City of Regina to drop COVID measures Sunday as province lifts public health orders

Restrictions meant to curb the spread of COVID-19 at City of Regina facilities and services will be lifted Sunday in lockstep with Step Three of the province’s Re-Opening Roadmap.

But officials stress the pandemic isn’t over.

“COVID isn’t ending. It’s not disappearing. And I think there is a need for all of us as citizens in the community, as employees, to be mindful that COVID-19 is still prevalent in our community,” city manager Chris Holden told reporters during a news conference on Thursday.

The city announced changes to public health measures at recreation facilities, at City Hall, on Regina Transit and at other facilities.

Masks will no longer be required, physical distancing signage and markers will be removed and capacity limits will be lifted. Masks and physical distancing will also be optional for construction and maintenance crews as of Sunday, Holden said.

Holden acknowledged there will be “a different level of comfort and safety in terms of how people respond,” so he encouraged members of the public to continue wearing masks if they so choose.

The city will continue with some precautions including enhanced cleaning and providing hand sanitizer. Transit buses will be fogged each day.

At recreation facilities, pre-registration for programs will no longer be needed, Holden said. As well, amenities like saunas, water fountains and lockers will be available again.

Holden said it will take rec centres between 24 and 48 hours before they’re running at full capacity due to “staffing considerations and some adjustments that need to be made.”

Transit is operating at about 80 per cent and is expected to return to full capacity in September. While masks won’t be necessary, Holden said plastic shields intended to protect drivers will remain. Drivers will choose whether they want to slide them open or not.

It’s all going to be a big change from the past 16 months, but Holden cautioned that with COVID variants circulating, these measures might not be gone for good if there’s an outbreak.

“If there was a need to alter our approach and put restrictions back in place, we would obviously look to the SHA, and the Province of Saskatchewan first and foremost. But if necessary, we’ll make adjustments if we need to,” he said.

About 770 city employees have been working from home during the pandemic and they are set to transition back to in-person work. Holden said the aim is to have them all return by Labour Day and, after that, the city will look at accommodating those who want to continue working from home.

On the uptake of COVID vaccines, Holden said that as an employer, the city isn’t able to ask workers if they have been vaccinated but employees are being encouraged to get their shots.

“But beyond that, we’re not able to make any kind of guarantees to the public that accesses our facilities,” he said.