Coronavirus (COVID-19) response

Waterloo is currently under a provincial declaration of emergency and stay at home order. Visit Ontario.ca for a full list of restrictions.

Indoor municipal facilities are closed to the public. Parks, trails and outdoor facilities remain open with gathering size and capacity limits.

Full details below.

On this page

  1. City services under declaration of emergency
  2. Community support
  3. Business support
  4. Arts and culture support

Last updated Friday January 22 at 11:00 a.m. Translate this page.

City services under declaration of emergency

Waterloo is currently under a provincial declaration of emergency and stay at home order. Visit Ontario.ca for a full list of restrictions.

Essential municipal services continue

Essential services such as snow clearance, construction, water services and bylaw enforcement will continue. Call 519-886-2310 for customer service during this time.

Visit the building standards page to find out which projects qualify for building permits and inspections at this time.

Parks, trails and outdoor facilities open with restrictions

Parks, trails and playgrounds are open regular hours, subject to physical distancing and a gathering size limit of 5.

Outdoor rinks are open with a total capacity of 10 people on the ice at time.

Cemeteries, funeral services and the crematorium remain open with restrictions.

New trails serviced

To help people stay active, three new trails have been opened at Mount Hope Cemetery, Parkview Cemetery, and Clair Creek Trail.

City hall closed

City hall is closed for in-person services. Service changes include:

  • building standards and planning approvals available online or by phone only
  • payments for taxes and water bills available by mail, drop box or online only
  • payments for parking tickets by mail, drop box or online only

Recreation centres and museum closed with exceptions

All rec centres and the City of Waterloo Museum will be closed to the public, with the following exceptions:

  • The Adult Recreation Centre will be open daily for washroom use, 12:00 to 4:00 p.m.
  • Waterloo Sports Medicine at RIM Park will remain open

In-person programs cancelled, virtual programs running

All in-person recreation programs are cancelled until further notice. Virtual programming is running as per usual.

Registration is open for in-person swim programs starting on February 22.

Refund process for cancelled rec programs

  1. Customers who paid by credit card will automatically have a refund issued back to that credit card. A receipt will be emailed to each customer.
  2. Customers who paid by cash, cheque or debit will have a credit applied to their account. A receipt will be emailed to each customer. Those paying with fee assistance will have their accounts credited accordingly.
  3. If you would rather a cheque than account credit, contact activewaterloo@waterloo.ca. Cheques will only be issued for amounts of $25 or more. 

Community support

For a list of local community supports, visit the Region of Waterloo's community support webpage. This includes food delivery, and public spaces open for warming or washroom use.

Waterloo at Home

City staff and community partners have come together to create Waterloo At Home - a curation of helpful tips and resources for residents to make the best of their time at home. 

Using Engage Waterloo as the platform, Waterloo At Home is a one-stop-shop for ideas, resources and stories aimed at keeping residents active, connected and creative at home. 

In This Together

It has been a tough year Waterloo, but we have shown our strength and come together as a community. 

It is important to be kind to yourself and to your community. Show your support by displaying one of our signs in your window.

Together we have made a difference in the fight against COVID-19.

Here is how you can participate:

  • print and display signs
  • take a photo of yourself with your sign
  • tweet using the hashtag #BeKindWR
  • tag @citywaterloo @RegionWaterloo and organizations like @ROWPublicHealth, local hospitals or school boards

Download and print your own In This Together poster/sign

Download and print your own In This Together colouring page.

City of Waterloo neighbourhood newsletter

We're all neighbours. Now more than ever, sharing information and having points of connection is important.

We publish a weekly email newsletter with information to help you stay informed and socially connected while physically distancing.

View current edition

Subscribe

Past editions

To contact the neighbourhoods team during this time, email neighbourhoods@waterloo.ca

Business support

Our economic development office is working with regional partners to monitor and assess developments related to COVID-19 and their impact on businesses in the City of Waterloo.

We have put together a series of resources to help during this time. For questions or additions/changes to the list, please contact ecdev@waterloo.ca or follow us on Twitter or LinkedIn.

The Waterloo Region Small Business Centre and Uptown Business Improvement Area also have helpful resources for local businesses.

To stay up to date on programs and business stories, sign up for the Smart Business Newsletter.

Subscribe

Community improvement plan survey

The business community has expressed a need for assistance to help offset the costs incurred due to the pandemic. As a result, the economic development office has proposed a Community Improvement Plan (CIP) to offer small to medium sized businesses a grant of up to $1,500 to help businesses recover and grow.

Before we launch the program, we have created a short survey and invite you to provide feedback so we can best meet the needs of small businesses. Please take our survey posted on EngageWaterloo.

Restaurant, cafes and food shops in Waterloo open during COVID-19

If you're looking for restaurants, cafes or food shops to service you during the temporary closures in Waterloo, this list has everything that is open.

If you are a food service business and would like to be added to this list, please apply below.

Apply to be on map

Retail businesses open during COVID-19

If you're looking for clothing and accessory stores, health and personal care, sporting goods and hobbies, electronics, gardening supplies or general merchandise to service you during the temporary closures in Waterloo, this list has everything that is open.

View the full retail map

If you are a retail service business and would like to be added to this list, please apply below.

Apply to be on map

Resources for operating your business
Call for suppliers to help during COVID-19
Government of Canada resources and programs

As programs are changing regularly, please check Canada’s Program for managing your Business during COVID-19 for the most up to date information.

Helping business avoid layoffs and rehiring
Helping businesses access credit and funds
Other organizations offering support

Other organizations offering support

Province of Ontario

Other organizations offering support

Local businesses helping businesses

  • Shopify: get a retail business online quickly with a three-month trial
  • Vidyard: free video messaging conferencing tools
  • Accelerator Centre: free mentoring workshops across Canada
  • Blackberry: secure connectivity tools free trial and Resource kits on returning to work and crisis communications

Arts and culture support

The city's arts and culture team has put together a series of resources to help during this time.

For further updates, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Advocacy groups with resources
Grants and financial support
Learning resources