Some municipal services in the Halifax area will be affected by the National Day of Mourning on Sept. 19 to honour Queen Elizabeth II.
In a release Wednesday, the municipality said the customer service centres which provide in-person access to municipal services and payments at Alderney Gate, Bayers Road and Musquodoboit Harbour will be closed on Sept. 19, and will reopen for regular business hours the next day.
The 311 contact centre will be open regular hours, from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m.
Halifax Transit will also run on its normal weekday schedule, however, due to crew availability, the Alderney Ferry service will continue to be reduced to 30-minute service from 2 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., until further notice.
As well, municipal on-street paid parking spots will be free that day.
Municipal solid waste collection will continue as normal on Monday. Residents are asked to place materials curbside by 7 a.m. on collection day.
The Otter Lake Waste Management Facility, the Halifax recycling facility and municipal composting facilities will be open on Monday as well.
The municipality also said the Household Special Waste Depot on Horseshoe Lake Drive will be open on Saturday, Sept. 17, and a mobile Household Special Waste event will be held on Saturday, Sept. 24 at Horizon Community School in Eastern Passage.
The Emera Oval will remain open on Monday, though it has transitioned to fall hours, with equipment lending open from noon until 8 p.m., weather permitting.
The Sackville Sports Stadium will also be open for public swims and skates, as well as for rentals and those using the fitness centre. However, all drop-in and registered programs will be cancelled Monday.
The release said many other municipally-operated recreational facilities will be closed on Monday, and residents are advised to call ahead to their respective facilities for operating hours and program information.
Commemorative events
Municipal flags will remain at half-mast until Monday. As well, the front gate of the Halifax Public Gardens will be lit in royal blue in honour of the queen until Monday.
“Royal blue lights will also be shining on Halifax City Hall until the evening of Sunday, Sept. 18,” the release said.
A provincial multi-faith memorial service will be held at the Cathedral Church of All Saints Monday at 2 p.m. It will be open to the public and guests are asked to be seated by 1:30 p.m.
The service will also be live streamed on Facebook and YouTube.
According a release from the Nova Scotia Tuesday, provincial government offices, public schools and regulated child-care facilities will be closed on Monday, while health-care services, appointments and procedures will remain operational.
Since it is designated a federal holiday, it will be a holiday for federal government employees, but it will not automatically apply to workers in federally regulated industries such as banks and airlines.
The province is leaving it up to individual businesses to decide if they want to close or not.