The next step in Nova Scotia’s reopening plan comes into effect at midnight tonight.
“I’m pretty comfortable with it. I think we’ve made pretty good strides to get to the point where at and I think it’s just time, it’s time for us to get back to somewhat normal,” says Halifax resident, Brandon Jansen .
Phase two brings changes mostly to gathering limits. Larger facilities like the Scotiabank Center can go to 75 per cent capacity up to a maximum of 5000 spectators, that’s up from 3000. Bars and restaurants will be able to welcome more customers too.
The 75 per cent capacity limit isn’t changing but the wording around social distancing is, allowable seating configurations will be as close to 6 feet as possible.
“Maybe 15 more tables, 20 tables over both restaurants combined so it’s really great,” says restaurant owner, Lil MacPherson.
Macpherson owns two restaurants in Halifax, she says with more seating comes more customers which means she is able to buy more supplies from local farmers.
“The farmers are really happy, we’re ordering more stuff and they’re like ‘yay, that’s great’ so they get to feed our kids they get to keep in business. It’s a big beautiful ripple effect all over Nova Scotia,” MacPherson says.
An increase in business is also prompting a search for staff. Businesses are in stiff competition for workers.
“Our physical location, working down on the waterfront, out in the open air, by the ocean, it’s all good stuff,” says Denis Campbell, tour operator.
Campbell is looking for everything from bartenders to ship captains and finding enough employees to fill those openings is imperative because the tourists are coming.
“The pent-up demand is there we’ve never seen advanced sales like this before and it continues every single day,” says Campbell.
So far most of those bookings are coming from within Atlantic Canada. US inquiries are catching up as Nova Scotia starts to emerge from pandemic restrictions.
Following phase two, all restrictions and the state of emergency that has been in place for nearly two years will come to an end province-wide on March 21.