Businesses hanging by a thread 'back where nobody wanted to be' with COVID-19 measures

Reintroducing measures such as shutting down indoor dining and capacity limits in retail settings could be the final nail in the coffin, advocates say, for businesses already battered by nearly two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Premier Doug Ford announced the province is returning to a modified version of Step Two on its roadmap to reopening for at least 21 days.

Indoor dining at restaurants and bars will be closed and retail settings, including malls, will be limited to 50 per cent capacity, beginning at 12:01 a.m. on Jan. 5.

"It's really difficult to imagine how a lot of businesses are going to get through," said Keanin Loomis, CEO of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce. Many are hanging by a thread, he said.

Every time a wave of the pandemic winds down, businesses start to feel as though the end could be in sight, said Rachel Braithwaite, executive director of the St. Catharines Downtown Association.

Both she and Loomis said they understand the need for measures amid climbing case counts and the surging spread of the Omicron variant. But the return of regulations that clamp down on businesses will leave many owners "sad, frustrated and a little bit afraid," said Braithwaite.

"Now all of a sudden we're back where nobody wanted to be again."

"Being told to brace for a tsunami doesn't instill a whole lot of consumer confidence," Loomis said, describing Monday's announcement as a "second case of whiplash in the last couple of weeks."

The 50 per cent limit will also be in place for personal care services, while saunas, steams rooms and oxygen bars will be closed.

Alcohol sales will not be permitted after 10 p.m. and people won't be able to drink at a business after 11 p.m.

Takeout, drive thrus and delivery will still be available, along with outdoor dining as long as it abides by restrictions.

For Silversmith Brewery in Niagara-on-the-Lake, takeout has been a lifeline while accommodating restrictions this past year. 

The brewery will return to takeout offerings for beer and food, which Lauren Leprich, Silversmith supervisor said "is better than nothing but not ideal."

"We've been able to kind of stay afloat with the takeout," Leprich said. "That's the only thing that's really saved us. if we had to close completely with no income, we would probably be in some pretty big trouble."