COVID-19 Update – April 28, 2020

>> Good afternoon, everyoneand welcome to your Tuesday update.

We have moved theseupdates to Tuesdays and Thursdays startingthis week.

Today we have a specialtreat for you, which is deputychief of the Calgary emergency Managementagency Sue Henry.

I want to, as always, toremind us that the work we do here isvery serious.

We will likely hit the 50mark in terms of people we have lost inCalgary today.

And those are 50 peoplewho have friends and family members, theywere loved ones and neighbours, ultimately theywere our people.

And today is April 28, the national day of mourning.

It is the daywe mourn people who have been killed orinjured, who have fallen ill in the workplace.

And you will seethat all the flags at city facilitiesacross the city are at half mast today.

And starting today they will remainat half mast.

I have asked those flagsstay at half mast for the duration of thecrisis we are facing so that we rememberthat as we are having discussions aboutreopening , about what activities areand are not available, ultimately this is anissue about life in death.

I want to remember thepeople we have lost and ensure we holdthem in our memory and act accordinglyas we continue to keep ourselvessafe in this period of clear heads andopen hearts.

Before I invite Sue onto the stage, Iwant to acknowledge another tragedyvery close to home in the middle of theglobal emergency, which is the flooding in Fort McMurray.

I know Calgary has been reaching out, offering assistance, I cannot even imagine having a state ofemergency on top of a state of emergencyand trying to deal with that flooding duringa pandemic.

Certainly we are there, as we always will be, for our colleagues.

We wish them well.

We know they knowwhat they are doing, we are here to assist, even in the middle of the pandemic.

Our priority is tokeep everyone safe.

With that I will turn it over to deputychief Sue Henry for the update.

>> Thank you, your worship.

I want to take a moment and recognisethe regional municipality of Buffalo , we are thinkingabout them and our hearts go outto them and we are on standby should theyneed assistance.

We recognise they are nostranger to floods and disasters, howeverdealing with an evacuation in conjunction with the responseto COVID-19 has presented a new levelof challenges.

I recognise ourown national — natural disaster response as we view the flooding in northernAlberta and enter fire season.

I want you to know that inthe City of Calgary we have developed contingency plans as weare as ready as we can be for other eventsthat may occur.

We have changed some ofour processes around emergency socialservices, we have moved to a virtual environment and have been planningto handle these emergencies.

With spring here, I know people fromCalgary are excited to take advantage of thesunny weather and spend more time outside.

I know you are makinggreat sacrifices in your own planningand your homes to keep appropriate distancefrom others when out.

I'm happy to reportwe have had a lot of positive feedback fromParks ambassadors who have been in thecommunity over the weekend educatingcitizens on how to enjoy our parks , our pathways andgreen spaces.

While reminding them ofthe safety requirements.

If you are going tobe out, spread out.

In addition our Calgarycommunity standards officers have conducted 362 patrol since Friday and they report back that they are gettingimprovements in the social distancingamong citizens.

So thank you to thepeople of Calgary who have been doing thatappropriate response.

That being said, we havesome numbers for you.

There are still somecircumstances where people from Calgaryare not observing the necessarybehaviour.

Our community standardoffice has issued 140 warnings as well as threeviolation tickets of $1200 per ticket to individuals notfollowing physical distancing requirementsin Lindsay Park.

Three violations of $400 were issued toindividuals using a skate park , which have been closedsince March 27.

Additionally threeviolation tickets of $120 were issued to individuals fordrinking in a public space.

We prefer to useenforcement has a last resort.

We need the public's cooperation to helpunderstand the seriousness and requirementfor following a bleak of measures.

Since Friday, we have had 1515 calls to 311 related to COVID-19.

Some of these wereconcerns and somewhere enquiries.

338 of these calls wererelated to physical distance and concerns.

This is where wecan control this, we can take thebehaviours necessary to not have theseconcerns come forward.

We had 58 calls about physicaldistancing in public spaces , 34 calls concerning private yards or areas , 38 calls concerningplayground use, and 34 calls regarding the size of gatherings.

In addition, 31 concerns were dispatched to the Calgary police serviceregarding maths gatherings of 15 peopleor more in an area.

Additionally, we havea task force working with businesses that are stillremaining open , regardless of theessential services order.

Last weekend theyreceived 40 calls from citizens , bringing the totalnumber of COVID-19 calls to 560 since wedeclared a local emergency in March.

Two businesses wereissued a warning.

We will conductthese weekly inspections for theforeseeable future and nonessential businessesfound operating in conventionof the public-health order could face fines.

This is a great timeto remind people from Calgary that we are still in astate of local emergency and it is up to youto help us stop the spread of COVID-19.

We are encouraging youto report any concerns you may have two 311 or submit an online request.

It is important to note that until furthernotice our golf courses are close.

This is in addition toother organised sports which are prohibited from beingplayed in the City of Calgary.

Our green spacesthemselves remain open.

This is for passiverecreation such as walking and getting outand getting some air.

We are asking you toplease respect these closures.

Along with the otherclosures we have had in place for some weeks includingplaygrounds, equipment and infrastructure.

For a full listof closures, visit the website .

As a city weare continuing to work together tocreate safe outdoor areas to provide citizenswith a place where they can take careof their mental health needs, take a walk andgo for a bike ride.

Last week we restrictedparking on the south sideof Crescent Road to reduce traffic, N congestion in the community .

I am happy to share thatwe received a positive feedback from theresidents regarding these closures and the presence of thepeace officers in the area has beenwell received.

From a street sweepingperspective, we started earlyin April and we will be runninguntil the end of June.

This occurs on weekdaysfrom 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM and crews have beenprogressing through the schedule.

We encourage you to checkthe website for these schedules andwe want to thank people from Calgary whohave moved your vehicles to facilitate thestreet sweeping.

We also know thatCOVID-19 pandemic has been tough on Calgary businesses.

We are here to supportthese local businesses because local businessesin Calgary are Calgary and weare in this together.

Recently we have reachedout to local companies, the Alberta garment manufacturers to sourceface coverings for frontline city employees.

We are grateful thatboth these offenders could switch gears and rise to thechallenge to keep our employees safe while they are out thereserving the people of Calgary.

You can support ourlocal businesses.

Every citizen can takeaction to do that.

By from a localbusiness online.

Purchase gift cardsyou can use later.

Order deliveryor take out from your localrestaurant.

Leave a positive reviewon social media from a business youhad interaction with.

Spread the word on how businesses areshifting and pivoting in this difficult time.

For more information, visit the website.

Lastly, I want to say thank you to thepeople from Calgary who have taken the rightsteps and actions.

You are saving lives bymaking the sacrifices you are making, keep doing what you are doing andtogether we will flatten the curve.

We are happy to takeany questions.

>> Thanks so much, Sue.

Let me add to Sue's thanks andgratitude to people from Calgary for doing theright thing.

While we are stillseeing increasing case numbers, increasingdeaths, we are certainly notat the end of this .

We certainly know that the actions that the people of Calgaryare saving lives and that is becausepeople are willing to make the sacrifices, notjust for their own health but for thehealth of others.

I want to thank allof you for doing that.

When I mentionFort McMurray, I should have said thatwe will have our own flood update foryou next week.

For now, as you know, we aregetting into flood danger season in Calgary.

The first phasehas to do with ice dams.

We don't have much riskof those right now because thereis little to no ice remaining .

This does not mean we are out ofthe flood risk.

There is stillopportunities for flooding starting at ourheadwaters in the mountains but we will have aproper update on that next week.

Sue talked a lot aboutsupporting local businesses, whichis fantastic # Support local , I want to make surethat businesses and non-profit organisationsare aware that applications for theCanada emergency subsidy which provides 75%of employee wages to eligibleorganisations, they have open.

Visit the website for details.

We are very happylast week to hear of moves by thegovernment of Canada , supported by thegovernment of Alberta, in helping deal with commercial rents.

That is the number onething that businesses had been asking us for , rent relief, andwe were thrilled that other governmentshave gone forward with that.

These supports forbusinesses are critical.

Of course the number onequestion we are getting is .

how and when canthe economy reopen? And I wish I hadbetter answers .

I don't.

I know thatpremier Kenny has said this week he will bemaking announcements about what our relaunchstrategy looks like.

There is a differencebetween what and when, don't forget that.

You've heard mesay this before, this is not a switchto dial, this is not opening the floodgateson the Glenmore Dam, this is opening a faucet carefully and beingready to close the faucet if necessary if thingsare not working.

And that's how we needto think about this.

Right now the answer to thequestion of when will the economy open againis, as always, in your hands.

In your clean hands.

The public healthorders, the restrictions placed on the state oflocal emergency, in place by the provinceare therefore our collective good.

I know for alot of people it is gettingfrustrating , people are thinking they want toget out more .

I get it, I feel it also.

The only place I getto go is the emergency operation centre and thatis more than a lot of people do.

It is critical for us toremember that the harder we clamp down on ouractivities now, the sooner we can reopen, thequicker we can flatten the curve.

It's important toremember that .

the more we stay home, the greater our chances of reducing the spread.

If you look at a placelike news Ireland — New Zealand, they are in Ireland andthey clamp down hard at the beginning.

The Prime Minister wasover they have eradicated the virus from theirislands and are now allowing restaurants todo takeout in delivery.

Remember that, theyclamp down much harder and their reopening isalmost similar to where we are now in some ways.

We cannot declarevictory too early because if we do, thatmeans we will have to close the tap again.

We will be back onthese restrictions.

Don't forgetthe influenza pandemic in 1918, 5 million died in thefirst wave and almost 50 million in thesecond way.

We want to makesure we are not going to early andrisking people's lives going forward.

We have seen greatprogress.

Are we pay? I we not? I don't know.

We have perhapsplateaued for a while, ratherthan peaking.

Remember the peak isonly halfway there.

You have to climbdown the other side.

And we cannot risk losing the progresswe have.

And I know that familiesand individuals have made huge sacrifices andsmall sacrifices, all of that has beenhappening together.

But I have totell you that every single time someone tries tofind a loophole, every time someonesays, ” Is it OK if I play tennis on the closetennis court if we use differentcoloured balls and don't touch the sameball and we only play singles and not doublesand the person I play with lives in my house?”Probably that is OK.

But no, every time welook for loopholes and stretch these things, every time we say it'sOK for you to play tennis but not foryou, we run the risk of backtracking and removing the greatprogress we have made .

I was told this morningby somebody, this is probably goingto far, every time someone tries to find a loopholethey are effectively telling others who aresacrificing that they don't care if theylive or die.

I don't think that'sthe case.

I think everyone cares.

But we have to rememberthat it is our own actions thatare governing how the pandemic goes.

When I say the future isin your hands , it's in your cleanhands, it is very true .

Every single one of us, by the actions we take, control the flow of the pandemic.

You will save you fromthis virus, not the government.

And you will save otherpeople from this virus by your actions.

Every single one of usindividually is not invincible but together we cannot be defeated.

I don't know when thisis going to end, I wish I couldgive you a date or horizon to look at but I do know theactions we take together today governed what ourfuture looks like.

I am asking every singleone of you to remember the things you have beentalking about, they have not changed.

Clean hands, actnot like someone who doesn't wantto get sick , act like youare already sick.

Act like every personyou need is your 90-year-old grandmother.

Don't give in tofrustration and anger and fear and sadness, we all have them.

I have them too.

But we have tobe clearheaded and thoughtfuland purposeful in every decisionwe make.

And most importantly, open hearts.

Reaching out to oneanother, finding new ways to connect in an age of physicaldistancing, making sure that people know even if they are alone, they are not alone, is critical.

I have to tell you that I had the opportunity, as many Canadiansdid on Sunday, to watch the Stronger Together performance in aid of food ranks across Canada.

I had a lotof work to do on the computer andI had it on in the background listeningto some music while I worked.

I didn't getmuch work done because I found myself during that getting pretty emotional.

About the peoplewe have lost , the people who have recovered , about the people whogo to work every single day putting themselves atrisk so that the rest of us can stay safe.

Yes, I crieda little bit and thought about theheroic healthcare workers, doctors and nurses andorderlies and cleaners and lab technicians , the work they are doing for every single one ofus and all the people who go to work inhealthcare every day.

The thing thatreally got me , I couldn't look at mycomputer for a while because it waskind of blurry, was when a couple offolks said thank you to the bus drivers and thegarbage collectors.

I feel a lot ofresponsibility for those folks.

They work forus, after all.

They work with us inthis organisation.

And the work they aredoing every single day is so important and we cannot take the risks they aretaking for granted and the work we do iswhat eventually helps them , the work they do iswhat eventually helps us stay safe.

With that I think wehave a slightly different way of takingquestions today, if you have a question, hit Star 1 and you will getin the queue.

By the way, I havea weekly phone call with all the mayorsacross the province with different ministersand sometimes the Premier and DoctorHenshaw and they say 100 times, hit Star 3 if youhave a question.

I have hit Star 3 so many timesand nothing happens.

I am convinced theyhave blocked me from asking questions onthose calls but hopefully we have not blocked any media.

Operator, can you put the firstquestion through? >> Madeline Smith , go ahead.

>> This question is for Deputy Chief Henry , nice to virtuallymeet you.

I was wondering if youcould give a little more detail about ticketsthat were issued , the three $1200tickets, are you able to say theareas those were handed out and is there any moredetail on what the circumstances were? I know Chief Tom Sampson saidhe only wanted to see ticketing in egregiouscircumstances, can you talk more about whatwas going on? >> The three violationtickets of $1200 worth for physical distancing requirementsin Lindsay Park and you are correctthat these are for a egregious disregard for the behaviourrequired.

>> Can you be more specific about what egregious behaviourlooks like? >> I don't have any morespecifics on that.

>> A couple of questions, first I will follow up with Deputy Chief Henry, could you at leastsay the timeline on these tickets , Saturday or Sunday, when did that happen? >> These numbers weregiven after Friday, it occurred on either Fridayor Saturday.

>> My second questionis for the mayor.

Last week you said that social gatherings or50 people or less were for funerals orunavoidable activities.

Since then the provincehas posted recommendationsonline saying gatherings for socialreasons with friends and family are allowed as long aseveryone stays 2 m away.

Walks and bike ridesare examples.

I think people from Calgary aregetting mixed messages.

What is your advice forpeople who want to see their friendsand family? >> I was pleased to see alittle bit of loosening of the restrictionsfrom public health.

Our advice still is stayhome as much as you can.

However, if you want todo those driveway visits , those Sunday suppers that my family was doingat the beginning of this where the people inthe house stay on the porch and the other peoplesit at the end of the driveway or the lawn.

That's OK, don't makea huge habit of it.

Make sure you arereally staying safe in all of this.

Because we wantto ensure that people don't take that 6 feet as I'm totally safeif I am 6 feet away from the other person and then I cando anything.

I can go and have a party in thepark as long as I stay 6 feet away.

For people who reallyfeel the need to see their family and friends, and remember those gatherings of 15, I remind you are forpeople under 60 years old, people who don't havepre-existing conditions, people who are notimmunosuppressed.

For me I am airing on theside of caution and making sure that weare still really careful .

But you are certainlynot going to get one of those tickets that Suetalked about if you are having a drivewayvisit with folks.

I am still sayingtry to stay away from going andhaving a pick — picnic or going to the parkwith people who are not part of your cohort that a 6 feetaway from you.

I still think that isgetting too close to risky behaviour but ultimately I waspleased that public health has eased up a biton these restrictions, just clarifying thatyou can see people, but don't make it forlong periods of time and don't think that isa magic thing that will keep you safe and don'tinvolve people who are at risk.

Did I miss anythingthere? >> This is probably for man Naheed Nenshi.

Questions aroundticketing.

There does seem to bethis whole idea of mixed messaging, on one hand when youwere talking earlier you mentioned loopholes thatpeople are trying to exploit and I think that's where someof the confusion is.

Would it be easier if there were hard and fast rules of four peopleto follow? >> There are hardand fast rules.

That is the key here, people trying to look for loopholes, theydon't exist.

The point is we havedone tons of education, weeks of it.

And in fact, that's alwaysour philosophy at the City of Calgary, we always educatebefore we enforce.

If you are stunting on cruise Road and having partiesat night — Crescent Road, that is not allowed, that's a rule.

If you are in an outdoorrunning club with people who don'twork with you and running together and walking a pathway, that is not allowed.

I take some exceptionto people who say the rules are not clear, they are very clear.

Stay at home asmuch as you can.

Stay at least 2 m awayfrom anybody who doesn't live with you, whoisn't in your cohort.

Stay away from peoplewho are at risk and if you are at risk yourself, you have a different set of rules.

That is really it.

If you are not at home, you should be doing one of four things .

youshould be doing your weekly shoppingpreferably with only one member of the familywhere possible , you should beperforming an essential service, you should bevolunteering to help someone who can'tget out, or you should be out forabout one hour per day maximum doing your freshair and exercise and having propersocial distancing.

I will add a 4 A, visits for peoplewho are isolated.

Beyond that, it is important tounderstand the rules are actually very , very clear.

And yes indeed, as we learn more and thecurve flattens I fully expect that public health willease up on some of these restrictions.

Right now, as always, it's better safethan sorry.

I think Sue is moreinformation to add on the sorts of thingsthat I getting people ticketed.

>> We haven't been able toconfirm with our folks that Calgary community standards, the three tickets were issued in Lindsay Park on Friday eveningto 3 adult males who were frequently — flagrantly ignoring the rules andwould not separate.

The tickets atthe skate park , it was closed, fenced off, and the tickets weregiven to adults on-site.

>> This is another follow-up for the mayor.

Mentioning public healthhas eased up a little bit on some of thoserestrictions, there might be more people inparks or on pathways now , we are assuming that people outsideof your house , you can hang out withthem as long as you are practising physicaldistancing.

Will the citylook at further measures to close down more streets or create more space onside works to provide more space for essential workerswho need to be out and about? >> There is really alimit to what you can do.

I want to remind peoplethat even if you are having a brief sociallydistant visit , still try to do thatin neighbourhoods.

Don't say let's meet for a socially distant picnic at Princes Island, it's still not a wisething to do, there is too much dangerout there.

You want to be ableto stay in your own neighbourhood.

If you want to visitsomeone, visit in that neighbourhoodwhere things would be quieter.

That is my advice.

We are continuing tomonitor this and ensuring that wherewe see bottlenecks, we are doing everythingwe can to encourage physical distancing.

The other thing toremind people is folks live in theseneighbourhoods.

That pathway you travelto someone else's neighbourhood park .

If I open my door and wantto walk in my park , the pathwayoutside my door but I cannot go there because there aretoo many people , that is a problem.

One other thingI should mention on that is that I forgot to mentionthis earlier, we haven't actuallyspoken in this format since we have seen the outbreaks at the drop-incentre and the Salvation Army.

We have been talking for some time about how thatwas for me one of my very top, if not the top public health concerns.

I know my colleagues atCalgary neighbourhoods are working hard withthe shelter operators and the folks from the Alberta governmentand social services to make sure we arecontaining those outbreaks.

It is an example ofhow it is very easy for an outbreak to begin and we needto be careful because those canhit anyone of us.

I forgot to sayone thing .

if you are travelling toa neighbourhood, be a good neighbour, don't take people'sparking spots, be polite.

If you are drivingto that neighbourhood and parking , make sure tobe neighbourly.

I will highlight thisone more time .

just because it's OK to do it, doesn't mean everybody should do it and do it right now.

This is an additional freedom or privilegeor right that has beengranted but it doesn't mean everybodyhas to exercise it every single day.

We want to makesure that as we open the dial , we don't have toclose it again.

Next question, please? >> This is a question for either of you.

Participatingorganisations regarding the financial impact of registrations, varying organisationsare feeling the crunch more than others.

I know BC is relaxing some of therules because they are flattening the curve asthe weather gets warmer public recreationcentres want reopened.

Obviously everybody isfeeling this crunch, but is there any plan to look at that , potentially some of Sport Calgary Park's organisations reopening or relaxing the rules surroundingoutdoor sport and recreationin the city? >> There may be some thingshappening at the margins with particularsports where you can stay so.

Let's remember there isstill a restriction on gatherings of morethan 15 people.

So it's hard to imagineany team sport , that's everybody, players, fans, coaches, so it's hard to imagine any particularorganised sport being relaxedanytime soon while that 15person limit is still in place.

As for the organisationsthemselves, it is importantfor me to remind those organisations, make .

make most of whichare nonprofits, most of the stuff the Federal Government hasannounced is available for non-profitorganisations and have announced specialisedfunding for arts, culture and sportingorganisations.

Last week, I think.

I encourage thoseorganisations to look at that.

Ultimately we will workclosely with public health , with the provinceof Alberta, and ensure that if andwhen restrictions are eased, we will be lookingcarefully at what kind of sport activities could fall underthose loosened restrictions.

But ultimately publichealth remains our priority.

Next question? >> Two questionsfor the mayor.

First, given theinformation that was to shared regarding tickets havingto be issued, your perceptionthat the situation is getting better or is it the educationis not working and the law hasto do what it has to do? >> I am being very anecdotal about this butmy anecdotes show that the vastmajority of people from Calgary are doingthe right thing.

And where wehad seen some concentrated areas of bad activitysuch as Crescent Road, we have been ableto fix the problem.

What I have heard fromthe residents of Crescent Road, they are ecstatic that the situationhas flipped.

There are still tons ofpeople walking on the road and enjoyingthe view but they are doing soin a way that is safe.

That is sociallydistance d and so on.

My sense that thecombination of education and enforcementis important because ultimately, one outbreak inone workplace has led to hundredsof cases in the City of Calgary .

You can't letyour guard down and sometimes you needthat enforcement in place.

And I know very well that the Calgary Police and by law offices are enforcing only flagrant violations and whenwe see those, we will act.

You said you hadtwo questions? >> You touched upon thehundreds of cases related to the cargoplant and a lot of those people live in Calgary.

Are you getting requestsor any sense that there is morethe city needs to do to help those peoplewhile self isolating or are they gettingadequate supports? >> About 60% of those folks live inthe City of Calgary.

As recentlyas last night I personally receiveda request around how we might be able to helpwith food for those folks who are self isolating .

Social agencies across the cityhave come together in order to helpwith those people.

We play a conveningrole in doing that.

While the City doesn't havea ton of work to do, my colleagues have beenworking hard on this since Saturday , Saturday a week ago, on ensuring thatagencies are in place, the isolation metricsare in place, some people are beingisolated from their families or householdsituations, if other peopleare not positive.

This is a test, track, treat situation.

I don't mean treat the disease, I meantreat everything around it to make sure people haveenough food and they can make it through theisolation period OK, understanding that a lotof these folks are not highly paid workers, theyare in a difficult and sometimes marginalexistence.

We are making sure wehave the supports they need and, frankly, everyonein the city needs as we move forward.

Next question, please? >> This question is for the deputy chief.

For the violations , what is the generalage of people ticketed? >> We have informationthat they are adults.

We have not ticketedany children.

>> Thank you.

>> Hello.

This would be for whoever wantsto answer.

With the gathering isnow being under 15, you can get togethersafely if you don't share food or drink.

What about if youhave small kids, how do you keepthem apart? >> I don't know Sue willhave anything to add to this, but when I said beforeto be careful of people at risk, kids are not so muchat risk of getting very ill from the disease, though that has happened.

But they are huge germ spreaders.

I was talking to someoneyesterday who said ever since mygrandchildren are not coming over, I've never been so healthy in my life.

I don't have the right toissue orders , but don't have playdates, don't bring kids in close contact with kidsthey have been isolating with, it's not the right time.

I want to be superclear on this .

the public healthadvice is not to do this, it is you won'tget into trouble if you do this.

It is that if youtake a bunch of precautions and youreally feel the need to be doing this, then you can.

It's not suddenlyit's totally OK to have birthday partiesand play dates and people over to dinner if itis less than 15 people.

Remember something .

let's say you decide to have people over and youwill have a barbecue and everyone willstay 6 feet apart.

What happens if someonegoes inside and touches the doorknob? What happens whensomeone uses the washroom? Can you make sure youare not facilitating the transmission of thedisease that way? Obviously if youare little kid, it's impossible, that'swhy the playgrounds are closed.

It's too difficult tokeep them from touching.

We know that childrenwho are asymptomatic can spread the disease, anyone who ishe symptomatic .

make asymptomatic can spread the disease.

While things have easedup on gatherings, you have to havecommon sense.

It doesn't mean havingpeople over to dinner or a barbecue, it means limited time, driveway visits or a quick meeting inthe park to say hello to one another forit doesn't mean spending hours at a time 6 feet apart, especiallyin environment where you are touchingthe same things.

>> A quick question about thedemolition at Kensington, how has the state ofemergency affected the project? Is there concern aboutthe size of it being close to homes andbusinesses right next door? >> I actually don't knowthe answer to that.

But I can tell you thatconstruction and demolition have been deemedessential services.

A lot of people arestill going to work every day on constructionworksites, that is something Ibelieve in, it keeps that piece of theeconomy going.

I imagine we wouldfollow the same safety precautions we wouldnormally follow on projects like thatbut I will ask and if we get more information wewill get back to you.

We can probably taketwo more questions.

>> Darren Krause fromlivewire again.

>> The first question, I do have two, aquick clarification firstly, the 31requests that were dispatched toCalgary Police, was that for gatheringsof 15 or more or 50 or more? >> 15.

And on that note, I have receivednotes from friends and Facebook peopleand so on that are saying, ” My neighbour ishaving a party , is it wrong for me to tell on them ?” That is what 311 and the policenonemergency line is for.

You can explain what isgoing on and the people on the other endare telling you whether that issomething that is allowed or whetherit's a problem.

We can deal with it, that's what we do.

I want to encouragepeople to use reporting mechanisms, either311 or the police nonemergency line if theyhave questions or are concerned.

>> Along the lines of whatyou are talking about there, is there a concern about the number of tickets or complaints? It does seem tobe escalating.

I don't mean to go over the same ground, but are we concernedabout the rise? >> I would love it to be zero.

But I can tell you that the cases we are seeinga very isolated.

The vast majorityof people are not doing this stuffand are horrified that other people are doing this stuff.

Even though folks wouldlike us to open more quickly, they buyin large recognise the needs to followthe rules.

I think it is fine thatwe are enforcing, find that weare ticketing flagrant violations, it's fine for people tocall in with questions.

Sometimes the answerwill be that business is allowed to operate all those people are allfrom the same family , the same household, it's fine.

It's OK to ask thesethings and ultimately people are doingthe right thing.

But when they are notthey are putting other people at risk and thatsomething we won't tolerate.

Our final questionfor today? >> Scott Dippil from CBC.

>> A non-COVID-19 matter, Sue 10 has announced that they receiveda $32 million grant from theprovincial government as part of thearrangement to drop their oppositionto the Springbank of stream reservoir.

I was wondering about your thoughts, about money beingpaid to secure that.

>> I hadn't heard that before you mentionedit, Scott.

Listen, this is an absolutely essential project.

We must buildupstream flood mitigation on the Elbow River.

We know the Springbank Dam is the rightthing to do.

And it will get built and I'm lookingforward to that.

Thank you for doing everything you can to clear whateverbarriers remain .

I will say tothe governor — government of Canada, I know you arebusy but that environmental assessment is very late.

We need that approval andwe need it quickly.

With that, let mesay thank you to everybody.

Scott, did you havea follow-up? >> That's fine.

>> Thanks for much, everybody.

We will have anotherbriefing on Thursday.

I probably won't be here because we havea Council meeting but we will workout the details .

Stay safe, clean hands, clear heads andopen hearts.

Stay home if you can and be kindto each other.

Together we will save lives.

Thank you all.

.