Garden centres and nurseries with curbside pick-up and delivery only will be allowed to operate

Ontario announced today that some seasonal businesses would be permitted to begin operations on Monday, May 4, 2020 as long as current public health measures were followed. (It should be noted that this has no impact on garden centres already open, which might be part of an essential business, or a non-essential business selling hardware, electronics, or pet food).

Today’s announcement also relaxes the definition of essential construction. As of Monday, any construction project that supports the improvement of delivery of goods and services will be deemed ‘essential’.

New provincewide guidelines for retail will simplify operations

Karl Littler, Retail Council of Canada’s SVP, Public Affairs, spoke to the Globe and Mail yesterday about the Ontario government’s set of new safety guidelines. He explained that the new guidelines for the retail sector will simplify operations, especially for provincewide chains, by having one centralized set of guidelines that cover the entire province, compared with the current situation where local municipalities determine the rules. He added that many of these guidelines are already being practised by essential retailers such as grocers and pharmacies that have continued to operate during the pandemic.