Some mayors, however, have expressed a concern about an influx of people from Toronto, where infections levels have been higher. In Haldimand and Norfolk counties officials have taken that concern one step further, warning cottage goers that they could face fines of up to $5,000 per day for visiting their seasonal properties under Section 22 of the Health Protection and Promotion act.
“It is a massive explosion in our population for two municipalities that have eight ventilators across both counties so that is the driving force behind our medical officer of health’s decision to restrict access for the time being,” Norfolk County Mayor Kristal Chopp told CP24 on Tuesday. “Do I think it is an injustice that the seasonal property owners that would follow the rules and bring their groceries with them are being affected by this? Absolutely. We are a tourist town and we want our cottagers here but we also want life to return back to normal.”
The province has not issued any orders forbidding residents from travelling to their cottages and Ford told reporters on Tuesday that there is no plan to do so, especially in light of widespread cooperation with the public health advice to stay away.
Speaking with CP24, Bracebridge Mayor Graydon Smith said that he does have concerns with the increased community transmission that could result from a spike in seasonal residents but at the same time he said that there is a need “to accept reality” and prepare for the arrival of cottage-goers, who in more normal circumstances would provide a boost for local businesses.
“We have had relative success in this area in terms of controlling the number of cases that have occurred and we are proud of that. Hopefully that work doesn’t get undone. If people do come up they need to recognize that they need to be part of the solution and isolate and social distance and all those things,” he said.
There have been 329 confirmed cases of COVID-19 within the jurisdiction of the Simcoe Muskoka Public Health Unit, including 23 deaths.
The Haldimand-Norfolk Public Health Unit, meanwhile, has reported 196 confirmed cases, including 30 deaths.
“We have had three days now with zero positive cases and if we can continue on that trend and find a way to open things up gradually here and not have all the cottagers and boaters descend at once hopefully we can find a way to lift the order and start to find some new normal,” Chopp said.
