Whistler's municipal hall will reopen its doors to the public on June 1 with certain restrictions in place to ensure physical distancing, the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) announced today.
The upstairs customer service area will reopen next week, where residents will be able to purchase bus and parking passes, licences, pay their property taxes and outstanding fines. A limited number of people will be permitted in the hall at one time, and greeters will be on-hand to ensure the proper protocols are followed.
Services on the lower level of the building, which includes the planning and building departments, will remain closed for the time being.
In a release, the RMOW said “almost all” municipal services continue to be available online at whistler.ca/onlineservices, and residents are encouraged to access services remotely whenever possible to limit in-person contacts.
Monthly bus passes and tickets can also be purchased at Nesters Market, Creekside Market and Forecast Coffee in Function Junction. Whistler Transit will resume fare collection and front-door loading on June 1.
Municipal hall was shuttered March 16 in response to COVID-19, and staff has been working remotely since then and developing plans to safely reopen facilities. “As we progress through the provincial Restart plan, we will look to offer more in-person services where and when possible and when the RMOW is confident we are able to offer these services in the safest way possible,” the release went on.
Also on June 1 is the launch of the Whistler Public Library’s Library to Go program, which will offer patrons the chance to borrow physical items for the first time since the facility closed in mid-March. Holds on books and DVDs can be placed using the library’s website. Contactless pick-ups and drop-offs will be available between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Learn more at whistlerlibrary.ca/library-to-go.
The RMOW is also exploring how to safely reopen the Meadow Park Sports Centre now that the BC Recreation and Parks Association (BCRPA) has shared their reopening guidelines to members this week. “The RMOW assures the public that we will not re-open any recreation facilities or re-start any recreation programs until we are confident they can be provided and delivered in a way that meets all guidelines in the safest way possible and this is expected to take time,” the release stated.
The RMOW noted its summer camps are planned to go ahead this summer and will follow BCRPA’s guidelines.
For more information, visit whistler.ca/covid19.
