Banff beefs up COVID-19 measures as mountain communities struggle with surge of cases

The Town of Banff is bringing in a number of new bylaws and health measures as it copes with the second highest number of COVID-19 cases per capita in Alberta.

On Nov. 30, the Banff-Lake Louise area had 196 active cases of COVID-19, which translates into the second highest number of per capita in Alberta. In the most recent census data, in 2017, the Town of Banff estimated it had a population of close to 10,000, although that has been affected by the pandemic.

The town announced Monday it is opening up a facility for those who test positive and need somewhere to get out of their shared accommodations.

It's also increasing its capacity for testing and will be opening up a permanent Alberta Health Services site this week.

"This testing to me is absolutely a huge part of our solution moving forward and so welcomed," said Mayor Karen Sorenson.

Council also spent several hours Monday debating new bylaws, voting in the end to reduce restaurant capacity by 50 per cent, require liquor and cannabis stores to close by 10 p.m. and expand the area where outdoor masks must be worn to include all of Banff Avenue and more of the downtown core.

The new bylaws are temporary measures and will be reviewed later in December.

Banff's communications and marketing director, Jason Darrah, said the town is also working with Alberta Health Services and local organizations to increase its COVID-19 testing capacity.

"Thankfully, we have two great medical clinics in Banff that have volunteered to conduct testing for our residents. The town recently secured space so the clinics could expand the amount of testing they can provide on Bear Street," Darrah said.

"We now have an AHS mobile testing unit in Banff working with employers that have clusters of cases and close contact among their staff. On Wednesday, we also set aside municipal space to conduct up to 1,000 tests in one day. This will be coordinated with employers and the employees will be contacted directly."

The town also announced Monday that it has set up a 23-room isolation space for Banff residents to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in the community.

The emergency housing will be available beginning Dec. 1 and is available to Banff residents who live in a shared accommodation, have tested positive for COVID-19, or have been notified they have been a close contact of someone who has tested positive for the virus.

Hotel industry impacted

Trevor Long, president of the Banff and Lake Louise Hospitality Association and general manager at the Rimrock Resort Hotel in Banff, says the industry is struggling as cases surge in mountain communities.

"We're doing our best to try and manage our business and keep in mind the safety and welfare of our community and workforce. So it's very difficult to manage that right now," he told the Calgary Eyeopener.

He says at the Rimrock, there are currently only two positive cases, but he knows that can turn into a ripple effect.

"We did have one case in our dining room with one of our kitchen staff … so we ended up having to shut our entire dining room down for two weeks," he said.

"It ended up being over 45 staff from the Rimrock that had to go and get tested for COVID because of one case that happened."

Long says despite the staff members testing negative, the hotel is not able to open up the dining room until 14 days pass.

"We're being very cautious with this," he said. "One or two cases can shut down a business completely."

Long says he's happy about the large scale testing that will be happening in the community and that staff at Rimrock will be getting tested again. 

"All of our staff are being done on Wednesday. And as I say, it's better to know than not know because you can make some decisions when you are aware that you have positive cases or negative cases," he said.

"We're appreciative of the province stepping in and helping out our community."