Ontario slashes capacity limits at large stadiums, theatres and concert venues

Ontario is dramatically slashing the number of people allowed to gather at large venues as the government comes under pressure to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the community.

As part of a new raft of changes announced by Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health on Thursday, the government said capacity at large venues will now be limited to 50 per cent or 1,000 people, whichever is lower.

“I don’t think anyone’s being fooled that we’re not having widespread community activity across Ontario,” Dr. Kieran Moore told reporters at a COVID-19 briefing on Thursday.

The change comes into effect at 12:01 a.m. on Friday and affect spectator areas of facilities used for sports and recreational fitness activities, concert venues and theatres.

“The government and the Chief Medical Officer of Health will continue to monitor the data to determine when it is safe to lift capacity limits in these settings,” the province said in a release Thursday.

While a 50 per cent capacity limit was already in place for most of the venues, the previous regulation allowed for close to 10,000 people to gather at Scotiabank Arena for a Raptors game, a situation that many doctors called "a gut punch.”

Many of them took to social media Tuesday night to decry the fact that such venues were still allowed to let in thousands of patrons at a time when the government was putting restrictions on seniors at long-term care homes and considering lengthening the school break.

Ontario recorded a record 13,807 new coronavirus cases on Thursday.

Speaking with CP24 Thursday night, palliative care physician Dr. Amit Arya said the rampant COVID-19 transmission in the community means we have to make decisions about what is most important.

“We have to look into the mirror,” Arya said. “What's more important? Is it more important to prioritize entertainment activities – things that are non-essential like casinos, bars and gyms –  over the safety of our seniors in long-term care, over the safety of our hospitals, over keeping schools open? Unfortunately, this is the position that we're in,” he said.

He pointed out that many seniors are effectively in lockdown now, only allowed out for essential visits because transmission levels are so high in the community.

Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), which owns the Maple Leafs and Raptors, said the Ontario policy change means it will be switching its venues “to operating without any sold tickets effective Friday, December 31 except for league and team requirements up to 1,000 per game as we continue to work together in the fight against COVID-19.”

Season ticket holders will still be able to go to games.

The company said it has been told the restrictions will be reassessed after three weeks.

“Maple Leafs and Raptors Season Seat Members will receive follow up information within the next 24 hours as ticketing details are finalized. We look forward to hosting fans again as soon as the province deems it safe to do so."

CHANGE FOLLOWS CLOSURE OF OTHER TORONTO EVENTS

While the city’s largest venues have drawn attention as possible sources of transmission, the City of Toronto’s COVID-19 exposure and outbreak pages currently list a number of popular music venues as well.

The city announced this week that it is discouraging people from gathering outside to view fireworks for New Year's Eve and is advising that they instead watch a live-streamed concert featuring pre-recorded performances from venues around the city.

The sporting world has increasingly been affected by the rapid spread of the Omicron variant over the past few weeks. Most recently the World Junior Hockey Tournament was cancelled because a number of teams had to forfeit games due to many of their players being in COVID-19 isolation protocol.

A number of large events that were set to go ahead in the GTA over the next few weeks, including the Toronto Boat Show and the Toronto Auto Show, announced that they were cancelling due to Omicron.

In the theatre world, the virus also brought a permanent end to the hit musical “Come From Away” and cancelled performances of “Jesus Christ Superstar.”

While the government changed the rules for large venues Thursday, Ontario has been hesitant to re-impose public restrictions which resemble previous lockdowns. In the meantime, Quebec moved Thursday to impose sweeping measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including the indefinite return of a nightly 10 p.m. curfew, a delayed restart for colleges and universities and tough restrictions on indoor gatherings.