Halloween Displays & Contests, Ontario PPE Grant & Face Covering By-Law

Hope you are having a great week! You may have noticed a few goblins and ghouls popping up around Downtown - keep reading to learn more about the Halloween displays and contests happening Downtown this year.

Witchy Windows, Creepy Competitions, Spooky Shopping!

In lieu of Harvest Celebration and Trick or Treating in Downtown Orangeville this year, we are going over the top (literally!) with our Halloween Decorations - hello 12-foot skeleton!  We are also encouraging members of the public to get involved in 2 separate social media contests: A Halloween Selfie Contest and the Annual Scarecrow Competition.

Window Displays!

We would love to see window decorations for this spooky month! Eye-catching windows boost foot traffic and entice passers-by to stop for a look.  Decorate with a Halloween or Fall Harvest theme, incorporate merchandise, and spellbind your customers! For a little inspiration, check out our OBIA office window, decorated with some handmade creation’s courtesy of our administrator Cara!

Participate in our contests

Local businesses are not excluded from entering!   Take a selfie with our giant skeleton and share with all your followers and/or make a scarecrow to contribute to our Haunted Garden (between Bar on Broadway and the RBC Bank) or for display in your window.   Members of the community love to see our businesses getting involved because it shows that we all support one another and want to do our part to make Downtown Orangeville a vibrant & welcoming destination! Special thanks to the Better Together Task Force for purchasing many of the decorations and sponsoring our Halloween Selfie contest!

Share on social media

No time to participate?  Share our contest posts via Facebook and encourage your customers to participate!  The 12-foot skeleton will be hard to miss, but people may not be aware of the contest.  Direct them to the Downtown Orangeville Facebook page for rules and to enter!

Ontario Government Releases New Measures & PPE Grant

The Ontario government implemented several new measures late last week in an effort to slow the rising COVID numbers in the province. We are all aware of the risks posed by increased cases, especially during the winter season. We are monitoring new measures and will provide updates as they come.

These new measures include:

  • Extending the pause on further reopening of businesses, facilities, and organizations for an additional 28 days.
  • Pausing social circles by advising Ontarians to allow only close contact with people living in their own home. For those who live alone, they are permitted to have close contact with one other household. Any people who do not live in the same home should maintain the 2m social distance.
  • COVID testing has transitioned to an appointment-based model to help people manage their wait time for a test, and to help test centers manage capacity. Ontario is also rolling out further testing abilities to pharmacies across the province.
For more information on the updated measures, please see the Ontario Government’s Newsroom site. The Ontario government also just announced that a PPE (personal protective equipment) relief grant is in the works: “A one-time grant of up to $1,000 for eligible main street small businesses — in retail, food and accommodations, and other service sectors — with two to nine employees to help offset the unexpected costs of personal protective equipment (PPE); We will share the information on how to apply as soon as it becomes available. Just a reminder that those of you in the tourism sector may also qualify for a PPE reimbursement from Central Counties Tourism.

Reminder: New Face-Covering By-Law

A quick reminder on Orangeville’s new by-law passed last week:
  • Face coverings are now the law for us in Orangeville.
  • This law was passed to help businesses manage those who refuse to wear a mask. The law is on the side of the business.
  • The bylaw enforcement has been extended to local by-law enforcement officers and police officers.
If you encounter a patron who is unwilling to comply with the mask order (for non-medical reasons) and is refusing to leave, you may contact the Town of Orangeville’s Corporate Services department at 519-941-0440 Monday to Friday 8:30 to 4:30 p.m .  Outside of these hours, please contact the OPP Dufferin Detachment: 519-942-1711. In an emergency, always call 9-1-1. If you have a question about the new bylaw and it’s enforcement, please call the Town of Orangeville’s Corporate Services department at 519-941-0440. For further information, please click here.  We have also included a printable poster for businesses. The poster can be found here: Mask Required-Poster-establishment If you do not have a printer, please contact me and I will bring one to you.  Thanks everyone!  As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or comments.