THUNDER BAY - The province-wide lockdown has left many businesses with closed doors or limitations, but ski hill operators in the north are feeling left out in the cold as Ontario is the only province to limit the activity.
Northern Ontario MPPs are reaching out to the provincial government to provide justification for the decision to keep Northern Ontario ski hills empty.
“What we were hearing from skiers and resort owners was they couldn’t understand the decision to keep our ski hills closed across Northwestern Ontario when across Canada that decision wasn’t made,” said NDP Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Judith Monteith-Farrell.
“I want to provide my support to the ski resort operators and the people who are looking for stress relief and skiing is a big part of that in Northwestern Ontario.”
Monteith-Farrell sent a letter to Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism, and Cultural Industries Lisa McLeod asking for the specific public health advice that led to the decision.
Thunder Bay-Superior North MPP Michael Gravelle agrees that ski hills should be permitted to open.
"The ski hills should be allowed to operate during the lockdown period. The fact is the ski hills put in incredibly strict COVID-19 protocols," he said. "This has been devastating for the ski industry. If the lockdown goes beyond Feb. 11, I don’t know what will happen."
Gravelle said he has received many letters and phone calls from constituents who want to know why the ski hills were forced to shutdown.
"I think families want to be out and skiing in a safe manner," he said. "I think all ski hills in the province can abide by the strict COVID-19 protocols. I think this is something that can be determined province wide."
A statement from McLeod’s office sent to Dougallmedia said the decision to impose the province-wide lockdown was made based on advice from the chief medical officer of health and health experts.
“Minister MacLeod continues to work closely with our sectors and hosted a meeting late December, with ski hill stakeholders, where she committed to establishing a working group with officials and industry experts to facilitate a safe return post lockdown,” the statement reads.
“All the measures being undertaken by the government are designed to limit the risk of transmission, reduce mobility between different regions of the province for non-essential activities, and position Ontario to reopen with an improved and more stable health system and public health system."
According to Monteith-Farrell, no one from the government has provided an explanation for why ski hills are included in the lockdown order, particularly those in the north.
“There’s always the idea that we needed a regional approach and many people believe that’s what should happen,” she said.
“We learned that applying rules to Toronto up here doesn’t work. We saw that especially when we are looking at our seasonable operators. They have a very short window of opportunity and they made significant investments to make sure it was safe and that was ignored it seems.”
Premier Doug Ford has said in the past that the province-wide lockdown would prevent people travelling from hotspot areas of Southern Ontario to other regions, resulting in the possible spread of COVID-19.
“I don’t think anyone is going to get on a plane to come skiing in Thunder Bay,” Monteith-Farrell said. “If they are going to get on a plane, they can go ski in Banff or Mont Tremblant.”
Local ski hill operators have expressed frustration over the lockdowns, particularly being left with many unknowns like why they were included in the order and when they will be able to open again.
But ski hills are not alone. Many other businesses across the north are struggling with the lockdown and Monteith-Farrell said she understands there is a crisis in Ontario and some difficult decisions need to be made, but those businesses also need as many supports as possible.
Resources have been made available by the province but there are instances when some small businesses can fall through the cracks if they don’t meet all the necessary criteria.
“I think that’s the important piece,” she said. “If lockdowns are required, we need to make sure these businesses can survive this lockdown. The ones that are paying the price and locking down need to be supported.”
