City of Waterloo extends municipal program and facility cancellations to June 30, 2020

The City of Waterloo, in collaboration with local municipalities, have agreed to cancel all spring indoor and outdoor municipal recreation programs throughout the region up to and including June 30, 2020. 

In addition to these program cancellations, all municipal cultural, recreational and leisure facilities in local municipalities including City of Waterloo Museum, Waterloo Public Library, recreation facilities, community centres, arenas, pools and sports fields will remain closed through to June 30, 2020. 

This decision is designed to help flatten the curve by helping to break the chain of transmission of COVID-19 and to provide certainty to potential registrants for the spring season. This announcement is further to the media release issued April 13, 2020 regarding the postponement/cancellation of all large events on municipal property up to and including June 30, 2020. 

As a result of these extended facility closures, any third-party programs, events or activities scheduled to take place in these facilities will need to be postponed or cancelled. We have been working with users of our facilities, including sports groups, to make these decisions on a collaborative basis. We anticipate that, by taking this decision today, volunteer program organizers will have greater certainty as they plan for the upcoming season.  

We will continually review this decision, in conjunction with direction from the province and guidance from the Region of Waterloo’s Acting Medical Officer of Health to determine if we can open earlier or if a further extension is required. We are hopeful that circumstances will improve such that an earlier opening will be possible for at least some of these facilities. 

At this time, summer camps scheduled to start after June 30 are still running. The region and area municipalities continue to monitor the situation and will re-evaluate if necessary. 

Media contact:

Tony Iavarone
Director of Communications
City of Waterloo
tony.iavarone@waterloo.ca