‘Frustrated’ business owners pivot operations — again — for Monday lockdown
To work out at BodyPro Gym, members have their temperature taken at the door, hands sanitized by a staff member, and are asked to wear a mask at all times in the 35,000 square foot facility.
It's like a ghost town with 10 people in here," said general manager Carmen Rea, referencing the red-zone patron limit for gyms.
Still, Rea will have to close her doors come Monday, as Hamilton enters another lockdown in response to a spike in the COVID-19 case rate to 109.4 cases per 100,000 people, and a 4.6 positivity rate - almost double the 2.5 per cent threshold that indicates the virus spread is under control.
Over the weekend, businesses had to dust off their lockdown plans and pivot operations to comply with lockdown restrictions seen before Feb. 16, when the city re-entered the red-zone, with a few changes. The province is now allowing regions in lockdown to hold classes with up to 10 gym clients outdoors.
At BodyPro Gym, near Upper Wentworth Street and Fennell Avenue, Rea said her team will be transforming half of their parking lot into an outdoor gym, complete with tents and equipment. The gym has not been holding virtual classes, as they cater to those seeking specialty equipment as part of their exercise regimen.
The cost of ordering the tents, and having staff monitor the site overnight, is adding onto the very stressful" toll of running the gym and reverting back to a lockdown.
We don't take this lightly at all, but what we have the frustration with is certain places are being allowed, like hair salons, nails, those kind of things," said Rea. But how does it make sense that you can have those people at 25 per cent of their capacity, but I'm not allowed to be 25 per cent of my capacity?"
Personal care services, including salons, tattoo parlours, and barber shops will be reduced to 25 per cent capacity up to a maximum of five patrons maximum based on distancing ability starting April 12.
The amended lockdown rules will likely trigger calls to the city's COVID-19 concierge service' phone line for small business, said Keenan Loomis, president and CEO of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce.
It's dispiriting, obviously, to go into lockdown again. I think there's a lot of concern for how this is going to impact businesses," said Loomis. We're so close, and that's the toughest part of this."
Last week, restaurant owners welcomed the province's update to red-zone restrictions that expanded indoor dining capacity to 50 per cent. With indoor dining prohibited in lockdown - patio dining is allowed - some Hamilton-area restaurants have bad news for their staff.
We were excited to be able to bring back an extra five staff members. And now we have to be like, Sorry, we don't have hours for you anymore,'" said Kirsty Hodge, general manager of Coach and Lantern, in Ancaster. With the menu depending on staffing and patrons, and how much liquor and food supplies are required, the weekend turnaround did not give owners enough time to adjust, she said.
It's just frustrating ... lockdown, back open again, lockdown, back open again, and it's just heartbreaking," she said.
Vjosa Isai is a reporter at The Spectator covering Hamilton-based business. Reach her via email: visai@thespec.com.