City concerned about gatherings to see cherry blossoms at High Park

Torontosun.com
April 6, 2020
Kevin Connor

There are concerns about people heading to High Park to see the cherry blossoms in a few weeks.

The city may close the park to traffic to help avoid gatherings of five or more.

Break the rules and you will face a fine of $1,000. Toronto police haven’t tallied how many of these tickets have been issued.

The city hasn’t closed but all park amenities -- playgrounds, parking lots, etc. -- are off-limits.

People have to keep their distance from others in parks and public squares.

Mayor John Tory stressed Sunday that health concerns are his priority.

“I’m not actually trying to make myself unpopular, but I ask you, even on this beautiful Sunday -- 12C, sunny -- please stay home,” Tory said on social media. “That’s because we are going to break the back of the virus if we do this. If we stop gathering in crowds, if we keep our distance from one another.”

Tory urged everyone to stay home and to maintain physical distancing if people find it necessary to go outdoors.

“We did well on Saturday,” added Tory. “We really improved on how we are doing as a city. Let’s really show COVID-19 what we are made of today.”