Simcoe North is dealing with the pandemic "fairly well."
That's the view of some of the elected officials from three area municipalities.
"I think it's going fairly well, to be honest with you," said Mayor Stewart Strathearn. "I think people are respecting the directive of staying at home and flattering the curve. I think people are conscious of their neighbours and helping where they can.
The mayor noted "businesses have taken the essential business designation and are adapting to do takeout where they can."
Strathearn said town staff have also adapted with changing times to work from home.
"It's not business as usual, but the business of the town is being conducted as best as it can," he said. "We still have transit. We're working to compile a list of people who can do deliveries. Overall, kudos to the residents of Midland for heeding the message from the province and health unit."
Strathearn said he believes the pandemic has forced businesses and industries to take a hard look at how they can continue to operate in an ever-changing environment.
In the long-term, he said, the town may see an increase in population as cottagers convert their secondary residences into primary dwellings.
"You see a lot of people who have secondary properties (in) Muskoka and Tiny Beaches to get out of the city," Strathearn said. "I think that, in the long-term, may translate into people thinking that they want to be in the small community for the long term. That may end up with them converting secondary residences into primary residences."
Those are some of the positives in the situation, he said.
"I think you'll see businesses who were on the edge go under," Strathearn lamented, "which is unfortunate for people who have put their blood, sweat and tears into it."
Strathearn said the undertone of the premier's media conferences is that the measures will go into May/June.
"A lot of municipalities are cancelling events into July," Strathearn said. "I think we're going to do the same. I don't know what's going to happen with tourism now. People who normally derive the bulk of their income from tourists and cottagers are going to take a beating."
But he said he hopes once the self-isolation requirements are relaxed, there will be a significant uptick in recreational activities.
"I appreciate people who are adhering to the advice from the health unit," Strathearn said. "I appreciate their forbearance. And for those who aren't, shame on you. You really are putting yourself in a position where the person you infect may be a family or friend and the person who dies may be a grandparent."
TINY TOWNSHIP
Steffen Walma, deputy mayor of Tiny Township, said he is taking a silver linings perspective of things.
"For the most part, people seem to be complying with the health unit directives and most of the provincial orders that are in effect," he said. "There are always outliers that you have to deal with."
For dealing with the non-compliance, Walma said, the township has increased its bylaw staff for spring and has been working closely with the OPP so municipal enforcement officers can begin responding to COVID-19-related incidents to reduce the workload on the OPP.
There haven't been many complaints as of now, Walma said, however, the municipality had to increase patrolling at beaches when it was noticed that some residents were not complying with the closure of public spaces.
"There has been some along some of the parks and beaches, for instance fishing in Jackson Beach Park," he said. "There have been some people who haven't been complying with the social distancing."
Seasonal residents are also a concern in Tiny Township.
"We have definitely noticed an increase in our seasonal population," he said. "We're falling back on the province's messaging and encouraging them to shelter in place at their primary residence. If they are here, we're encouraging them to just stay in place and not move around."
They're valued members of the community, but safety is key, Walma said. Not only that, the influx adds pressure on rural infrastructure, he added.
"Not just on the roads, grocery stores, and the hospital, but one of the big ones in rural communities is access to the internet," Walma said. "It's already slow and then you add an influx of population, with some working from home and now kids are studying from home, too. It's an added strain on that broadband and it becomes a very annoying circumstance for people that have to shelter in place."
He said he experiences this in his own house when his wife, a kindergarten teacher, has to use the internet to set up material for classes.
"I've got Zoom conference calls every couple hours," Walma said. "And we notice a difference in speed, especially when we're trying to load documents."
He said that some learning experiences have emerged from the municipality having to make adjustments around pandemic conditions.
"When you look at the accessibility piece and the tools a council member can use when talking about a report," Walma said, adding council will be meeting on April 15; that meeting will be streamed live on the township's YouTube channel. "You can share your screen to show the public the documents you've been looking at when doing your research."
Another positive, he said was that, at least on a personal level, he has been connecting more with people he hadn't talked to in months or years.
"People are more willing to sit down and chat and engage that way," Walma said.
Having looked at the positives, he said, he couldn't deny there was a downside, too.
"There will be some negatives thing to contend with at the start, like the economic rebuilding," Walma said.
As well, he said, he has noticed that provincial orders sometimes seem to be built around urban settings only.
"For instance, in Tiny Township, as we close public spaces, we push people to the roads," Walma said. "In a rural setting, we don't have sidewalks and speed limits are higher. Closing public spaces reduces the amount of room we have and potentially causes some traffic issues that we're not built to deal with. So there's lots of learning to be done there."
Trails in the township are open, he added, but everybody is cautioned to use them while following the principles of physical distancing.
TAY TOWNSHIP
Issues with local trails is something Ted Walker, mayor of Tay Township, understands very well.
Trails in his township are also currently open, but in a limited capacity.
"It's still open but on a limited basis because there are some parts that need maintenance and repairs," said Walker. "And some of the winter barricades are still up."
He said council has looked at closing trails, just as other public places have been put off-limits for residents.
"With respect to the trails, that was the concern council had that we might push people onto the roads because we don't have sidewalks," Walker said. "We thought trails would be a safer place for people to be."
Residents, he said, have been mostly compliant in their response to the measures, with the municipality keeping them updated through its website.
As for the economic impact, Walker said, the effect is negative, but it's different than neighbouring municipalities, such as Midland or Penetanguishene, which have larger shopping spaces.
"We have a number of small businesses that have had to close down, which from their perspective is quite difficult," he said. "I know some of them must be struggling."
In an attempt to help, the township has made concessions around bill payments, Walker said.
Further, he said, staff and council are looking at ways to reduce some municipal expenses that don't make sense at this time.
"People aren't going to be using some of the faclities, so some of the (money from) upgrades may be saved," Walker said. "We have a fairly healthy surplus in 2019, so we're looking at how to apply that so our tax bill doesn't present any more hardships to people."
Tay is the only municipality in Simcoe North that doesn't offer a live stream or cable viewing option for its residents, he said.
"We had been considering setting up live streaming of our meetings but just hadn't got there yet," Walker noted. "We're looking at doing it. Staff are working on that now to get that set up.
"I think we've recognized that because of this, and for future, the option of the virtual meeting, or at least live streaming, is a good thing," he added.
