Monday March 16, 2020 ~ LANGFORD
by Mary Brooke ~ West Shore Voice News
“It is in the best interest of public health and safety to close all recreation outlets in the City of Langford including Westhills YMCA/YWCA, all public libraries and other indoor public amenities.”
This statement has come from the City of Langford this morning at 11:15 am today Monday March 16, 2020.
“Closures should remain in effect for 30 days and be continually reviewed to determine if the closure should be extended,” said Langford Fire Chief Chris Aubrey who is the city’s Public Health and Safety Chair.
Meanwhile, the Greater Victoria Public Library (GVPL) itself has cancelled all scheduled library programs and events at all of its branches effective Tuesday, March 17. Visiting Library Services will also be cancelled until further notice, it was stated on the GVPL website today.
Today’s announcement follows the City of Langford’s proactive measure on March 14 to close both City Center Park and the North Langford Recreation Centre.
“While as of the issue of this release there remains to be no confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus in Langford, it is in the best public interest to take a preventative approach to this serious situation,” it was stated in the release.
“As a community we have the responsibility and opportunity to flatten the curve and get ahead of this situation. Taking a firm and proactive approach is the right thing to do.”
In addition to the above noted closures, the City has reduced Council meetings to once monthly (there is one today March 16 at 5:30 pm, then further meeting dates will be posted). As well, all Committee meetings have been suspended until further notice.
All of these efforts are fully endorsed by the City of Langford Public Health and Safety Committee.
In addition to these preventative measures, the City of Langford is following provincial recommendations in postponing any event where 250 people or more are present.
- With an abundance of caution, the City is discouraging any gatherings of 50 or more people (the closure of City Centre Park and the North Langford Recreation Centre are examples of that).
- Residents should consider not attending any small or medium sized public gatherings to limit the spread of the virus.
City of Langford Mayor, Council and Staff are confident that by acting swiftly and proactively it will limit the impact of this situation and will resume regular business as soon as possible.
=== Editor’s Note: We are awaiting details on whether this should also apply to restaurants and coffee shops.