The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit could be told to relocate its COVID-19 vaccination clinic and supply depot within two Barrie facilities by Sept. 20 to allow the timely opening of the hockey, ringette and skating seasons.
City council will consider a direct motion Monday night that would see these uses moved from the ice pads at East Bayfield and Holly community centres to other spaces there that suit the needs of the health unit in order to ensure and maintain the mental health and well-being of Barrie’s winter sporting communities.
This direct motion will be moved by Couns. Mike McCann and Gary Harvey.
“Our winter sport administrators need to know when ice will be available,” Harvey said. “Without solid assurances with dates of availability, we have been told that they will have to reduce their registration by 25 per cent. That means 25 per cent of our boys and girls that play hockey will lose another season and have to sit on the sidelines, while they watch their friends play. This is about creating balance.
“First-dose vaccination bookings have dropped off and now only account for 10 per cent of the bookings,” the Ward 7 councillor added. “Moving these mass immunization clinics into smaller spaces like a gymnasium within the same community centre is the best option for all and still suits the needs of the health unit.
"The main mass immunization clinic in Sperling Drive will not be impacted at all by this motion.”
Deputy Mayor Barry Ward does not support the motion, however.
“No one knows what the situation will be in three months and I’m hoping the vaccination clinic may no longer be needed, but giving the health unit an ultimatum in the midst of a public health crisis is not a good idea, to say the least,” he said. "I believe an alternative for storage could be found for the supplies now being kept at East Bayfield, but I would not be in favour of moving the vaccination clinic itself at Holly.”
McCann doesn’t see it that way.
“By September, October, we should have most everybody vaccinated with a second shot,” he said. “The people electing not to, we can’t hold up facilities waiting for them to come when they’re not coming, and the cost of us waiting is we can have kids, adults waiting to get back into physical activities.”
Mayor Jeff Lehman said he’s of two minds about the direct motion.
“I am supportive of the motion, but as city staff have indicated, I don't think it’s necessary,” he said. “The city typically has seven of eight ice surfaces available in September for hockey and other community users, and, according to staff, they are looking to move the warehousing currently at East Bayfield to another location, which would make seven surfaces available on time.”
One of the two ice pads at Holly Community Centre is serving as Barrie and area’s largest accessible immunization clinic site. In addition to the one ice pad, change/skate change rooms and a pre-school room are also being used for vaccine preparation, first aid and staff break rooms.
The clinic is operating seven days per week and currently serving approximately 1,200 to 1,400 people per day. Its side entrance and the hallway area adjacent to the rink has been dedicated to the immunization clinic to ensure that any other users of the facility, once open to the public, are not interacting with immunization clients.
One ice pad is still available for use at Holly.
One of the two ice pads at East Bayfield Community Centre is being used for secured storage space for a supplies depot required to operate the clinics throughout all of Simcoe-Muskoka. Staff are also providing assistance to the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit for receiving supplies. This location is a one-level space that allows for loading in and out, and provides a large space to organize the equipment needed for the region.
One ice pad is also still available for use at East Bayfield.
Service Barrie is assisting with overflow for callers needing help to book their vaccination appointments via the online system.
And 29 Sperling Dr., the former police station, continues to be used by Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) as an immunization clinic as well as a testing centre, seven days a week.
“It’s time now that we really need to look at what’s best for your community,” McCann said of the direct motion. “We need to start getting our kids and our residents back into physical health, which is a direct (link) to mental health.”
The Ward 10 councillor spoke of minor hockey players, and their friends, who play together, watch hockey, know all the hockey stars and get robbed of that experience, talking about goals, saves and hits because ice time is unavailable.
“Because we in the city didn’t try to inconvenience ourselves a little bit, to relocate the vaccination clinics,” he said. “I really look at that and I’ve got a real problem with that. I really believe that the psychological ramifications could echo on for years to come. It could happen.”
Ice is usually available by Sept. 1 for some but not all of the city’s ice pads. Typically, the city provides seven of the eight ice surfaces for use by community organizations by the first week of September.
Eastview’s ice is usually installed for October.
This year, the plan is to provide six of the eight ice pads to be available for September and October, due to the needs for a healthy community and assisting the health unit, said Dawn McAlpine, the city’s general manager of community and corporate services.
The original request for this vaccination clinic space was until Aug. 30, but the health unit has asked that it be extended until Oct. 31, and city staff agreed.
“The number of doses has increased recently, that is available to the health unit and they may be able to finish (vaccinations) as per the Aug. 30 date, but at this point in time, we have agreed to extend to Oct. 31,” McAlpine said. “If the community isn’t fully vaccinated by Oct. 31, it’s highly unlikely that you would return to 100 per cent play.”
This direct motion stems from questions asked by McCann, and answers received, at the June 21 general committee meeting. He wanted to know what city council could do to assure minor sports ice users that the rinks would be available on time.
“The thing that members of council can do is encourage people to get vaccinated,” McAlpine said. “The space will not be required if the community signs up to get vaccinated and completes that vaccination. Without a much larger percentage of the community having both their first and second doses, there won’t be a return to 100 per cent play, based on the concerns over health regulations.
“So the space is being provided to ensure that immunization clinics can occur for our community members to get vaccinated,” she added. “Currently, I would be encouraging people who are in the 18 to 40 age range to get vaccinated because they are ones where people have been less responsive to getting vaccinated. But that’s the way that gets return to play, is for everyone to get vaccinated. Then we can free up the space.”
McAlpine did say staff will look at other alternatives.
“But the space that we’re providing is what’s required for the size of clinic (needed) and having the health unit move to another location adds logistical challenges that would be unnecessary and delay vaccination,” she said.
That’s when McCann said council should prepare for a direct motion at its June 28 meeting.
The direct motion reads: ‘In order to ensure and maintain the winter sporting communities mental health and well-being, that staff in the Recreation and Culture Services Department advise the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit (SMDHU)that no later than September 20, 2021, they will be required to vacate the ice pad area at the East Bayfield Community Centre and the Holly Community Centre in order to facilitate the opening of hockey, ringette and skating seasons and that staff provide space in other areas of the two aforementioned complexes that will suit the needs of the SMDHU vaccination clinics.’
