March 13, 2020
Dear valued patron
The health and well-being of our patrons, partners and
employees is always the top priority of the Park Board and as such, we are
monitoring the COVID-19 situation closely. We pride ourselves on providing
exceptional recreation and community programming, as well as stewarding and
maintaining world-class park destinations in our city. In the midst of the
COVID-19 pandemic, it is important that we provide as much information about
the precautionary steps we are taking to mitigate risk to our community.
Our staff are in daily contact with the City of Vancouver
and provincial agencies who are leading the response to COVID-19 to ensure we
are acting upon the most up-to-date information and to ensure our actions are
proactive and appropriate.
At this time Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) indicates the
public risk remains low, however, yesterday afternoon the Provincial Health
Officer directed new protocols that have an impact on some of our events and
services. We have been advised to cancel or postpone all public gatherings of
more than 250 people.
Our team has done a complete review of all Park Board
events that are scheduled to take place between now and June 30, 2020 and has
cancelled the Stanley Park Easter Train, as well as the Easter Eggspedition at
VanDusen Botanical Gardens. We will be issuing full refunds to any patrons who
have already purchased tickets.
The new provincial protocols have also had a slight
impact on our services. We have closed our saunas and steam rooms at recreation
facilities until further notice. Given that the risk remains low, we are
currently proceeding with our regularly scheduled programming. We are working
with our Community Centre Associations to ensure that any patrons who are not
comfortable continuing with their scheduled programming will be able to receive
a refund.
We are following VCH's recommendations and reminding
everyone to follow regular cold and flu season precautions when visiting our
community centers and other public facilities.
The City of Vancouver's Emergency Management Agency
(VEMA) has activated its emergency operations centre to bring some of the
City's critical departments together to respond to the issue and ensure we are
taking adequate and appropriate measures.
To date, we have taken the following proactive steps at
our Park Board community centres, fitness facilities, pools, rinks, and other
public venues such as VanDusen Botanical Garden and the Bloedel Conservatory.
We will continue to make immediate adjustments as necessary.
- Implemented an enhanced cleaning schedule and protocols for the common and high traffic areas of our public facilities;
- Developed informational print and electronic signage in our facilities that encourages community members to wash their hands, cough into their sleeves and to stay home if they are feeling sick;
- Closed our saunas and steam rooms;
- Limited users of Killarney and Hillcrest pools to 250 persons at a time;
- Created a dedicated page on our website with up-to-date information about any impacts to our services and facilities.
We will continue to welcome the community into our
facilities and will continue to take precautionary measures to ensure the
health and safety of the general public, our patrons, as well as our staff.
We are monitoring the situation closely and are making
appropriate preparations should we need to take further action. We will be in
touch with you should our approach change significantly and will provide timely
updates on our website:
For up-to-date information
about recreation facilities and services, please visit:
Regards,
Malcolm Bromley
General Manager - Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation
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