CANMORE – With the provincial government’s economic relaunch strategy moving into stage 2 Friday (June 12), local gyms, yoga studios and recreation facilities are feeling pressure to reopen.
Indoor and outdoor recreation, fitness and sport centres, including gyms and swimming pools, were originally slated to reopen as part of stage 3, but the government of Alberta announced earlier this week they would be included in stage 2 and could reopen with safety measures in place.
“Just wham. I had no expectations of even opening soon," said Chad Sprague, owner of Athletic Evolution in Canmore. "I had thought maybe opening in August, or even the beginning of September was reasonable,”
Sprague said the announcement on Tuesday (June 9), was surprising. He added that he feels obligated to reopen for the sake of his clients, but is hesitant about making sure to follow the guidelines established by Alberta Health Services (AHS), while providing a pleasant experience.
“I feel like I have to open now, I can’t just leave everybody hanging. I don’t feel prepared, but I’m going to do as much as I can to be prepared,” he said. “I really have to start out on the right foot. I can’t just open and wing it and see how it goes. I need to have a 100 per cent clear plan in place that everyone is aware of and can follow.”
Sprague is unsure when he will officially open Athletic Evolution's doors at this point.
WildHeart Canmore will reopen its doors Saturday (June 13) with a single class per day. The yoga studio will continue to offer online classes during the reopening process.
"I am so excited to reopen and teach public classes again, but I also understand that a lot of people won’t feel comfortable coming yet,” said co-owner Emily Sudermann, who was also taken aback by the changes included in stage 2. “We want to offer the public classes to continue to keep the community engaged.”
Sudermann said the limited classes per day is due to the updated timeline and the pressure to have teachers return and to properly establish the necessary health protocols.
As for the Town of Canmore’s recreation facilities, including Elevation Place and the Canmore Rec Centre, the Town is not ready to reopen at this time.
Canmore Mayor John Borrowman said while the municipality has been planning how to reopen since the start of the public health crisis, the recent announcement caught the Town off guard.
“These fitness centres are kind of the heart of our community. It’s a big part of who we are in this town, so we are looking forward to having people back,” said Borrowman.
There are still many steps involved in reopening, including rehiring staff, sourcing personal protective equipment and training staff for the needs and challenges that COVID-19 has presented.
“We have to be really careful about how we reopen things," said the mayor. "We want things to be safe for our visitors and staff as well.
"It’s going to be quite different from what people are used to, but it will function and people will be able to get back to that part of their lives.”
There have been specific parameters put in place for individual sports including climbing, gymnastics, fitness classes, weight rooms, aquatic activities and arena sports such as hockey.
“For the development of our spring hockey programs and summer development camps, I think there is some optimism there, but I think we have a long road ahead of us before we are able to actually play,” said Canmore Eagles general manger Andrew Milne.
“In hockey, you can’t really social distance. So I think there will be some very unique parameters for hockey that are significantly going to hinder our ability to be on the ice.”
Despite Canmore's recreation centres not being able to reopen yet, the Town announced the return of its Big Fun summer camps beginning July 6.
The full-day camps for children ages five to 11 living in Canmore or the MD of Bighorn will be open for registration as of Friday (June 12).
