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Heather Scoffield: The central bank has its pandemic ‘beacon’ for the economy. Where is Chrystia Freeland’s?

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Tiff Macklem calls it his “beacon.”

As the new governor of the Bank of Canada gets his feet wet amidst the greatest economic crisis of our times, he says he has one thing in mind at all times in order to keep his policy grounded: the inflation target.

Having a guiding light that shines through the fog of crisis and prevents decision-makers from losing sight of their destination is crucial, especially as the economy drags on and on.

For the central bank, it means pulling out all the stops right now to keep financial markets healthy, to keep the money flowing, and to eventually nudge economic activity back to its normal self as pandemic restrictions allow. And then reining it back in as soon as the economy — and inflation — show entrenched signs of inching up.

But a sustainable recovery for the Canadian economy requires the Bank of Canada to work in parallel with fiscal policy officials and the Department of Finance, which can use its massive spending power to target help to those who need it most.

It, however, doesn’t have a beacon. And that’s a problem if we have any hope of maintaining the confidence of investors, job-creators and job-seekers, and making sure the recovery plan sticks.

In an interview with the Star this week, Macklem was eager to talk a lot about how inflation targeting will ensure the hundreds of billions of dollars the central bank has pushed into financial markets over the past few months won’t morph irresponsibly into hyperinflation or something that would undermine the stability of the Canadian economy over the longer term.

When asked about the need for a beacon in fiscal policy, he was more cryptic, as central bankers are. But his point was clear — and critical.

“It is important to have a view of some sort of a plan on which you operate against. We’re very conscious of the fact that that scenario is very conditional on the evolution of the virus itself,” Macklem said.

In other words, so many things are uncertain when it comes to how the virus will affect the economy and our ability to recover. But with the inflation target as his guide, the constant factor is the commitment to maintain robust support for the economy for as long as it is underperforming.

Inflation right now is rock bottom and is expected to stay there for the long haul. When it picks up, along with growth, the bank will scale back its support.

That’s the plan, and it has long been the plan for the bank, giving confidence to the public that even in the midst of an unruly second wave, there will be responsible monetary policy.

But the fiscal picture is not as clear. Successive federal finance ministers — first Bill Morneau and now — have leaned on the commitment to do “whatever it takes” to get Canadians through the pandemic.

So far, that’s meant putting about $325 billion into health and safety, direct support for businesses and individuals, and liquidity measures, according to the most recent tally in mid-August.

On top of that, there’s an expanded and more generous Employment Insurance system that just started, and plans in the works for training, job creation, extending the wage subsidy, a new rent subsidy and untold stimulus programs.

Freeland has been consulting widely about reinstating some kind of fiscal “anchor” that would force discipline in spending over the medium term and give the finance minister some criteria around when to say yes or no to new initiatives.

Ottawa used to have a goal of keeping the debt burden — debt as a proportion of GDP — on a steady, downward track, but that guide was barely heeded at the best of times and had to be abandoned with the pandemic.

It’s now been almost 17 months since we last had a federal budget, and the government’s sporadic spending updates and summer fiscal “snapshot” didn’t restore any kind of firm guidance for spending.

Freeland and have promised to be responsible and to lay out some kind of fiscal mini-budget later this fall. But we’re not sure yet what “responsible” means. And in the meantime, every cabinet minister is armed with two or three sentences from the throne speech, taking the words as a green light to forge ahead with their own agendas.

It’s time to prioritize for the medium term, starting with establishing what kind of fixed point the fiscal ship is pointed toward — not just in spite of the uncertainty, but because of it.

As Macklem said: “It is important, when faced with a crisis, to step beyond your normal way of working and really embrace the possibility that you’re going to have to do things differently. You’re going to have to do things that you’ve never done before.”

Heather Scoffield is the Star’s Ottawa bureau chief and an economics columnist. Follow her on Twitter:

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TTC rolls out new bus-only lanes. Here’s what you need to know

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

TTC bus riders finally have a lane of their own.

The first bus-only lanes installed under Toronto’s are now up and running on Morningside Avenue in Scarborough, part of a wider installation on the that should be complete next month.

Reserved lanes for buses are common in other cities, but Toronto has historically been reluctant to embrace them. That changed this summer when , with proponents arguing that improving bus service would reduce crowding on TTC vehicles and help limit the spread of COVID-19.

Ahead of the bus lanes’ official inauguration on Oct. 11, here’s what you need to know about the latest addition to Toronto’s transit network.

Where are the new lanes?

The lanes are being installed on an 8.5-kilometre corridor between Brimley Road and the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus, via Eglinton East, Kingston Road, and Morningside Avenue. They will eventually be extended from Brimley Road to Kennedy station once the Scarborough subway extension is complete.

The city and TTC plan to install bus lanes on at least four more corridors, starting with Jane Street, between Eglinton Avenue and Steeles Avenue next year. Lanes on Dufferin Street, Steeles Avenue West, and Finch Avenue East would come later.

Bus routes on these corridors serve lower-income communities in Toronto’s inner suburbs where transit ridership has remained high during the pandemic as a result of employees in essential sectors like health care, manufacturing and food distribution relying on the TTC to get to work. Some of the neighbourhoods have also been hardest hit by COVID-19.

“We need to support communities in the suburbs of Toronto who really do rely on surface transit to get around,” said Coun. Brad Bradford (Ward 19, Beaches-East York), who sits on the TTC board and advocated for the new lanes.

The Eglinton lanes are expected to cost almost $8 million, and are being installed as permanent infrastructure, not a pilot project.

How will the lanes affect bus service?

Prior to COVID, four bus routes operating on the Eglinton corridor carried about 47,000 people per weekday. Crowded buses were frequently stuck in a sea of single-occupancy private cars, which experts say is an inefficient use of road space.

The TTC projects that by giving buses their own lanes, the Eglinton East project will reduce travel times on local and express routes by 16.5 and 6.5 per cent respectively. For example, riders on the 905 Eglinton East Express would save 4 to 5 minutes on a trip from Kennedy station to UTSC.

The lanes should also help alleviate crowding by ensuring buses operate at regularly spaced intervals. The goal is to “get to more evenly distributed crowding” so that a packed bus isn’t quickly followed by a half-empty one, said TTC senior planner Eric Chu.

The TTC doesn’t plan to add service to routes operating in the bus lanes. Instead, the agency hopes the lanes will allow it to operate the same number of bus trips per hour using fewer vehicles.

As a result, the city expects the lanes to generate $2.5 million in annual savings for the TTC. According to Chu, that will allow the agency to reintroduce express bus routes that were as ridership plummeted.

Why is the TTC removing stops?

The TTC plans to “consolidate,” or remove, 24 of the 69 stops along the Eglinton corridor. Transit agency officials say removing some less busy stops is necessary to allow buses to move quickly through the new lanes. But with fewer stops people will have to walk farther to catch a bus, and transit “could become less accessible for some riders,” warned Shelagh Pizey-Allen, director of the TTCriders advocacy group.

Chu said the TTC takes those concerns seriously, and the agency is consulting on the stop-removal plan. But he said there are always tradeoffs when the TTC changes its service. “What we try to achieve is the balance that overall more people will benefit from these changes than people that are inconvenienced,” he said.

How were the lanes designed?

As of Friday, the section of bus lanes on Morningside between Kingston Road and UTSC that are already operational were marked with signage and eye-catching red pavement treatment. Diamond and “bus only” pavement markings, as well as RapidTO pole banners, are being added.

Striped red pavement treatment designates sections of the lanes where drivers are allowed to enter in order to access driveways or make right turns.

The design is based on provincial and national standards, and doesn’t currently include physical barriers to separate the bus lanes and regular traffic. That means it will be up to car drivers to pay attention and obey the rules. The penalty for improperly driving in a bus lane is a $110 fine and three demerit points.

Allan Abrogena, project lead with the Toronto’s transportation department, said the city is open to tweaking the design if necessary, but its priority was to get the project operational. “We want to get this rolling first,” he said.

On Friday, compliance was spotty, and a minority of drivers consistently occupied the bus lanes on Morningside. The city and TTC are planning an education and enforcement campaign to alert drivers to the changes.

“It’s not something we can just roll out and expect people to figure it out on their own,” said Bradford.

Ben Spurr is a Toronto-based reporter covering transportation. Reach him by email at or follow him on Twitter: @BenSpurr

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Federal government investing $13 million in GTA health tech, promising about 500 jobs

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The federal government is investing more than $13 million in four organizations in the Greater Toronto Area to help boost the region’s health technology sector.

The government hopes this will help companies come up with innovative technological solutions to the pandemic while also creating nearly 500 jobs in the region. The money is being invested through FedDev Ontario, a regional development agency for southern Ontario.

The common thread among the four organizations is their focus on using cutting-edge technology to develop health-care solutions.

The announcement was made Friday morning in a digital press conference by Mélanie Joly, minister of economic development.

“Supporting made-in-Canada health solutions is critical to solving the challenges we are facing today, while helping our economy recover,” said Joly, who is also the minister responsible for FedDev, in a news release.

“These investments from FedDev Ontario will help some of our most promising health companies advance their innovative technologies, while creating good jobs for Canadians and helping Canada stay at the forefront of health-care innovation as we work to build back better and stronger.”

Nearly half of the new money ($6.5 million) will go toward the Toronto Innovation Acceleration Partners, an organization composed of three universities, nine teaching hospitals and two research institutes. They will use the money to advance different health science technologies. The goal is to take ideas that are in the early stage and provide an avenue for them to be developed for the market.

The government says this investment will create 400 highly skilled jobs and support at least six companies to become anchor firms in the southern Ontario life sciences sector.

Mindbeacon Holdings, a company that delivers digital health care and therapy, will receive a $4 million repayable contribution. The government says it chose this company based on Canadians increasingly embracing digital health care and therapy due to the pandemic.

Cyclica, an artificial technology business looking at the process of discovering drugs and how that can be done more effectively, will receive a $2 million repayable contribution. They will use this money to commercialize a new drug design tool to help scientists develop, screen and personalize medicines for patients.

Finally, Healthism Systems, also known as Input Health, will receive a $900,000 repayable contribution. The company offers a cloud-based suite of software products to enhance patient engagement, co-ordination of care and health data analytics.

Healthism Systems expects the investment to create 20 highly skilled positions in Toronto.

The government says it chose these companies because they’re some of the region’s most promising and the pandemic has shown a need to leverage technology and invest in innovative and novel health-care solutions.

The money is also aimed at helping to boost the economy as it faces continued challenges due to the pandemic.

Correction – Oct. 9, 2020: This article was edited from a previous version that misidentified the day the announcement was made. In fact, it was made on Friday.

Omar Mosleh is an Edmonton-based reporter for the Star. Follow him on Twitter:

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‘Unacceptable’: Union claims management didn’t do enough to prevent second outbreak at Simcoe Manor in Beeton

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The union that represents healthcare workers at Simcoe Manor in Beeton is accusing management of not doing enough to prevent the COVID-19 outbreak at the facility that has led to nearly 70 infections and nine deaths since it began on Oct. 2.

Sharlene Stewart, union president for SEIU Healthcare, which represents nearly 160 workers at the home, claims the County of Simcoe didn’t take proper precautions after a resident was hospitalized on Sept. 27.

“If this resident had enough symptoms to be taken to the hospital, I’m sure he was presumed to possibly be infected with the virus,” she said.

But according to Jane Sinclair, the general manager of health and emergency services for the County of Simcoe, which manages the 126-bed facility, the resident who was hospitalized on Sept. 27 was not presenting COVID-19 symptoms, and was released back to the home after he was assessed at the hospital.

While he was given a COVID-19 test that day, she said the hospital determined at the time his condition was not COVID-19 related.

“It was a non-COVID related diagnosis, so we took the appropriate steps based on the medical information we had at the time,” she said.

Sinclair said management was informed about his positive test result after the outbreak had already been declared on Oct. 2, which happened after another resident also tested positive.

The resident died from the virus on Oct. 3.

Stewart also lashed out at management for how the situation was communicated to staff, noting many found out on social media.

Sinclair said the home has “stringent processes” for how it shares the personal health information of its residents.

She said anyone who is in the circle of care, the staff members who are directly involved in caring for the person, were regularly advised about his condition, including the assessment that was done in hospital.

“We followed all of our normal communication processes to ensure that circle was updated and informed,” she said.

Sinclair said there has been even more communication between staff and families since the outbreak began, including weekly virtual town halls and daily huddles with staff.

“We are really focusing on communication with our staff because we know how important it is,” she said.

Stewart said there was also a problem regarding access to personal protective equipment (PPE), noting a staff member had to break into the storage area.

Sinclair confirmed that a nurse encountered a faulty lock, resulting in a member of the maintenance team having to break it open. But she said there have been no other issues with staff being able to access PPE.

Sinclair said the province has directed all homes to keep PPE secured and to keep close tabs on the gear to ensure it being used appropriately and an adequate supply is kept on hand.

The home has been under the management of Royal Victoria Hospital since the province ordered a temporary management order on Oct. 12.

Stewart was also concerned with outside agency workers coming to work in the home.

Sinclair said the county was forced to get help from other companies, especially as more staffers became infected, to ensure they maintain baseline staffing levels and quality of care for residents.

But she said all contractors have to sign a contract to confirm they are not working at other facilities.

Sinclair said county staff who work in other departments have also been redeployed to the home to assist, and all county employees are only allowed to work at a single location.

Stewart said it’s “unacceptable” an outbreak like this was able to happen, but she places much of the blame on the provincial government.

She questions why more wasn’t done to prepare for the second wave in the summer when the number of cases dropped.

“Simcoe Manor is an indication that we haven’t done better,” she said.

This echoes statements that were made in a recent inquiry by doctors from the non-profit Ontario Long-Term Care Clinicians, about how the province ignored long-term care homes as it prepared hospitals for the second wave.

Earlier this month, the Ontario Health Coalition held protests to demand the Ford government take action to address what it calls the “critical shortage” of staffing and care in long-term care homes.

As part of its fall preparedness plan, the province said it would make $540 million in long-term care investments, with portions of the funding going towards enhanced infection prevention and control, and to address the issue of adequate staffing.

“We are working in partnership across government and doing everything we can to protect Ontarians from COVID-19,” said Dr. Merrilee Fullerton, Minister of Long-Term Care, in a statement. “We have made tremendous progress to fortify our long-term care homes, so they have the physical and human resources they need to ensure the safety and well-being of all residents and staff.”

But Natalie Mehra, executive director of the coalition, described these investments as “piecemeal” and “inadequate.”

As of Oct. 26, there were 86 active outbreaks reported in LTC homes throughout Ontario and 1,921 resident deaths.

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How to avoid falling prey to email phishing scams

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

According to research from security awareness training platform KnowBe4, referring to COVID-19 and payroll matters are more likely than any other to ensnare users in phishing attacks right now. 

These phishing emails — as well as others claiming to be from social media platforms, banking institutions and other trusted sources — allow cybercriminals to gain access to unsuspecting users’ computers or steal personal data, such as passwords or credit card information. They often claim the user needs to update an account or confirm personal information or include links that, when clicked, open a computer up to malware. 

Phishing attacks can lead to financial loss for victims and put their private information at risk. To avoid becoming a victim, follow the advice of cybersecurity experts.

In a staff at Atlas VPN, a VPN proxy service, said users should watch for the following red flags in phishing emails: 

• Urgent call to action or threats: Emails that create a false sense of urgency by pressuring users to immediately click a link or open an attachment are suspicious, especially if they promise a reward or threaten a penalty.

• Dubious links: Check if the link provided in the email is safe to click on by hovering the cursor over the link — this should reveal the real web address you will be directed to after clicking the link. Because the text in emailed hyperlinks can be disguised to appear trustworthy, never open a link until you’ve checked to see where it actually goes. 

• Spelling and grammar mistakes: Obvious spelling or grammatical errors are the telltale signature of scammers. Professional companies usually take steps to ensure clients receive polished and professionally written content.

• Mismatched or misspelled email domains: If the email claims to be from one company but is sent from a domain that doesn’t match the company’s name, it’s likely a phishing email. You can look for the domain after the “@” in an email address. For example, a scammer might claim to write on behalf of Facebook while using a Yahoo.com or Gmail.com email address. Also, watch out for misspellings in the domain name.

Alan Regnier is a cyber security and IT consultant and owner of DNA Systems, a computer repair company in Toronto. He warns dangerous hyperlinks that open a computer up to attack can also be hidden in unexpected places in emails, including in text that doesn’t appear to be a link. 

“Even images themselves have embedded links,” he said, adding that users should avoid clicking on anything in a suspicious email.

If you do receive a suspicious email, for example one claiming to be from the Canada Revenue Agency, Regnier said to contact the organization named in the email directly using their official contact information – not the number or email address listed in the email – to confirm whether they sent the email. 

“I’ve spoken to the Canada Revenue Agency about this, and the best thing people can do if they receive a suspicious call or email is to ignore it and reach out to CRA directly,” he said. “And always make sure it’s on a secure network or secure website.”

Finally, Regnier said anyone who opens a suspicious link in an email should shut their computer off immediately and contact a trusted IT company. 

“All it takes is one click,” he said. 

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Barrie suspect broke finger on tree while trying to flee, SIU rules

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Barrie police officers were not at fault when a 36-year-old man broke a finger while trying to flee, Ontario’s police watchdog has ruled.

The suspect broke his finger when his hand struck a tree branch while climbing over a fence, as he tried to escape arrest on Sept. 20, Special Investigations Unit (SIU) director Joseph Martino said in a media release.

Officers went to a Chaucer Crescent home to arrest the man because he had allegedly breached the terms of his court-ordered release.

“It is apparent that the man is alone responsible for his injury. Aside from being the impetus for the man’s flight, there is no suggestion of any conceivable criminality by the officers in relation to his self-inflicted injury,” Martino said.

The SIU is called into investigate any time someone is seriously injured during an encounter with police.

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‘Ontario is at a breaking point:’ COVID-19 impacts being felt beyond the lockdown areas of Toronto and Peel

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The impacts of are radiating out further from the lockdown zones of Toronto and Peel as the province marked a sixth straight day with new cases above 1,700 and 35 deaths, the highest in a week.

Hospitals in Kitchener, Cambridge and Windsor are among those feeling the pinch of a growing pandemic that has already curbed non-emergency surgeries in parts of the GTA.

Health Minister Christine Elliott said parts of the province could see more restrictions imposed on them Friday after the latest statistics are re-evaluated by Ontario’s chief medical officer Dr. David Williams.

“Dr. Williams is speaking with the medical officers of health in several other areas to obtain their views about whether…they think they should be moved up from orange to red or into lockdown,” she told reporters Wednesday in a reference to the province’s five-tier, colour-coded framework.

Criteria include the weekly rate of cases per 100,000 people, the number of outbreaks, strain on hospital intensive care unit capacity and the percentage of people testing positive, along with a health unit’s ability to keep up with contact tracing.

York Region, Durham, Halton, Hamilton, Waterloo and Windsor-Essex are now in the red zone, one step short of lockdown.

In Kitchener, Grand River Hospital said it has temporarily paused non-urgent elective surgeries and has cut down to two cardiac surgeries a week.

“We are currently at full capacity in ICU (intensive care unit) and are experiencing a surge in COVID and non-COVID critical-care patients,” the hospital said in a statement as the surrounding Waterloo public health unit reported 103 new infections.

Waterloo MPP Catherine Fife called on Premier government to provide “immediate and urgent investments” for hospitals.

“Ontario is at a breaking point…things are only going to get worse,” the New Democrat said in the legislature’s daily question period.

Elliott maintained “Ontario is not in a crisis right now” and said it is doing better than Alberta and Manitoba which have case rates four and six times higher, with Alberta “doubling up” patients in intensive care rooms.

“We are flattening this curve,” Elliott said.

Figures from her own ministry show active cases are at an all-time high of 14,526 people testing positive in the last 14 days and the seven-day average of cases hitting a record of 1,720, up 50 people from Tuesday.

There were 1,723 new cases reported Wednesday, up slightly from 1,707 the previous day.

Elliott later acknowledged Ontario has “plateaued at a very high level but what we want to do is keep it there, but move it down.”

She came under fire from opposition parties for comparing Ontario to worse-off provinces out west instead of better-off Atlantic Provinces where cases are low because of a restrictive bubble formed there earlier this year.

“Stop playing defence,” said Liberal House Leader John Fraser. “It’s not a valid argument. We need to be better able to manage this.”

The health unit in Windsor-Essex, which had another 60 cases and entered the red or “control” zone on Monday, said it is having trouble keeping up and is battling 18 outbreaks, including two of Ontario’s six current school closures. Hospitals have put strict limits on visitors.

“Every outbreak that we report, every case, is a further stretch of our resources,” said chief executive Theresa Marentette, noting that tracing and managing cases is becoming increasingly difficult.

“We need help and we need it now,” added New Democrat MPP Percy Hatfield (Windsor-Tecumseh), warning of a “looming collapse.”

Elliott said she is aware of the “considerable concern regarding public health resources” in Windsor-Essex and has provided 24 more contact tracing staff to help get case growth “more under control.”

“If more resources are needed for that, we will certainly provide them,” she pledged.

Green Leader Mike Schreiner said areas outside Toronto clearly need more help from the province to stem the tide of the pandemic until a vaccine arrives and is widely distributed.

“The virus can get out of control. The government needs to deploy resources immediately to those areas that need them.”

Most cases remain in the GTA, with Toronto at 410 new infections, Peel with 500, York 196, Durham at 124 and Halton with 45. Hamilton had 74.

Ontario has had 3,698 deaths from COVID-19 since the first fatality in March. Almost 120,000 people have tested positive for the virus, which first arrived in the province in January.

Rob Ferguson is a Toronto-based reporter covering Ontario politics for the Star. Follow him on Twitter:

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‘The safer my children will be’: Collingwood woman makes more than 5,000 masks during COVID-19 pandemic

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Robin Heald learned how to sew in home economics class, and the skill came in handy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

With cases rising earlier this year, the Collingwood woman sprung into action and started making masks.

She was part of a contingent of volunteers who made masks for the community, as well as the local nursing and retirement homes.

Heald, who spent many years working in the non-profit sector, including a stint with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Georgian Triangle, was more than happy to help.

“There was a call on the internet for people who knew how to sew and all of those years of home-eco, they stuck,” she said. “I have sewn over the years, Halloween costumes, altered clothing and made the occasional piece myself. I thought, ‘I can make a mask.’”

Our #COVIDHEROES series shines the spotlight on 21 people in Simcoe County who helped us endure this pandemic.

Read about all of our heroes here –

Heald made masks and hung them on a tree outside her home, allowing the community to take what they needed.

She felt it was important to keep the community safe and said that if people had a proper mask to wear to work or the grocery store, everyone would benefit.

“I think it makes me feel better – we’re all in this together and the more I make the community safe, the safer my children will be,” she said.

She tried to make the best masks possible, and even made some for those who are hard of hearing and have hearing aids.

Heald said she received donations from local residents at her door and was also able to use materials supplied the Rotary Club, stored at a shed at the Collingwood Youth Centre.

“You could pop over and get some pipe cleaners or fabric,” she said. 

Her neighbours helped spread the word and during the pandemic, she made more than 5,000 masks for the community.

She also supplied the masks for the giving tree at Habitat for Humanity.

“They have them for a donation to Habitat for Humanity, which is wonderful,” she said. “(I) kept myself busy … doing the best that I can to stay safe and healthy.”

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New app will help OPP pinpoint your location

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The OPP is going to start using a new app to locate where you’re calling from in an emergency.

The will help staff in the provincial communications centre tag your co-ordinates if you’re lost in a forest or waterway, or need assistance in a collision.

The app labels every three squared metres with an unique three-word location tag. Using that information, the call taker can use that to direct officers to your precise location.

If you don’t already have the what3words app downloaded on your mobile device, a link can be provided when you call for help. If you already have the app downloaded on your device, it works without internet or data.

“The what3words app offers precise location information when a caller cannot describe, or does not know, where they are,” Acting OPP Chief Karen Meyer said. “This exciting technology may help save precious time in an emergency and enable a more rapid front-line response.”


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‘We would be in serious trouble’: Federal funding has helped Collingwood businesses stay afloat during COVID-19 pandemic

Aug 6, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Guy Laporte and Craig Ashton are owners of the Craigleith Manor Bed and Breakfast.

For more than five years, they’ve aimed to make it a popular destination for tourists.

“We’re ranked as one of the top B&Bs in Canada,” Laporte said. “This makes this B&B a really busy place. It’s been absolutely fabulous for the last five-and-a-half years, until COVID smacked us.”

They closed their doors from March until July but when they reopened, they saw sales drop by 40 per cent. While August, September and October were on the upswing, rising COVID-19 cases have once again led to a downturn in business.

“We’re back now to no guests at all and it’s primarily because of what’s going on in Toronto,” Laporte said. 

It’s one of the reasons, Laporte and Ashton are thankful for the federal government’s Regional Relief and Recovery Fund, which provides businesses with loans to keep them afloat.

“Like any small business that has no revenue from sales, you still have ongoing expenses,” Laporte said. “There’s no doubt, we would be in serious trouble. This is a small business that went into debt further so that we could stay alive. We’re just happy to have the lifeline.”

Gillian Fairley is general manager of the Centre for Business and Economic Development in Collingwood, which administers the program.

She said her office has helped more than 29 businesses secure much-needed funding.

“It was critical,” she said. “When they first launched the program, we were inundated with applications. It was very much needed, it’s still needed now.”

While some of the programs have specific requirements, Fairley said her office is able to help corporations and main street businesses.

“It’s really meant to address the gaps in funding for businesses who can’t access other programs,” she said. 

Black Bellows Brewing Company opened its brewery and restaurant in the heart of downtown Collingwood in January, just a few months before the pandemic. 

“The pandemic put a huge financial strain on the company when it hit in March,” said Bryn Davies, owner of Black Bellows. “The (funding) was instrumental in getting the company back on its feet, hiring back staff that we were forced to lay off when the pandemic hit, and pivoting the business in new directions.”

Laporte said they are a small boutique operation, who can have up to six guests. He is hopeful that ski season is somewhat normal but said the funding will ““allow us to stay here, to keep this business open, even with smaller numbers of guests, until the economy comes back up.”

Story behind the story: Many businesses in the tourist industry have struggled since the pandemic and we wanted to find out how they’ve been able to stay afloat and whether relief funding has helped.