NEWS RELEASE
TOWN OF WASAGA BEACH
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The Town of Wasaga Beach is reducing the number of beachfront area municipal parking spaces by 50 per cent effective immediately and by next Thursday will close the sand-covered portion of Beach Drive.
Council approved these actions during a special meeting today. They also asked Mayor Nina Bifolchi to write the OPP, asking for additional police resources to help enforce provincial orders dealing with congregating at Beach Area 1 and 2. Council also asked the mayor to write a letter to Ontario Parks, asking it to take steps to close its beaches.
These measures are in response to the overwhelming number of people attempting to access the beachfront in recent days and in the process ignoring physical distancing rules and putting public health at risk.
“The complete disregard for physical distancing at the beachfront on Canada Day and during the last two weekends in June was totally unacceptable,” Mayor Nina Bifolchi said. “People know what the rules are and yet they clearly ignored them all for the sake of a day at the beach. I was appalled by what I witnessed and we are taking steps today to control what we can.”
By reducing the number of available municipal parking spaces, and by closing the town owned sand-covered portion of Beach Drive, the municipality is sending a clear message that it will not put public health at risk.
“Beyond that sand-covered portion of Beach Drive is the beach itself and that is part of Wasaga Beach Provincial Park. The park is not within the control of the town but we are taking steps to manage what we can and that is why we are taking the action we have today. Residents concerned about what is happening in the park must reach out to park staff or Jeff Yurek, Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks,” Mayor Bifolchi said.
In recent days, the mayor has heard clearly from residents that they do not feel safe when beachfront crowding happens.
“Our community has worked so hard during the pandemic to follow the rules and our residents – rightly so – are worried these vast numbers of people descending on the beachfront put our town and our province at significant risk of a COVID-19 spike,” Mayor Bifolchi said.
Throughout the pandemic, the town has asked the Ontario Provincial Police to help enforce the emergency directives on social gatherings.
“Police simply are not going to the beachfront and enforcing the emergency orders despite requests for assistance from our municipal law enforcement officers. Our municipal law enforcement officers can only do so much on their own,” Mayor Bifolchi said.
In addition, the mayor noted the town has written Premier Doug Ford to raise concerns about the influx of people in the community, asking the Government of Ontario to work with the town on developing a plan to manage the situation, but no meaningful outcome has occurred.
“While I commend the province for its overall handling of the pandemic, they have left our community and other beachfront communities in the province to essentially fend for themselves during the reopening,” Mayor Bifolchi said. “There is no provincial strategy to deal with the people visiting these beach communities.”
The town finds itself in a precarious situation, the mayor added.
“Unlike Sauble Beach or Innisfil, we do not own the bulk of our beachfront,” she said. “The beach is part of Wasaga Beach Provincial Park and managed by Ontario Parks. As a result, we have no control over managing this asset during the pandemic or at any other time. This is often lost on people. We have tried through the pandemic to work with local park staff, but for several weeks they abandoned the park and were not available. And when they did return, despite our attempts to work with them on developing a plan to manage the thrust of visitors to our community there was no interest.”
The Government of Ontario has mismanaged Wasaga Beach Provincial Park during the reopening and it is frustrating for residents and visitors, Mayor Bifolchi said.
“This is a beach that initially, when it reopened, kept its public washrooms closed and did not reopen its parking, forcing visitors to seek out alternatives. It’s that kind of mixed messaging that is not helpful,” the mayor said. “In addition to this the park wardens have not enforced emergency orders.”
Mayor Bifolchi said it has not helped that Premier Ford and his government encouraged people to get outside and visit Ontario Parks land.
“This just drives people into regions of the province that aren’t equipped for an onslaught of visitors in the middle of a pandemic. The province provided free parking at Ontario Parks on Canada Day which only exacerbated the situation in communities like ours,” she said.
Throughout the pandemic, council has tried to find the right balance between the interests of residents, visitors, and businesses.
For example, in late May council closed several of its beachfront municipal parking lots to discourage visitors from accessing the area. Five privately owned lots remained open, as did two municipal lots for residential parking pass holders.
The town re-opened the lots on June 18 because the province allowed Wasaga Beach Provincial Park to reopen.
“We have a number of businesses in our community that depend on visitors and we empathize with their needs. Several of these businesses rent space in town-owned buildings at the beachfront. But public health must always be our top priority. To help support our entire business sector we have launched our ‘Support Local’ campaign and I once again encourage residents to buy local as much as they can,” Mayor Bifolchi said.
While the town is reducing its beachfront parking lot capacity, the Spruce Street lot will remain open for use by residential parking pass holders only.
Resources
Residents and visitors with concerns about operations at Wasaga Beach Provincial Park should contact the park here.
Residents and visitors can also write Jeff Yurek, Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks at: [email protected].
Contact Premier Doug Ford here.
Residential parking pass
Residents can obtain a parking pass for $28.25.
The pass is good for any of the designated municipal parking lots.
There is a limit of one pass per address but the pass is transferrable from vehicle to vehicle. Passes are available Monday to Friday, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., at town hall, 30 Lewis St.
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