The first step in Alberta’s plan to reopen its economy will emphasize outdoor activities, with golf courses to open on Saturday followed by shops, bars and restaurants by mid-May.
The first step in Alberta’s plan to reopen its economy will emphasize outdoor activities, with golf courses to open on Saturday followed by shops, bars and restaurants by mid-May.
Premier Jason Kenney detailed his government’s plan for a multi-stage relaunch that will depend on the province’s continued ability to control the spread of the coronavirus and curb the number of COVID-19 patients who need hospital care.
“It feels like a lot more than 56 days since the first presumptive case of the novel coronavirus was reported here in Alberta on March 5,” Kenney said at a news conference on Thursday.
“But together Albertans have responded to the worst global pandemic in over a century with a great deal of common sense, but also making tremendous sacrifices and demonstrating great resilience.”
Although the province’s relaunch plan stated golf courses would open Monday, Kenney posted on Twitter Thursday evening that Saturday would be the open date.
Parts of the gradual relaunch plan will also begin Monday with the resumption of some non-urgent surgeries and office reopenings for dentists, physiotherapists, speech and respiratory therapists, social workers and dieticians.
Golf, boating, camping
While golf courses will be allowed to open on May 2, clubhouses and pro shops will remain closed.
Provincial parks will begin opening Monday with some boat launches available though washrooms and garbage pickup in the parks will not be immediately available. The province will open as many campsites as possible by June 1 with Alberta Parks’s online reservation system coming online May 14.
Private and municipal campgrounds can reopen under their own authority.
Vehicle access to parking lots and staging areas in parks and on public lands will begin on Monday.
On Thursday, Alberta reported three more deaths and 190 new cases of COVID-19. One earlier death thought to be due to COVID-19 was not, so the number of deaths in the province is now 89. The province has recorded 5,355 cases.
“Your efforts have succeeded in containing the spread of the virus far below the devastating scale of the outbreak in many other places,” Kenney told Albertans. “And well below the capacity of our health-care system to cope.”
Stage 1
If efforts to control the spread of the virus continue to be effective so that hospitals and intensive care units can deal with the caseload, the province will move to Stage 1, based on the advice of the chief medical officer of health.
In Stage 1, some businesses and facilities could be allowed to gradually resume operations as early as May 14, including:
- Retail businesses, such as clothing, furniture and bookstores. All vendors at farmers markets will also be able to operate.
- Hairstyling and barbershops.
- Museums and art galleries.
- Daycares and out-of-school care