Coun. Jordan McPhail didn't find any support for the motion. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

store closures

McPhail calls for reduced business hours, uniplex preparations as COVID-19 spreads

Mar 19, 2020 | 2:44 PM

La Ronge Coun. Jordan McPhail didn’t find support at a regular town council meeting Wednesday when he sought to change the hours of restaurants, liquor establishments and retail stores among other COVID-19 related measures.

The motion he introduced would have reduce hours of operations to Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for retail and liquor off-sale, and Monday to Thursday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. for restaurant and liquor establishments. Takeout and delivery options would still be available to homes Friday to Sunday.

McPhail told council the Mel Hegland Uniplex should also be prepared for an off-base assessment site or healthcare facility for COVID-19 for the Saskatchewan Health Authority in the event they need it.

“Everyone around this table, and around your kitchen table, has a unique strength that we can use in the coming weeks to keep our community strong,” he said. “We all were elected to keep our community safe, to be proactive in the best interest of the community. We have learned many great lessons from the 2015 fires that came to our community, we must act early and strive to speed rather than perfection.”

Other measures McPhail called for were to allow budget space for additional training and resources if needed, a contact person be appointed to the Emergency Operation Centre if established, the development of a communications strategy. He said they should begin stakeholder discussions to assess the specific needs of residents and businesses alike, as well as get an inventory list compiled of what can be used by the town if they are needed. There should appointment of a contact person for the community-based organizations and non-government organizations in the case there is a need for additional resources, and more, he said.

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He also recommended the municipality suspend any utility shut offs and waive any interest on amounts owed in the event anyone has to miss work or businesses lose economic gain. He added the town shouldn’t enforce utility shut offs until Dec. 31, 2020, if accounts are not paid in full.

“Now all of this may seem like an overreaction to some, but what we learned in 2015 was that if we wait until there is a real threat, we will not have the time to get it right,” McPhail said.

The motion ultimately didn’t receive any support from fellow councillors as it was generally felt the restrictions already put in place during the meeting were sufficient. Acting-Chief Administrative Officer Dean Yaremchuk told council that administration had no time to research or review about what the town couldn’t control. He also said there is a Tri-Community Emergency Operations Plan currently being reviewed by staff.

“My perspective is that most of what was suggested, we covered off in the press release,” Yaremchuk said. “Jurisdictionally, we can only control what’s in municipal control and that’s what our focus has been.”

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derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno