Mississauga mayor responds to province holding off on letting Peel enter Stage 3

 

With the province announcing today (Friday, July 24) that it plans to hold off on further Stage 3 reopenings until this Wednesday, Mississauga mayor Bonnie Crombie has issued a response signaling her approval.

Crombie thanked Premier Doug Ford for acting on the advice of the Medical Officer of Health and taking a cautious, regional approach to opening.

“The decision to hit pause takes into account the realities that populous, dense Regions like Peel face and the need to take a cautious approach as we further open public spaces, workplaces and the economy,” Crombie said.

Crombie added that she hopes the province will use this time to respond to the concerns of GTHA mayors, who’ve asked for additional measures for indoor dining and gyms in large urban centres.

“We want to be careful and not let our guard down as we approach this critical phase in our efforts to neutralize the virus. These measures would allow us to be even more cautious as we reopen these spaces in Stage 3,” the mayor said.

“We’ve already seen outbreaks linked to indoor bars and restaurant reopenings in cities such as Montreal, Edmonton and Kelowna. It is easy to see how quickly we can lose the gains we have made.”

Crombie maintains that Mississauga — which has reported an average of five new daily cases over the past week — is in a good position to move into Stage 3 shortly.

Regions in Stage 3 are allowed social gatherings up to a maximum of 50 people indoors and a maximum of 100 people outdoors, with physical distancing measures in place.

They’re also permitted to reopen indoor drinking and dining facilities, fitness facilities, movie theatres, and casinos.

Alongside Peel, Toronto and Windsor-Essex are also waiting until Wednesday, July 29 to hear when they’ll be allowed to move into the third stage of reopening.