Coronavirus Information for Camrose

State of Local Emergency

The City of Camrose declared a State of Local Emergency effective Sunday, March 22, 2020. This has now been extended until August 5th, 2020. Declaring a State of Local Emergency will ensure the City can maintain essential services and deploy necessary staff and resources to protect the health and safety of the citizens of Camrose.

This allows the City of Camrose to use any and all measures at our disposal to enforce the advisories of the Province, especially in relation to:

• Ensuring businesses are following the recommended protocols for protection of staff members and the public such as ensuring symptomatic employees are allowed to self-isolate;
• Gatherings limited to a maximum of 50 people, and
• Ensuring that individuals who have returned from international travel are following the 14-day self-isolation order.

The State of Local Emergency is in place for 90 days, unless it is renewed or revoked.

View the official message from Mayor Norm Mayer here.

Please view the new Camrose Guidelines for Relaunching Sports Playgrounds and Open Spaces.

The following City facilities are closed to the public:

• Camrose and District Museum - 780.672.9949
• Camrose Police Service - 780.672.4444
• Centra Cam Recycling Facility - 780.672.9995
• Chuck MacLean Arts Centre - 780.672.9949
• City Hall - 780.672.4426
• Community Centre - 780.672.9195
• Fire Department - 780.672.2906
• Mirror Lake Centre - 780.672.7022 or 780.672.4426
• Public Works - 780.672.5513
• Recreation Centre - 780.672.9195
• Stoney Creek Centre (public washrooms are still open) - 780.672.9195

The Camrose Connector has suspended its service between Camrose and Edmonton. We will be evaluating our plans to resume the service again at a later date while we monitor the COVID-19 situation.

The Camrose Community Bus has implemented tactics to help stop the spread of the virus. Click here to find out more.

The City of Camrose Assessment department has suspended property inspections until further notice. If you have received a letter to book an inspection with us you will be receiving a new letter soon. We ask for your cooperation in filling out the questionnaire to allow us to maintain fair and equitable assessments.

The City of Camrose encourages everyone to practice Alberta Health Services’ recommendation of social distancing. With that being said, we have decided to suspend our Camrose Area Rideshare program indefinitely.

Council Meetings

During COVID-19, all Council Meetings are being held electronically. Council Meetings include Committee of the Whole Council, Regular Council, Special Council, Emergency Advisory Committee, and the Finance Committee of Council.

To assist the public, the following procedures have been implemented:

ACCESSING AGENDAS
All Council Meeting agendas and minutes continue to be accessible to the public here.

ACCESSING THE MEETING WHILE IT IS OCCURRING
You may hear the meeting while it is occurring or after the meeting here.

PUBLIC COMMENTARY
Council provides City of Camrose residents with the opportunity to provide input on city related matters during Public Commentary held at Regular Council Meetings. As you are unable to do this in person at this time, you may participate in Public Commentary by providing your comments by email to kisaak@camrose.ca before the meeting starts or shortly after the meeting commences at 5:00 p.m.

PRESENTATIONS TO COUNCIL
Any person or group wishing to make a public presentation to Council are asked to contact the Deputy City Manager, Kim Isaak at kisaak@camrose.ca to schedule a date and time.

As you are unable to make a presentation in person at this time, any person or group scheduled to make a presentation are required to email their written submission before or during the meeting to kisaak@camrose.ca. You may also provide any comments during your presentation by email.

If you are scheduled to make an oral presentation, you are required to email your presentation during the meeting by email to kisaak@camrose.ca.

PUBLIC HEARINGS
Public Hearings will continue to be advertised during COVID-19, and the advertisement will include the process for emailing submissions before or during the hearing.

If you have any questions regarding the above information, please email the Deputy City Manager, Kim Isaak, at kisaak@camrose.ca or the Legislative Services Coordinator, Jenny Wallace, at legservices@camrose.ca.

• Alberta Health Link - 811
• Camrose Fire Department – 780.672.2906
• Camrose Police Service – 780.672.4444
• Mental Health Helpline – 1.877.303.2642
• St. Mary’s Hospital – 780.679.6100

In the event of an emergency, call 911

Services such as waste and compost collection, utility services and emergency services remain operational.

The City is preparing to cross train individuals affected by City facility closures for essential service provision. These backup employees will be familiarized with water treatment, facility maintenance, and road maintenance. This is to make sure that the City can continue to provide safe drinking water, drivable streets, and a safe environment for our community.

Should a non-urgent matter arise, please complete the Report a Concern form. 

For urgent matters such as water breaks, sewer backups or utility disruptions please call Public Works at 780.672.5513 or 780.672.4444 after hours.

• For answers to City facility-related frequently asked questions, visit the COVID FAQ page.
• View the Garbage and Recycling page for COVID-19 related FAQs.

Community Garden Plots will be available for purchase May 13th. Please note that for this to happen during COVID-19, we’ve had to make a few changes to our processes and plot plans. View the full details here.

In light of COVID-19, Council approved to waive penalties on property taxes until September 30, 2020. Property owners are encouraged to still pay their taxes by June 30, 2020 if possible (owners will not be penalized as long as they pay by September 30, 2020).

Also, as Council is committed to supporting businesses, the 0% overall tax increase will be applied as a slight increase of 0.8% for residential property and a 1.5% decrease for non-residential property. However, when the Education Tax change is combined with the Municipal Tax change, the final result is a total property tax DECREASE of approximately 1.13% for residential and 2.17% for non-residential.

View the 2020 Assessment and Property Tax Information brochure for more details.

Still have questions? Visit our FAQ page or contact us directly at 780.672.4426

To help protect you and your family against all respiratory illnesses, including the flu and COVID-19, you should:

• Practice “social distancing”
• Wash your hands often and well
• Avoid touching your face, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands
• Clean and disinfect surfaces that are frequently touched
• Stay at home and away from others if you are feeling ill
• Keep at least a 2 metre distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing
• Follow good respiratory hygiene; cover your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze (dispose of the used tissue immediately)

If you have symptoms such as fever, cough and difficulty breathing and have travelled outside Canada or have been exposed to someone who has COVID-19, stay home, click here to do the online self assessment and/or call Health Link 811. If you are not seriously ill, do not go to a physician’s office, a health care facility or a lab without consulting with Health Link 811 first. Call 911 if you are seriously ill and need immediate medical attention and inform them that you may have COVID-19.

Report COVID-19 Related Concerns

COVID-19 public health orders are now enforceable by law

On March 25, Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer of Health issued orders under the Public Health Act to legally require:

• restrictions on gatherings and businesses
• returning international travellers to self-isolate for 14 days
• people exposed to COVID-19 to self-isolate for 14 days
• people with symptoms – cough, fever, shortness of breath, runny nose or sore throat not related to a pre-existing illness or health condition – to self-isolate for 10 days, or until symptoms resolve, whichever is longer
• limit access to all nursing homes, designated supportive living and long-term care facilities, seniors lodges and residential addiction treatment facilities to essential visitors

For the most current list of restrictions, please refer to https://www.alberta.ca/coronavirus-info-for-albertans.aspx

Violators may be subject to tickets of up to $1,000 per occurrence. Courts could administer fines of up to $100,000 for a first offence and up to $500,000 for a subsequent offence for more serious violations.

File a complaint here.

The City of Camrose has declared a Local State of Emergency due to the public safety health risks related to the COVID-19 Pandemic. As such, the City has authority to impose additional measures on businesses who are still operating.

The purpose of this protocol is to limit the spread of COVID-19 to or between passengers and drivers. Therefore measures must be taken to clean and sanitize taxis between pickup and drop-offs.

In addition, taxis are limited to two adult passengers at a time and must not transport passengers in the front passenger seat. If children are also in the vehicle, all passengers must be from the same household and all must be legally able to sit behind the driver.

Spread

COVID-19 is believed to be spread mainly by coughing, sneezing or direct contact with someone who is sick with COVID-19 or with surfaces they have recently touched. Indirect spread can occur from contaminated surfaces, tissues, cloth or paper. 

Symptoms

Symptoms for COVID-19 are similar to those for influenza or other respiratory illnesses. Employees (drivers and dispatchers) should not report to work if experiencing symptoms. In addition, people accessing taxi services should not be permitted if experiencing symptoms.   

The most common symptoms include:

• Fever
• Cough
• Extreme tiredness

General Cleaning Information (from Alberta Health Services)

1. Increase daily cleaning and disinfection of common areas and surfaces. Pay particular attention to door knobs, light switches, staff rooms, desktops, washrooms and other high touch surfaces.
• Cleaning refers to the removal of visible dirt, grime and impurities. Cleaning does not kill germs but helps remove them from the surface.
• Disinfecting refers to using chemical to kill germs on surfaces. This is most effective after surfaces are cleaned. Both steps are important to reduce the spread of infection.

  Use a disinfectant that has a Drug Identification Number (DIN) and a virucidal claim. Be sure to follow the instructions on the label to disinfect properly. Alternatively, you can prepare a bleach water solution with 100 ml of unscented household bleach per 900 ml of water. 

2. Be sure to take the appropriate precautions when using chemicals for cleaning and disinfecting. Consult the products Safety Data Sheets.

Things to Consider

Some vehicles may have leather steering wheels or seats. Leather is porous and while cleaning and disinfecting will certainly help, the porous nature of leather will make it difficult to ensure disinfection. It will also limit the products that can be used. Read manufacturers recommendation on products before application.

Initial Cleaning

Do a deep cleaning on each vehicle with particular attention to “touch points” using a good quality soapy solution as per manufacture directions.  All dirt and grime needs to be initially removed in order to prepare the surface for disinfection. 

Follow the cleaning with a product that has a viracidal claim.

Day to day/change of operator cleaning

Follow the same two-step process of cleaning with a soap product followed by a viracid.  This at a minimum of start and end of vehicle usage. 

For increased frequency and cleaning away from the office, consider disposable cleaner and viricid wipes, maintaining the two – step cleaning and disinfecting process. 

Cleaning between passengers

Follow the same two-step process of cleaning with a soap product followed by a viracid.  Clean and disinfect all surfaces that passengers have come in contact with.  Ensure all touch surfaces are cleaned and disinfected for each passenger. 

In order to provide some temporary support to residents and businesses within the City of Camrose, City Council approved a motion on March 22, 2020 to provide the following temporary relief:

• No penalties to be applied to unpaid amounts for City utilities from March 23, 2020 to June 30, 2020;
• No penalties to be applied to unpaid amounts for accounts from tenants, landfill accounts, business licenses, facility rentals and other sundry accounts from March 23, 2020 to June 30, 2020; and
• No charges for NSF (Not Sufficient Funds) fees with respect to cheques or direct deposits from March 23, 2020 to June 30, 2020. 

These relief measures do not stop the normal billing process for any of the fees and charges within the City of Camrose. The measures provide customers with the ability to defer the amounts owing until June 30, 2020 without incurring any penalties for deferred payments. 

Also, on March 30, 2020 Council approved the suspension of recycling fees with an effective date of April 1, 2020 on utility bills since the Recycle with Centra Cam facility has been temporarily closed to the public.