Niagara Region has ended household-only outdoor dining.
The rule, which was part of a section 22 order put in place by Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr. Mustafa Hirji in November 2020, restricted diners to eating out only with members of their household with some exceptions.
It also required restaurants, bars and breweries to gather contact information of patrons and ask about COVID-19 symptoms.
The dining requirement was lifted on Thursday. Any four people will be able to sit at a patio and share a meal or drink, as per step one of Ontario’s reopening plan.
That will change to six people when the province enters step 2 of the plan on June 30.
READ MORE: Ontario Moves to Step Two of Reopening June 30th
Daily cases in Niagara Region have decreased by 60 per cent over the past two weeks. Still, Dr. Hirji says progress is fragile.
“Thanks to ongoing vigilance against COVID-19, cases continue to decline in Niagara allowing our businesses to continue to recover,” said Dr. Mustafa Hirji, Acting Medical Officer of Health.
“However, other communities show us that this progress isn’t guaranteed. With the more contentious and more severe delta variant starting to circulate, we need ongoing vigilance around keeping distance, wearing masks, and limiting in-person social interactions until we have the vast majority our population vaccinated with two doses. If you have not already done so, please sign up to get vaccinated so we can make our economic reopening permanent.”
