COCHRANE— The Town of Cochrane is ready to help roll out the three-stage Alberta economic relaunch strategy unveiled by the provincial government.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney announced Thursday (April 30) that province is in the early stages of preparing for the overall economic recovery of the province from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I won’t sugar coat reality– the truth is we still face the most severe economic conditions since the Great Depression of the 1930s, and it will take heroic effort and determination to get Alberta working and growing again,” Kenney said.
The relaunch has been made possible, he said, because Albertans have been diligent in following public health measures and advice to help limit the spread of the virus.
COVID-19 case numbers, hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions are starting to decline and the province can now take steps to incrementally reopen some businesses and services in carefully controlled stages.
Preliminary steps have already seen the reopening of some areas including outdoor recreation spaces, Alberta Health Services elective surgeries and allied health services.
If success is found in the early stages of the recovery the province can transition to Stage One of the relaunch once health measures are achieved based on the advice of Alberta's Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw.
This could take place as early as May 14.
Stage One will include the reopening of retail services, hair styling and barbering, daycares, restaurants, cafes and bars with a 50 per cent occupancy limit, museums, art galleries, additional outdoor recreation and allied health services.
Stage Two will include the reopening of personal services, massage, reflexology, summer camps with limited occupancy, movie theatres with restrictions and additional elective surgeries.
Stage Three will include the reopening of swimming pools, gyms, arenas, nightclubs, industry conferences, festivals and major sporting events with restrictions.
Town of Cochrane Business Developer Manager Mike Korman said the Town is cautiously optimistic for the economic relaunch but noted that maintaining the health of Cochranites remains the number one concern.
“We’re relying on the province to provide direction,” Korman said. “Our number one concern is to ensure that the public is safe when they start to re-enter these businesses and they feel confident that their health is not compromised.”
Each community has unique economic challenges in terms of relaunching the economy, Korman said, explaining that support for re-opening will be critical at the municipal level.
“The make up of every community is different from a business perspective— they have different problems they are dealing with,” he said. “You got to look at it from the local perspective.”
The driving force of the economic relaunch in Cochrane will involve reaching out to the business community to understand how their needs and struggles can be met with beneficial actions from the Town.
An Economic Recovery Task Force has been struck by the Town Council to aid in this process. The Task Force consists of Korman, the Town's Finance Manager, the Chamber of Commerce, Tourism, the Business Advisory Network, a developer liaison representative and a Cochrane Rotary Club member paired with council representatives Mayor Jeff Genung, coun. Tara McFadden and coun. Marni Fedeyko.
The guidelines made available from the province will be used by the economic task force to make informed decisions and ensure the relaunch is done safely, he said.
Korman noted that it will be up to businesses to decide when they want to re-open to the public.
Vivian Cox was been appointed to the Economic Task Force on behalf of the Cochrane Business Network.
“The business community needs a group of people together with the same business mind sense to move forward with all kinds of ideas,” Cox said. “The task force is kind of unique because it’s different organizations coming together and everybody has good ideas to bring forward— the variety is what’s going to really be key.”
It will be critical to have economic support at the local level she said, adding that everyone will have a role to play as businesses begin to slowly reopen in stages.
“It’s just making sure everybody still remains safe,” Cox said.
Cochrane and District Chamber of Commerce president Kelly Sinclair said she is confident that Cochrane business will be able to begin the process of reopening soon, but noted that a priority needs to be placed on ensuring the health of Cochranites.
“We are enthusiastic about the concept of being able to get back to work sooner than we maybe potentially thought,” Sinclair said. “It is a glimmer of hope although I will take it with the same couched enthusiasm that the premier expressed.”
Businesses in Town will be closely monitoring and following all public health guidelines on an ongoing basis to ensure the economic relaunch is able to take off, Sinclair said.
It will be critical for residents of Cochrane to follow the COVID-19 public health measures and guidelines that are in place to help ensure the relaunch is able to find success.
“The success of this whole plan, it really depends heavily on both people and the business continuing to operate within those health guidelines,” Sinclair said.
The Chamber has been invited to join the Economic Task Force.
Sinclair said the committee will help guide the local economic relaunch by giving the provincial relaunch strategy a municipal context.
“We need to understand the implications for the local economy for our businesses so we can support in ensuring that it gets delivered in a way that’s going to provide the best results for Cochrane and the best possible outcome for our community,” Sinclair said. “It’s going to be a good combination.”
