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Banff municipal measures to deal with COVID-19 'not off the table'

"At this stage, it may be unwise to use municipal health measures that would deviate from provincial measures, but it’s not off the table," said Banff Mayor Corrie DiManno.
Banff Town Hall 2
Banff Town Hall

BANFF – The Town of Banff has not ruled out additional municipal public health measures for the tourist town in light of the provincial government’s elimination of the vaccine passport program and easing of other COVID-19 restrictions.

The Town’s emergency management team is meeting to review the province’s three-step plan to lift many COVID-19 public health restrictions announced by Premier Jason Kenney on Feb. 8,  with plans to brief the mayor and council on Monday (Feb. 14).

“I understand and share the desire to move towards normalcy, but I am surprised at the speed with which health measures are being removed when Alberta and Banff have only recently crested this wave of the Omicron variant,” said Mayor Corrie DiManno.

“In the past, we have implemented measures to stop the spread of COVID when Banff active cases were high, but each situation was different. At this stage, it may be unwise to use municipal health measures that would deviate from provincial measures, but it’s not off the table.”

In the past, Banff has implemented its own mandatory mask bylaw and at one point had its own commercial restrictions bylaw, which banned the sale of alcohol and cannabis after 10 p.m. and put its own capacity limits on restaurants and bars in a bid to keep COVID-19 case counts down.

Currently, Banff’s wastewater surveillance data shows the number of active cases in Banff continues to decline, and according to the provincial website, 10,701 residents in Banff and Lake Louise have had at least one dose, 9,491 are double vaccinated and 4,186 people have had their third shot.

DiManno said Banff residents, businesses and visitors have been diligent with all restrictions and safety protocols since the pandemic hit in March 2020.

“We must not put our community safety in jeopardy now by acting too hastily, but thankfully here in Banff our wastewater continues to show a downward trend and so I am very happy about that,” she said.

Effective midnight Tuesday (Feb. 8), Kenney ended the Restrictions Exemption Program (REP) which has required people to show proof of vaccination or a negative test to enter facilities such as restaurants, sporting facilities and entertainment venues.

It was the first part of a three-step plan to ease public health measures as the fifth wave of COVID-19 from the highly contagious Omicron variant subsides and pressure begins to ease on Alberta’s health-care system.

Capacity limits are now lifted on venues with a capacity of under 500, including entertainment venues, libraries, places of worship and restaurants and bars. Capacity limits for all venues will be removed on March 1.

Masking for children and youth in schools, and for youth aged 12 and under in any setting, will no longer be mandatory as of midnight on Feb. 13.

As part of step two in the plan beginning on March 1, the provincial mask mandate will be removed and there will no longer be any limits on social gatherings. The mandatory work-from-home mandate will be lifted and any remaining provincial school requirements, including cohorting, will no longer be in effect.

Step three of the plan will be determined based on hospitalization rates continuing to trend downwards, at which time mandatory isolation will become a recommendation only and COVID-specific measures at continuing care facilities will be removed.

Kenney said the REP program has made a huge difference and saved many lives, but said the program is “no longer serving a useful purpose.”

He said the fact that the vast majority of Albertans are now fully vaccinated is a major factor in the decision to lift restrictions.

“It is time to shift to a balanced approach where we are able to live with COVID-19 and return to normal,” he said during a Feb. 8 press conference.

Falling in line with the province’s scrapping of the REP program on Wednesday, vaccine passports or negative tests did not have to be shown at any Town of Banff facilities, such as the Fenlands recreation centre.

“That being said, we are working to understand the requirements still in place, for instance, if there’s screening that needs to happen,” said Mayor DiManno.

Despite the REP program being eliminated, businesses can still choose to implement their own safety policies.

“I would just implore people – our residents and our visitors – to be respectful and kind to any businesses that choose to continue a program of this nature,” said DiManno.

As of Feb. 8, there are 1,623 people with COVID-19 in hospital province-wide, including 129 in intensive care units. An additional 13 deaths were reported to Alberta Health in the previous 24 hours, bringing the provincial death toll due to COVID-19 to 3,686 since the pandemic began.

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