News

We trust this finds you healthy and being able to enjoy some of the long awaited warm weather and of course that your business is beginning to recover some of the lost revenues due to everyone’s common enemy COVID-19.

Provincial

Phase II – Restoring Safe Services:  The Provincial Government has released the details of Phase II of the gradual re-opening of our economy – Effective June 1, 2020.  The province has maintained its controlled approach to re-opening of businesses.  The detailed information can be found on the Provincial Government website:
https://manitoba.ca/asset_library/en/proactive/2020_2021/restoring-safe-services-phase-2.pdf .   Public gatherings - remain at 25 people indoors and 50 people outdoors.  Outdoor drive-in events - include religious and other organizations as well as drive-in movie theatres may hold outdoor events without limitation if people stay in their vehicles, or stand outside on the left side of their vehicles and people remain 2 metres apart at all times.  Child Care Services – groups of children can increase to 24 plus staff.  Critical service workers will NOT be displaced until full resumption of child care services.  Schools - classrooms remain closed but the schools are open to staff and specific programs.  Post-Secondary Institutions and Vocational Colleges – may re-open to provide limited instruction.  Day Camps – have increased to 24 and must maintain physical distancing of 2 metres.

Team Sports and Other Recreational Activities – this includes team sports, bowling alleys and arts and cultural activities with enhanced equipment cleaning and social distancing.  Outdoor Recreation Facilities and Golf Courses – may access their indoor facilities with the guidelines described on the website.  Public and Private Swimming Pools, Spas, Fitness Clubs, Gyms and training facilities – may re-open with capacity limitations – NOTE restrictions vary by type of facility – details are available at the above link.

Personal Services Businesses – including manicurists and pedicurists, tattoo parlours, estheticians, cosmetologists, electrologists and tanning parlours may re-open as long as they follow the restrictions set out at the above link.  Restaurants – may open indoor facilities at 50% of site capacity.  Bars, Beverage Rooms, Brew Pubs, Micro-Brewers and Distilleries – are allowed to operate at 50% of site capacity with detailed restrictions.

Therapeutic or Health Care Businesses – occupancy limits for regulated health professionals are lifted.  Non-regulated health professionals must continue to limit occupancy to 50% of normal business levels or 1 person per 10 square metres.

As stated above, full details are available at this link: 
https://manitoba.ca/asset_library/en/proactive/2020_2021/restoring-safe-services-phase-2.pdf

Federal

CECRA (Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance) – This program began allowing applications from landlords on a staggered basis Monday May 25, 2020.  This program is open to landlords to apply for the assistance who have tenants meeting the key criteria.  The tenant must have revenues of less than $20 million per year, pay gross rent of less than $50,000 per month, and have an average revenue decline of 70% or more for the three month period of April, May and June.  In summary, the program has the landlord and tenant sign their own attestations to the truth of the claim, enter into a rent reduction agreement as specified by the government.  The Landlord foregoes 25% of the monthly rent, the tenant is expected to pay 25% of the monthly rent and the government pays 50% of the rent.  The interest free loan is forgivable as of December 31, 2020 if all required conditions have been met including no collecting of rent the landlord forgave as part of the program.  To confirm, there are many more details on how the program works and is executed and we are more than happy to guide you through the process if you are a tenant or a landlord.

Stay Healthy
Greg Libbrecht and the entire team at Platinum Business Services