Ontario Announces Reopening Framework

I have some great news. The Province has announced Thursday that numerous outdoor amenities will reopen this weekend and laid out the current plan for reopening the rest of Ontario. It will occur in increments as vaccinations increase daily and the number of new COVID-19 cases declines.

The three-stage plan to reopen will depend on the province meeting vaccination thresholds: Stage 1 will begin when 60 per cent of the population over 18 has had at least one dose, Stage 2 with 70 per cent (and 20 per cent with both doses), and Stage 3 with 80 per cent having at least one dose (and 25 per cent having two doses). In the first two stages, permitted amenities will still be largely reserved for the outdoors; indoor sports, retail, and bar or restaurant dining will become an option only in Stage 3.

Many outdoor amenities will resume on May 22 including parks, recreation areas, baseball diamonds, basketballs courts, and archery ranges. Marinas and watercraft launches can open with some restrictions, and all outdoor amenities will need to maintain certain conditions, such as two metres of physical distancing and a prohibition on team sports.

In addition to the vaccination thresholds, the government anticipates moving through the stages no faster than three weeks at a time. We're not expected to enter Stage 1 until June 14. In the best possible scenario, that could mean that Ontario will enter Stage 3 by late July.

Between the end of the stay-at-home order on June 2 and the projected beginning of Stage 1, the previous lockdown (“grey”) conditions from the regional framework will apply provincewide, meaning that the restrictions on indoor dining and retail operators will continue.