Vaughan's abrupt closure then reopening of ice rinks amplifies equity debate

Is COVID-19 widening the disparity between what big businesses can do and what smaller ones cannot do?

Yorkregion.com
Feb. 1, 2021
Dina Al-Shibeeb

After Thornhill MPP Gila Martow tweeted that Vaughan residents “were loud and clear” following the decision to reopen ice ranks, toboggan and dog parks, a Twitter user wrote back to her, “Please your government still has small retail stores closed while Costco is wide open.”

While Vaughan councillors on Tuesday, Jan. 26, approved a motion to reopen ice rinks, toboggan and dog parks after city staff’s decision to shut them down due to crowds and people not adhering to rules amid the pandemic, this has led to a debate on equity.

“To point the finger at families, kids, small retail, restaurants is infuriating,” Tracey Kent, an outspoken Kleinburg resident, told the Vaughan Citizen.

For Kent, there are “large non-essential manufacturing/distribution and developers offices” that are still “open at full capacity” in Vaughan, and “there’s no mobile testing centres outside these large employment centres” yet children were stopped from ice skating or tobogganing.

“After seeing those parking lots full, employees mingling outside with no masks, how do we even have a gauge on the viral spread?” she added, “Premier Ford didn’t do a lockdown for these businesses. He doesn’t want anyone to see those pictures. He doesn’t want these places closed. It is sheer hypocrisy.”

When inquiring about any violations, the City of Vaughan said since Nov. 27, Vaughan’s bylaw and compliance, licensing and permit services department has responded to 6,204 COVID-19-related calls.

“Ninety-one charges have been issued against businesses in Vaughan and three charges have been issued to individuals,” it added.

Some Vaughan citizens often point to how smaller businesses are suffering, yet big box stores like Costco and Walmart are racking up profits.

When asking Coun. Rosanna DeFrancesca about the equity issue and what can the city do to address this, she said: “It's all provincially mandated.”

“Yes, people think that there’s a huge inequity, especially when you're telling them over the holidays that they can't see their family and their friends, and yet, these big box stores -- and a lot of their friends are small business owners in the community -- don’t forget that -- and so they get quite upset when they see some places like Costco that has no control. No one is watching how many people are in the store; they’re on top of each other” DeFrancesca said.

She added: “And they get very frustrated as they did with the skating rinks.”

The explanation being is that the small businesses and services that are permitted to stay open are “usually the regulated industries like dental or massage therapists. They're regulated by your own associations.”

"I think the government feels a little bit more secure due to their professional designations, whereas hairdressers are not," she said. But to their defence, DeFrancesca, added, “And you'd be surprised how small businesses are so careful, because they want to stay open, they need to stay open. And so they're much more diligent than the big box stores.”

In order to be more equitable, the province must mandate that these big box stores sell only essential goods, and keep capacity no more than 30 per cent or 40 per cent, DeFrancesca explained.

“And to make sure people are sanitizing their hands on their way in, and that is what it was back in March and April. Why is it that they're not doing that now?”

As the dilemma on equity lingers, Coun. Alan Shefman, who was behind the motion to reopen ice rinks and toboggan hills, told Vaughan city manager James Harnum on Jan. 26: "I think you achieved what we all wanted."

"This little outlet may help people ... an important achievement for all," Shefman said, in reference to mental health, yet another thorny challenge people have to deal with during this pandemic.