OTTAWA -- Ottawa Bylaw officers issued 24 tickets over the Easter weekend to people violating the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.
Mayor Jim Watson told News Talk 580 CFRA’s “Ottawa at Work with Leslie Roberts” that the City of Ottawa received more than 500 calls over the long weekend about potential violations.
Among the fines issued, Watson says a barber shop was fined for staying open during the pandemic.
“We had to turn away 20 vehicles at Dick Bell Park in Nepean. Residents were driving there to park and use the park,” said Watson.
“If the park is closed, the parking lot is closed. We just don’t want people to be in close contact and spread the virus.”
Ottawa Bylaw and Regulatory Services has issued 74 fines to people violating the COVID-19 restrictions since the start of April.
In a statement to CTV News Ottawa, Director of Bylaw and Regulatory Services Roger Chapman says "since April 3, Bylaw and Regulatory Services responded to 1,916 calls pertaining to suspected violations of COVID-19 measures. So far, 74 tickets have been issued."
The City of Ottawa has closed the parking lots at Britannia Park, Mooney’s Bay and Petrie Island Park to prevent people from driving to the parks. All parks are closed, except for walking through.
“We’ve actually tried to be a little more reasonable by saying you can walk through the parks. You can’t stop, have a chat, you can’t start kicking a soccer ball around,” said Watson, noting the Ontario Government has ordered all parks to close.
“It sounds like you know we’re being mean spirited, but we’re just trying to obey the laws.”
Residents have called on the City of Ottawa and the National Capital Commission to close roads so people can walk, run and bicycle while practice physical distancing.
Watson told “Ottawa at Work with Leslie Roberts” that the City of Ottawa has no objections if the National Capital Commission wants to close its parkways to vehicles, but they would need to work with city staff on closing roads.
“I’m not being this grumpy old guy that’s just trying to take the fun away from everyone,” said Watson, pointing out we all need to practice physical distancing to limit the spread of COVID-19.
“We want this to end. This has been a nightmare for a lot of people who have lost everything financially and their jobs. The very least we can do as a city is try not to pile on the process by ensuring that this pandemic lasts even longer.”
Watson says the vast majority of Ottawa residents are following the calls to physical distance and stay out of parks.
