OLDS — Scores of people upset about the Town of Olds implementing the Restrictions Exemption Program (REP) in municipally-owned facilities filled the municipal council chambers gallery during council’s Dec. 6 policies and priorities meeting.
Under the REP, which came into effect Sept. 20, Albertans are required to show proof of vaccination, a negative COVID-19 test or a valid medical exemption in order to enter many businesses, facilities and venues.
Speaker after speaker urged councillors to drop the REP, currently implemented in facilities such as the Sportsplex and Aquatic Centre, and instead implement a cap of one-third capacity.
Another suggestion was to implement some kind of hybrid of the REP and one-third capacity rule. They said other communities such as Drayton Valley, Lacombe, Ponoka and Blackfalds have done so. But councillors could not confirm that at that time. In fact, some were skeptical.
The provincial REP allows indoor recreation facilities to operate without most public health restrictions although masks are still mandatory. All patrons aged 12 and older must provide valid proof of vaccination or proof of a negative rapid test within the last 72 hours, or documentation of a medical exemption.
In recreation facilities where the REP is not enacted, adult (18 and older) indoor group classes and activities are not permitted and adult competitions are paused except where vaccine exemptions have been granted. Capacity is limited to one-third of the facility’s fire code and attendees must be with household members only or two close contacts if they live alone.
Youth sports (under 18) are permitted in facilities that have not enacted the REP as long as participants screen for symptoms, maintain two-metre distancing and wear masks except while engaged in physical activity.
In the end, after the crowd had left, council passed a motion advanced by Coun. Heather Ryan, to examine the possibility of going to a hybrid restrictions program.
Chief administrative officer Michael Merritt said Town of Olds officials had investigated that possibility before and were told that that wasn’t feasible, but he agreed to have staff look into it again.
In a presentation to council, community services director Doug Wagstaff said Town of Olds officials were told by Alberta Health Services officials that “if you have a program operating under the REP, your building has to be operating under the REP, because the two cannot cross unless you have the ability to fully separate entrance, exits, washrooms, change rooms in the operation of your REP from your one-third capacity.
"The Sportsplex as it’s constructed, doesn’t have that ability to separate out the two separate operations.”
Hence, he said, the Town of Olds' decision, however reluctantly, was to implement the REP throughout the building.
At the end of the roughly 90-minute meeting, a couple of members of the crowd tried to give council members papers accepting liability for what one woman said was a law that forbade anyone to force anyone else to “take a DNA, RNA test or deny any service, employment or education opportunity to anyone who refuses to take such a test.”
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