City of Mississauga announces plan to close City Hall
Published March 18, 2020 at 3:48 pm
The City of Mississauga has announced that it will close City Hall and postpone committee meetings in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
The move comes one day after Ontario enacted a Declaration of Emergency to Protect the Public, a move that requires that establishments such as libraries, restaurants, bars, child care centres, theatres close immediately until at least March 31, 2020. The move also prohibits all organized public events of over 50 people, including parades, events and communal services within places of worship.
The city closed libraries, recreational facilities, community centres and other public spaces last week.
Restaurants are still permitted to offer takeout and delivery and stores and shopping centres are still permitted to operate at this time.
Going forward, the city says that all facilities, including City Hall and public counters, will be closed to the public at the end of Wednesday, March 18. They will be closed until April 5.
The city says most services that can be conducted via phone or online will be done in such a way.
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The city says the Provincial Offences Courthouse (located at 950 Burnhamthorpe Road West) is closed as of March 17. It also says Planning and Development Committee meetings scheduled for March 30 and April 1 are cancelled.
The Region of Peel will allow retail deliveries to be exempt from noise bylaws to allow deliveries to take place 24 hours a day. The exemption will take effect immediately, for 30 days.
The city says it will continue to deliver essential services including:
- Fire
- Transit
- Works Operations & Maintenance
- 311 Contact Centre
- Animal Services
- Regulatory Services
- Building Permits/Inspections
- Site Plan Applications, OPAs & Rezoning Planning Applications
- Security Services
- Administrative/Technical functions related to preserving safety and public trust.
The city says its Emergency Operations Centre is activated and its Incident Management Team is meeting regularly with key city staff, Peel Public Health, and the Region of Peel Emergency Operations Centre to advise the mayor and council and work in accordance with Peel Region Public Health protocols.
A special online-only meeting of council is scheduled for Thursday, March 19 at 1 p.m.
A virtual town hall for the public, hosted by Mayor Bonnie Crombie is being planned for Friday, March 20
A virtual meeting of the city’s Economic Development Advisory Board has been convened by the mayor for council to hear from the business community about the impact of COVID-19
“We are focused on keeping Mississauga healthy and safe while ensuring we can continue to deliver the essential services our residents rely on,” said Mayor Bonnie Crombie in a statement.
“We continue to work closely with both Peel Public Health, the province and federal government to coordinate responses and supports. This is now a public health emergency and while we understand these closures will have an impact on residents, protecting the spread of this virus remains our number one priority. We are committed to keeping our residents up to date and informed. Together, we will flatten the curve.”
Cover photo courtesy of @idris.yyz
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