THUNDER BAY – The fate of door-to-door trick-or-treating is still up in the air in Thunder Bay, but there will be at least one spot where kids can still dress up in costume and collect candy.
The DaVinci Centre, citing the uncertainty on whether traditional Halloween night events would be allowed to proceed under COVID-19 guidelines, will host a trick-or-treat night of its own, inviting eager youngsters to dress up and come for a socially distanced outing instead.
Ann-Marie Polowski, general manager at the south-side hall, said they want to deliver a sense of normalcy to children 13 and younger and their parents, especially those who might not be comfortable traveling from house to house in search of goodies.
“We’re going to have table stations set up throughout the building that kids can go to and trick or treat, just like they would on a normal house-to-house scenario,” Polowski said.
“The tables are going to be sponsored by local businesses and families that are involved with the centre and outside the centre across the city. It will be decorated and the whole building will be kind of jazzed up for the event. We’re hoping to see everybody come out and enjoy the day.”
Polowski said the DaVinci Centre is at present only operating in half of its usual space, meaning they have plenty of room to put on a spooky eight-hour event, that kicks off at noon on Halloween night.
“We wanted to do this for the kids and the families of the community,” she said. “I think with the response that we’ve gotten so far, I hope that it’s going to be successful. It seems like everybody is on board with having the option to do something safely this year.”
The Thunder Bay District Health Unit has not publicly taken a stance on trick-or-treating in 2020, awaiting guidance from the province.
South of the border, Los Angeles County initially banned trick-or-treating, but then walked it back in the face of public backlash and recommended it not go ahead. New York governor Andrew Cuomo said he won’t cancel Halloween, while Ontario Premier Doug Ford last week said he’d prefer parents not take their kids out on Halloween night in an effort to stem rising COVID-19 numbers in some parts of the province.
Mayor Bill Mauro said he believes with zero cases in the Thunder Bay District for the past two weeks, it’s up to parents whether they’re comfortable taking their kids door-to-door.
The city is still awaiting official guidance from the health unit.
“For parents, I think it’s very much like sending your kids back to school, where the school circumstance could potentially be a more dangerous situation than trick-or-treating, where you’re not indoors and in close proximity of larger numbers of people,” Mauro said.
“I see it as an individual choice at this point. Obviously homeowners can turn the light off and not answer the door if they’re not interested in partaking in it. Masking would still be important, obviously.”
Masks will be required at the DaVinci event, which will also include several outdoor stations for parents who aren’t comfortable bringing their children into an indoor public space.
In addition to treats, there will be take-home activities and prizes for the top five costumes. A hot or cold takeout option will also be available for purchase throughout the event.
