The City of Toronto is prepared to enter Step Three of the Province of Ontario’s Roadmap to Reopen on Friday, July 16. Toronto, like all of Ontario, is entering Step Three ahead of schedule thanks to key public health indicators, including vaccine coverage rates and low incidents of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.
Toronto will enter Step Three at 12:01 a.m. this Friday. In Step Three, Toronto residents will be permitted, subject to restrictions, to gather indoors, eat indoors at bars and restaurants, and resume going to gyms and recreation centres. Full details of the announcement are in the Province’s Ontario Moving to Step Three of Roadmap to Reopen on July 16 news release.
The City is updating the COVID-19: Reopening Guide for Toronto Residents with a list of activities that will be permitted Friday morning. Earlier today, the City shared information about the reopening of recreation facilities, starting with most self-directed recreation and fitness programs and services on Monday, July 19.
Many of the City programs that have been helping Toronto businesses throughout pandemic are continuing to provide support as reopening kickstarts the city’s economy. The City has prepared a COVID-19: Business Reopening Checklist with guidance documents and resources to help businesses safely reopen in compliance with Ontario’s Roadmap to Reopen. Businesses can also visit the City’s RecoveryTO webpages for a snapshot of COVID-19 recovery-related City decisions, reports, data, dashboards and announcements.
The City’s CaféTO program is continuing to support more than 1,100 restaurants with expanded outdoor dining spaces in curb lanes and on sidewalks. Although restaurants and bars can open for indoor dining in Step Three subject to restrictions, CaféTO helps food and drink industry businesses serve as many patrons as safely possible while following provincial COVID-19 regulations. CaféTO registration remains open for restaurant and bar operators interested in potentially creating or expanding outdoor dining options. An additional 32 curb lane patios were added in the last week alone. Learn more at toronto.ca/CafeTO.
As of Friday, all retailers can open for in-person shopping with capacity limited to the number of people who can maintain a physical distance of two metres. The City continues to encourage all residents to shop local and support Toronto businesses in their neighbourhood.
The City has partnered with the Toronto Region Board of Trade to provide free COVID-19 rapid screening kits to help small- and medium-sized businesses of 150 or fewer employees safely reopen. Eligible businesses can visit the Toronto Region Board of Trade Workplace Self Screening Kits webpage to order an initial four-week supply of testing kits and book a time slot for pickup.
The City and Toronto Public Health also continue to update the COVID-19: Guidelines for Businesses and Community Organizations with the latest public health guidance.
Vaccine coverage is a key consideration in the provincial Roadmap to Reopen. While Toronto is currently exceeding the provincial targets – at 78 per cent first dose coverage in adults and 60 per cent completed vaccination – it is vital to maintain vaccination momentum and continue advancing through reopening.
The City is urging everyone to get vaccinated against COVID-19, including a second dose to best protect against the Delta variant, as soon as possible. All people age 12 and older are eligible to book first dose or accelerated second dose vaccination appointments at City-run vaccination clinics. More than 140,000 Torontonians still have vaccination appointments in August, September and October that could be moved to July. The City is reaching out by text and email to people with late summer and early fall appointments to explain the importance of being fully vaccinated as soon as possible.
Appointments for City-run clinics can be booked by residents through the dark blue “Book a Vaccine” button on toronto.ca/covid-19 or by calling the provincial vaccine booking line at 1-833-943-3900. Walk-in vaccination is now also available at four City-run clinics.
Toronto is home to more than 2.9 million people whose diversity and experiences make this great city Canada’s leading economic engine and one of the world’s most diverse and livable cities. As the fourth largest city in North America, Toronto is a global leader in technology, finance, film, music, culture and innovation, and consistently places at the top of international rankings due to investments championed by its government, residents and businesses. For more information visit the City’s website or follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.