Step One of Ontario’s reopening begins Friday, includes some retailers, patios and 10 people gathering outdoors

72 per cent of the 18+ population in Ontario have received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine

TORONTO, ON., June 7, 2021 — Today, the Ford government announced that the province will begin Step One of its Roadmap to Reopen at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, June 11, 2021, three days ahead of schedule. Step One includes allowing bars and restaurants to serve customers on patios and allowing non-essential retail stores to reopen for the first time in several months.

The decision has been made in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health based on the provincewide vaccination rate and continuing improvements in key public health and health system indicators.

“Thanks to the ongoing success of Team Ontario’s vaccine rollout and the ongoing improvements in public health trends, we are able to enter step one of the Roadmap and begin to safely and cautiously lift restrictions,” said Premier Doug Ford. “The only reason we’re able to do so is because of the enormous sacrifices made by individuals, families and communities across Ontario. As we begin to enjoy the benefits of the first step in our roadmap like meeting friends on a patio or visiting your favourite local store, please do so safely by continuing to follow all public health guidelines.”

In order to safely enter Step One of the Roadmap to Reopen, Ontario needed to have vaccinated 60 per cent of adults with at least one dose for two weeks or longer, ensuring the first dose offers a strong level of protection against COVID-19. As of June 6, 2021 at 8:00 p.m., 72 per cent of the 18+ population in Ontario had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine with over 10 million doses now having been administered.

Step One of the Roadmap focuses on the resumption of more outdoor activities with smaller crowds where risk of transmission is lower. It will also permit more limited indoor settings to be open, all with restrictions in place. In consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health, the Ontario government has amended Step One to also permit indoor religious services, rites and ceremonies, including wedding and funeral services limited to 15 per cent capacity.

Step One of Ontario’s Roadmap to Reopen includes but is not limited to:

• Outdoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 10 people;
• Outdoor religious services, rites, or ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services, capped at the number of people that can maintain a physical distance of two metres;
• Indoor religious services, rites, or ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services permitted at up to 15 per cent capacity of the particular room;
• Non-essential retail permitted at 15 per cent capacity, with no restrictions on the goods that can be sold;
• Essential and other select retail permitted at 25 per cent capacity, with no restrictions on the goods that can be sold;
• Outdoor dining with up to four people per table, with exceptions for larger households;
• Outdoor fitness classes, outdoor groups in personal training and outdoor individual/team sport training to be permitted with up to 10 people, among other restrictions;
• Day camps for children permitted to operate in a manner consistent with the safety guidelines for COVID-19 produced by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health;
• Overnight camping at campgrounds and campsites, including Ontario Parks, and short-term rentals;
• Concert venues, theatres and cinemas may open outdoors for the purpose of rehearsing or performing a recorded or broadcasted concert, artistic event, theatrical performance or other performance with no more than 10 performers, among other restrictions;
• Outdoor horse racing tracks and motor speedways permitted to operate without spectators; and
• Outdoor attractions such as zoos, landmarks, historic sites, botanical gardens with capacity and other restrictions.

Before entering Step One, the province also needed to see continued improvement in key public health and health system indicators. During the period of May 25 to 31, 2021, the provincial case rate decreased by 35.1 per cent. As of June 6, the number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs is 497, including 31 patients from Manitoba, as compared to 687 two weeks ago. The province’s situation is currently exceeding the best-case scenario presented in recent modelling, which indicated the province would reach below 1,000 new daily infections by June 30, 2021. The province expects these trends to continue over the coming days before entering Step One.

“Thanks to the tremendous efforts of every Ontarian, beginning June 11 we will be able to cautiously lift public health measures in the settings we know are safest,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “While this is exciting news, as we move to enter Step One of Ontario’s Roadmap it remains critical that all Ontarians continue to follow public health advice and roll up their sleeves to receive the vaccine.”

What about schools?

In addition, to support students who have worked incredibly hard throughout the pandemic, the government is enabling school boards for public and private elementary and high schools to invite students back for brief outdoor end-of-year celebration. Any in-person school year celebrations will need to meet specific requirements.

The province will remain in Step One for at least 21 days to evaluate any impacts on key public health and health system indicators. If at the end of the 21 days the province has vaccinated 70 per cent of adults with one dose and 20 per cent of adults with two doses and there are continued improvements in other key public health and health system indicators, the province will move to Step Two of the Roadmap.

Step Two, which could begin in early July includes:

• Larger outdoor gatherings for up to 25 people
• Small indoor gatherings for up to five people
• Outdoor dining for up to six people per table
• Essential retail at 50 per cent capacity
• Non-essential retail capacity at 25 per cent
• Personal care services where face coverings can be worn at all times
• Outdoor meeting and event spaces
• Outdoor amusement and water parks
• Outdoor boat tour operators
• Outdoor county fairs and rural exhibitions
• Outdoor sports leagues and events
• Outdoor cinemas, performing arts, live music, events and attractions

Eventually Step Three, the final step is life returning to a new normal in August or sooner if 70 to 80 per cent of adults in Ontario have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 25 per cent have received both doses.

The following activities will resume when Step Three is announced:

• Larger indoor and outdoor gatherings (the province did not specify a limit)
• Essential and non-essential retail, but with limited capacity
• Larger indoor religious services, rites, and ceremony gatherings
• Indoor meeting and event spaces
• Indoor sports and recreational facilities
• Indoor seated events
• Indoor attractions and cultural amenities
• Casino and bingo halls
• Other outdoor activities from Step 3 will be permitted to operate indoors

“While we have reached the point where we can safely move into Step One, now is not the time to get complacent,” said Dr. David Williams, Chief Medical Officer of Health. “We must all remain vigilant, as the fight against COVID-19 is not over. By continuing to follow public health advice and measures we can continue to reduce transmission, safeguard health system capacity and save lives,” said Dr. Williams.

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