Niagara Moves into Red Control Zone Monday – Niagara Regional Health - Section 22 Applies

See attached Niagara Regional Health - Section 22 Order for Food Premises and Retail effective 00:01 February 22, 2021 until further notice:

Organized public events, social gatherings and wedding, funeral and religious services, rites and ceremonies

Limits for all organized public events and social gatherings, where physical distancing can be maintained:

5 people indoors
25 people outdoors

Limits for religious services rites or ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services, where physical distancing can be maintained (applies in any venue other than a private dwelling):

30% capacity of the room indoors
100 people outdoors

Restaurants, bars and other food and drink establishments

Capacity limits, where physical distancing can be maintained:

10 patrons seated indoors

Outdoor dining, take out, drive through, and delivery permitted, including alcohol
No buffet style service
Line-ups and patrons congregating outside venues managed by venue; 2 metres distance and face covering required
Screening of patrons is required, in accordance with instructions issued by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health
Require patrons to be seated; 2 metres minimum or impermeable barrier required between tables
Limit of 4 people may be seated together
Require contact information for all seated patrons
Face coverings required except when eating or drinking only
Personal protective equipment, including eye protection required when is a worker must come within 2 metres of another person who is not wearing a face covering
Establishments must be closed from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Liquor sold or served only between 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
No consumption of liquor permitted between 10 p.m. to 9 a.m.
Dancing, singing and the live performance of music is prohibited
Limit volume of music to be low enough that a normal conversation is possible
Night clubs and strip clubs only permitted to operate as restaurant or bar
A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

Sports and recreational fitness facilities

Maintain 2 metres physical distancing at all times
Increase spacing between patrons to 3 metres in areas where there are weights or exercise equipment and in exercise and fitness classes
Capacity limits, where physical distancing can be maintained

10 people in indoor areas with weights and exercise machines
10 people in all indoor classes or
25 people in outdoor classes
No spectators permitted, however each person under 18 may be accompanied by one parent or guardian

Team sports must not be practiced or played except for training (no games or scrimmage)
Activities that are likely to result in individuals coming within 2 metres of each other are not permitted; no contact permitted for team or individual sports
Exemptions for high performance athletes and parasport
Patrons may only be in the facility for 90 minutes except if engaging in a sport
Limit volume of music to be low enough that a normal conversation is possible; measures to prevent shouting by both instructors and members of the public
Face coverings required except when exercising
Require contact information for all members of the public that enter the facility
Require reservation for entry; one reservation for teams
Screening of patrons is required, in accordance with instructions issued by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health
A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

Meeting and event spaces

Capacity limit for the venue, where physical distancing can be maintained:

10 people indoors or
25 people outdoors

Establishments must be closed from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Liquor sold or served only between 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
No consumption of liquor permitted between 10 p.m. to 9 a.m.
Face coverings required except when eating or drinking only
Require contact information for all seated patrons
Limit of 4 people may be seated together
Limit volume of music to be low enough that a normal conversation is possible
Screening of patrons is required, in accordance with instructions issued by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health
A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

Retail

New for Red-Control as of February 2021:

Capacity limits of:

75% for supermarkets and other stores that primarily sell groceries, convenience stores, pharmacies
50% for all other retail, including discount and big box retailers, liquor stores, hardware stores and garden centres

Stores must post capacity limit publicly
Stores must have passive screening for patrons (for example, posting signs outside the store front about not entering if you have COVID-19covid 19 symptoms)

This does not apply to indoor malls, which are required to actively screen their customers before they enter the mall. Malls can use the patron screening tool to help meet this requirement.

Stores within the malls subject to appropriate retail measures

Fitting rooms must be limited to non-adjacent stalls
Line-ups and patrons congregating outside venues managed by venue; 2 metres distance required inside and outside; face covering also required while in line
Limit volume of music to be low enough that a normal conversation is possible
For malls:

Maximum number of patrons permitted to be seated indoors in mall food court is 10
A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

Personal care services

Oxygen bars, steam rooms, saunas, bath houses and other adult venues, closed
Sensory deprivation pods closed (some exceptions)
Services requiring removal of face coverings prohibited
Require contact information from all patrons
Screening of patrons is required, in accordance with instructions issued by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health
A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

Casinos, bingo halls and gaming establishments

Capacity limit for the venue, where physical distancing can be maintained:

10 people indoors or
25 people outdoors

Table games are prohibited
Face coverings required except when eating or drinking only
Liquor sold or served only between 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
No consumption of liquor permitted between 10 p.m. to 9 a.m.
Require contact information from all patrons
Screening of patrons is required, in accordance with instructions issued by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health
A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

Cinemas

Closed, except for:

drive-in cinemas
rehearsal or performing a recorded or broadcasted event, with restrictions, which include:

Performers and employees must maintain 2 metres physical distance except for purposes of the performance
Singers and players of brass or wind instruments must be separated from any other performers by plexiglass or other impermeable barrier

A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

Performing arts facilities

Closed to spectators
Rehearsal or performing a recorded or broadcasted event permitted, with restrictions, which include:

Performers and employees must maintain 2 metres physical distance except for purposes of the performance
Singers and players of brass or wind instruments must be separated from any other performers by plexiglass or other impermeable barrier

Drive-in performances permitted
A safety plan is required to be prepared and made available upon request

The provincial government just announced that Niagara region is moving to the red level of the COVID-19 response framework starting Monday, March 1. Please see the media release below for more information.

Now that more services and limited indoor dining will be permitted, we want to share a reminder that Section 22 orders are in effect.

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