The COVID-19 Street Rebalancing Guide is for decision-makers and practitioners alike. Drawing on case studies from around the world, it offers strategies and practical guidance on rebalancing streets through three phases of COVID-19 response—from immediate to longer-term—including pedestrian and bike lanes, curbside queuing areas, and temporary patios and parklets. This is a unique opportunity to spark projects with transformative value. Temporary measures can be deployed quickly to address long-standing gaps—demonstrating value, building support for permanent installations, and providing a foundation for more walkable, livable cities across Canada.

A restaurant in Dallas is coping with the pandemic by leveraging Better Block’s approach to adaptive urbanism. The Better Block crew had constructed several wooden market stalls that were going to be used for a pop-up outdoor market in the Allen project. Now, they’ve used them to turn Oddfellows into an actual outdoor market, stocking the shelves with the restaurant’s stock and selling neighbors staples that may be difficult to find at the stores that remain open.

This free program will allow restaurants and liquor-serving establishments to create temporary patios on streets, on-street parking spaces, or sidewalks either in front of or adjacent to their venues.To hasten the process, template patio drawings are being offered and a staff team has been dedicated to reviewing the applications. Permits will be issued within two business days for applications that meet requirements.

Called “CafeTO”, the city program is identifying sidewalk and right-of-way space, including “parklets,” adjacent to bars and restaurants that can be made available for outdoor dining with physical distancing to ensure minimal chance of virus infection. The normal patio approval process will be dramatically streamlined, city council will be asked to waive fees, and the Ontario government is agreeing to help quickly address any liquor licensing issues

Selecting a group of qualified and competent bidders will thus allow the city to be more agile in awarding professional service contracts by mutual agreement. In this way, boroughs and city departments as well as the Sociétés de développement commercial will be able to call on pre-qualified teams to design and implement measures that address their issues, such as modified routes and user mobility, safe boarding and disembarking of public transit users, waiting lines for businesses, outdoor sales and consumption areas, functional and technical pickup and delivery spaces, rest areas and street furniture (e.g., washrooms, benches, no-contact garbage receptacles). Given the experimental nature of the temporary development projects both currently underway and to come, it is important to make good use of a range or high-performance solutions that can be deployed throughout the city

With funding from the City, the organization will assist more than one hundred merchants in need with help adapting their establishments to comply with social distancing and health measures issued by public health authorities. The ASFQ will also produce a commercial adaptation guide, slated for release in June. Until October, a team of professionals will lend a hand by carrying out health audits and adaptations for small independent businesses in order to reduce the risks of spreading COVID-19.

The Portland Bureau of Transportation will allow local business owners to apply for permits so they can offer food and other services in the public right-of-way. This goes far beyond a simple sidewalk dining permit and is expected to fast-track a host of new possibilities like customer queuing zones in what used to be parking spaces and dining tables and barber chairs in streets and parking lots.

These posters are meant to be put up in downtown shops to communicate in a friendly way physical distancing rules, how many people allowed in a store at one time, and other changes that are in effect during COVID19 times.

The movement to take back Montreal’s streets for pedestrians during this time of social distancing is spreading rapidly across the city. From full-on car-free zones to family streets to superblocks, Montreal, like many cities around the world, is reimagining the use of public space during this pandemic at an unprecedented pace.

Rules around temporary patios, sidewalk cafes and outdoor retail expansions are relaxed to create more space for customers in alignment with Alberta Health Services (AHS) guidelines. Until the end of 2020, businesses have the option to expand patio or retail space by following a set of guidelines and signing a declaration form.

Grimsby’s Downtown Improvement Area (DIA) board – with support from the Town of Grimsby –is helping frontline staff. Every business in the DIA area will receive two face shields – with an option to acquire more – to help with employee and customer safety. These shields were made by a local retooled business

This grant will support the purchase of required safety equipment which must be installed prior to re-opening. Businesses can apply to receive a maximum of $500. Under the program, only commercial property and business owners within the Business Improvement Area (BIA) will be considered.

The Mayor suggests that temporary seating areas could become permanent, creating more animated spaces throughout the City. If this pilot program is successful, it can be part of building more people-oriented public spaces.

The simple device from a small Coquitlam fabrication company enables two people to carry out a transaction two metres apart.

The Community Outreach Centre has moved its operations to a local school’s gymnasium for the purpose of enhancing its capacity to provide vulnerable residents with services such as counselling, shower access and laundry facilities under the new health regulations of social distancing.

The City did not provide a timeline for when yard sales and other activities like farmers markets might be allowed again. City facilities such as recreation centres, parks outside of trails and city hall have been shuttered since early March and all city events have been cancelled until at least July 2.

The introduction of ‘household bubbles’ allows a family in one house to choose one other household to spend time with, assuming that both agree to the arrangement and don’t have close contact with anyone else.

Created by Ratio.City, an organization with a mission to gather this data and provide the analysis that will unlock the potential of cities around the world.

After a brief period of issuing warnings to offending customers, the officers will be directed to start issuing fines

Studying pinch points, the City is studying the situation and acting to “ensure people have safe spaces to walk and cycle – away from motor vehicles while also allowing social distancing to occur,”

The conversion of the FirstOntario Centre Saturday included adding 50 carefully separated beds in the concourse of the hockey arena, dining tables on the de-iced rink surface and a medical clinic in the media lounge. Even the giant scoreboard that looms over the 17,383-seat area will be repurposed to show movies for residents who want to stay through the day

Locals for Local TO is an initiatives to support Toronto’s West Queen West neighbourhood. People can buy “goody bags” for between $80 to $100 (plus delivery). Goody bags include items from local shops like fresh veggies, cookies, coffee and more, and are available for delivery or pick up. A portion of proceeds will go to food banks.

Montrealers need access to green space, but are encouraged to go to parks in their own neighbourhoods, not travelling across the city to visit other parks. Parking lots in Mount Royal Park were closed this week to limit traffic, and Île Notre-Dame has also been closed altogether. These types of measures will continue, and even more will be put in place in other, popular destinations like the Lachine Canal, which has been extremely crowded.

Beginning April 6 and ending on April 20, there will be a curfew in Opaskwayak Cree Nation (OCN) from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. It’s possible this curfew will be extended depending on whether COVID-19 cases in Manitoba and throughout the north continue to rise.

In the era of COVID-19, this tool allows one to play with how streets are designed to allow for social distancing. Can be a way to experiment online with low cost initiatives.

Includes information on hotels, motels, buildings acquired, shelters, overnight programs and funding to community partners to provide services

Some of the adaptations include live streaming of fitness classes, online health consultations, preordered restaurant meals and home delivery of everything from beer to books. For many entrepreneurs, the changes aren’t just about business survival, but also keeping themselves and their employees busy and motivated during the coronavirus crisis.

In just five days, Londoners have lodged 1,250 complaints about people and businesses not following provincial COVID-19 orders. About 70 per cent of complaints filed have been through email, the remainder by telephone.Rather than issuing fines, those phone calls have focussed on educating those who may not be following provincial rules.

“Despite a notable drop in overall ridership, we have experienced a recent surge in transit use by non-regular passengers which is likely a reflection of our current free fare structure and a lack of things to do and places to go given the closure of various community facilities and programs,” said Mark Jensen, the city’s director of community and development services.

Site organized by the Edmonton Downtown Business Association showcasing downtown restaurants, retailers and other businesses who have found a way to deliver their goods and services to the people of Edmonton. Includes those businesses offering online classes or streamed services, gift cards, virtual appointments, equipment rental, delivery or curbside pickups and food specials such as custom meal boxes. Some businesses are offering deep discounts and specials during this time, or free items, donations & specials to first responders and hospital workers.