Coronavirus: a list of what’s impacted by COVID-19 in Guelph

The novel coronavirus pandemic is causing an impact across the board in Guelph despite no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the city.

Public health officials say the risk of infection is considered low, but many are still taking extra precautions.

The City of Guelph has not declared an emergency but said it is using emergency response procedures and the emergency management team is working closely with public health officials.

Here’s a list of what’s being impacted around the Royal City:

Events

• City of Guelph is assessing options for upcoming Council meetings. All other public meetings or events scheduled at City facilities are cancelled until April 5.
• The Guelph Resilience Festival 2020,  scheduled to run from March 21 to March 28, has been cancelled
• The eMERGE EcoMarket at Old Quebec Street Shoppes on March 21 has been postponed
• Food Drive for Onward Willow Neighbourhood Group from March 16 to 20 has been postponed
• Drayton Entertainment has cancelled all remaining performances through Sunday, May 3.
• The Guelph Tool Library will be closed March 16 to April 5
• Camps at Guelph recreation centres and museums are cancelled.
• The Guelph Farmers’ Market is closed until April 30
• Public Events at Guelph’s River Run Centre and Sleeman Centre have been cancelled
• The Kitchener Market will be open on Saturday but will then close indefinitely
• Kitchener’s Athletic Awards Banquet, scheduled for March 24, has been postponed.
• The Centre in the Square will be cancelling all shows until April 5.
• The KW Symphony is cancelling performances until April 5

Education

• All publicly funded schools will be closed between March 14 and April 5 and the Upper Grand District School Board has cancelled trips abroad during March break.
• Face-to-face classes at the University of Guelph have been cancelled for one week, starting March 16. They will resume on March 23, but in an alternative format delivery. The university and its buildings remain open.
  • College Royal scheduled for March 21-22 has been cancelled
  • Campus Day open house scheduled for March 29 has been cancelled
  • March Break campus tours for secondary school students have been cancelled
  • The Discover Vets School program has been postponed.
• Conestoga College will close most face-to-face classes starting March 16.
• Wilfrid Laurier University is discontinuing in-person instruction in all courses effective Monday, March 16 for the remainder of the winter term.
• The University of Waterloo is suspending all in-person course activity until the end of the term. Instructors are working on alternate ways to deliver remaining course works and exams.

Worshipping

• There will be no Friday congregations at the Muslim Society’s centre on Water Street until further notice.
• Worship services at Dublin Street United Church will be cancelled on March 15 and March 22.
• Waterloo Church of Christ has cancelled all public gatherings effective Sunday, March 15.
• Harcourt Memorial United Church will be closed from March 15 through March 31. All gatherings are cancelled, including internal and external meetings and events.
• Trinity United Church in Guelph has cancelled it’s worship service on March 15 and March 22
• All Anglican church services in Ontario have been cancelled until further notice.

Organizations

• The City of Guelph has closed all arenas, pools, recreation centres, libraries, and museums to the public until April 5.
• Guelph City Hall remains open. The public is asked to not visit if they are feeling unwell, or have travelled outside of Canada within the past 14 days. All other city administration offices are closed to the public.
• The Waste Resource Innovation Centre administration offices are closed to the public but the outdoor public drop off remains open.
• The Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington has cancelled all volunteer shifts until further notice and Free to Grow applications will only be processed online, email or over the phone until April 6.
• Shelldale Family Gateway is suspending all programs until April 5 or the re-opening of the school system. This includes the cancellation of all March Break programs, all Breakfast Club and all after school and evening programs put on by Shelldale Family Gateway.
• The Grand River Conservation Authority is closing all of its nature centres and cancelling March Break camps.
• All programs and events at Idea Exchange are cancelled, effective immediately, through April 5.
• The Guelph Legion has closed until March 21
• Wellington Terrace long term care facility in Fergus is closed to visitors and volunteers.
• The Elliott long term care facility is closed to the public.
• North End Harvest Market is closed until April 8.
• The Guelph-Wellington Seniors Association has cancelled all face-to-face programming.
• The Evergreen Senior Community Centre is closed to the public. All programs and events cancelled until April 30.
• Wellington County Library and Wellington County Museum and Archives are closed to the public until April 6.

Sports

• The Guelph Storm and Kitchener Rangers are not playing after the Canadian Hockey League paused its 2019-20 season.
• The University of Guelph athletics has cancelled several events, services and programs until April 5. More information can be found on its website.
• Guelph Minor Soccer has cancelled all activities related to its rep soccer programs
• The North Dumfries Sports Camp will not run its March Break Camp is Ayr next week.
• Guelph Minor Softball Association has suspended all house league clinics.  They have also suspended all rep practices for the Guelph Gators.
• The Guelph Curling Club is closed for the season.

Businesses

• Stone Road Mall has reduced its hours and suspended March Break activities and the rental of strollers, wheelchairs and walkers.
  • Monday to Friday: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Saturday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
  • Sunday: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• GoodLife Fitness has closed all of its locations in Canada
• The opening of the Mustang Drive-In on Jones Baseline has been delayed.

This is an evolving list and will be updated as more information becomes available. Please send any information about cancellation to GlobalGuelph@globalnews.ca

Concerned about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Health officials say the risk is very low for Canadians, but they caution against travel to affected areas (a list can be found here). If you do travel to these places, they recommend you self-monitor to see whether you develop symptoms and if you do, to contact public health authorities.

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing – very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. And if you get sick, stay at home.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.