While many businesses across B.C. are opening its doors back up again, it’s not likely you can sit down at your favourite restaurants until June.
B.C. premier John Horgan announced, Wednesday, that he will be easing quarantine restrictions soon, which means many parks and businesses will reopen.
RELATED: You Can Finally Hit Up Provincial Parks and Beaches Next Week
And while restaurants were also given the green light, they have a few more steps to take first.
First, they must put together a blueprint for WorkSafeBC to approve first, said Ian Tostenson, CEO and president of the BC Restaurant and Food Services Association to News 1130.
[sjnow-ad-large-leaderboard]
And once approved, restaurants must guarantee safety measures will be followed.
“That won’t take as long to do that. But what’s going to take a while is for restaurants to order their food, get their staff, get their operations stabilized. They have to train their staff, they can’t just bring staff without having gone through this process. Once we get organized, I think we can do it fairly quickly,” said Tostenson.
The whole process will take a few weeks, he explained. But for some, there’s another obstacle in their way.
A survey by Restaurants Canada shows restaurants “might not have enough cash flow to successfully reopen their doors to diners.”
The government has put together the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) to provide small businesses with 75% of their rent.
But B.C. restaurants are asking for more help as that isn’t enough for many. Some places have already closed, including the Storm Crow Tavern on Commercial Drive.
Meanwhile, many others are prepared to reopen with several social distancing measures in place.
For more Vancouver stories, head to our News section.
[sjnow-ad-large-leaderboard]