Vaughan, Ontario closes rinks, toboggan hills, and dog parks due to COVID-19

The city of Vaughan has decided to close its outdoor amenities including outdoor skating rinks, toboggan hill and dog park due to concerns over COVID-19. This comes after Premier Ford's stay-at-home order came into effect.

The municipality is the first in the GTA to do so, and in a statement it said "All decisions about closing and opening facilities continue to be informed by Vaughan-specific data and reflect guidance issued by York Region Public Health and the provincial government – with public safety being the priority."

Most city facilities, including city hall, are closed until June. The city has however decided to keep its trails open but asks people to follow guidelines like social distancing and masking, CP24 reports.

Other cities like Toronto, Mississauga, and Ottawa have decided to keep their outdoor amenities open.

Toronto Mayor John Tory told CP24 that Toronto's decision to keep outdoor amenities open was made based on medical advice. "Originally, way back in the early stages, it was thought maybe this virus could be transmitted from playground equipment but it was decided that was a very low risk," Tory said.

"Frankly, being outside is lower risk than being inside because of the ventilation provided by fresh air, so what we have decided to do is to leave the parks open, but we have made it very clear to people, as the premier has, as I have, that you need to keep your distance."