Will Toronto’s fun summer programs stick around as COVID restrictions ease?
The City of Toronto implemented a number of summer programs over the past two years since the pandemic started in 2020.
Despite COVID-19 restrictions rolling away, many of them are here to stay.
CTV News Toronto has compiled a list of which programs will return for another year.
CaféTO
The CaféTO program, which allowed for restaurant and bar operators to expand their outdoor dining spaces onto curb lanes and sidewalks, started up to provide a safer option amid the pandemic and to help struggling businesses cope with COVID-19 closures.
Last November, Toronto council voted in favour of making the CafeTO program a permanent fixture of city life starting in 2023. The program was also revived for summer 2022, and the city asked bars, restaurants and cafes to start registering in January to expedite the application and permitting process.
Summer CampTO
For the third straight year, the City of Toronto is offering its in-person summer day camp programs. However, the big change this year will be the absence of COVID-19 restrictions. This program will run from July 4 to Sept. 2 and will be open to children and youth between the ages of four and 16.
ActiveTO
ActiveTO will continue in some form into 2022. The city says it will continue to expand Toronto's cycling network and close major roads to traffic so that people in the city have access to more recreation space on weekends. The city told CTV News Toronto on Tuesday that more details would be announced soon about the program.
Outdoor recreation programs
Amid the pandemic, The City of Toronto came up with a couple of initiatives to provide free outdoor programs in parks for children and youth in Toronto, including the ParksPlayTO program for children aged 12 and younger and the Summer is the 6IX program for youth aged 13 to 24.
On Tuesday, the city said the programs are not yet scheduled for 2022, but information about the programs will be available in the “near future.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former astronaut William Anders, who took iconic Earthrise photo, dies in plane crash off Vancouver Island
Retired Maj. Gen. William Anders, the former Apollo 8 astronaut who took the iconic 'Earthrise' photo showing the planet as a shadowed blue marble from space in 1968, was killed Friday when the plane he was piloting alone plummeted into the waters off the San Juan Islands in Washington state.
Canadian businessman Frank Stronach charged in sexual assault investigation
Canadian businessman Frank Stronach has been charged in connection with alleged sexual assaults that spanned over four decades, police west of Toronto announced on Friday.
Tessa Virtue and Morgan Rielly were ordered to stop painting their Toronto home. Here is why.
Decorated figure skater Tessa Virtue and Toronto Maple Leaf Morgan Rielly have hired a lobbyist as they seek permission to paint the exterior of their Rosedale heritage home, despite objections from city staff.
Spelling the end of an era: How Pat Sajak made an imprint in Canada
Ontario entrepreneur, rapper and self-described religious viewer, Bishop Brigante, will tune in and try to solve the Hangman-style puzzles as game show host Pat Sajak takes his last spin on the Wheel of Fortune.
Common low-calorie sweetener linked to heart attack and stroke, study finds
A low-calorie sweetener called xylitol used in many reduced-sugar foods and consumer products such as gum and toothpaste may be linked to nearly twice the risk of heart attacks, stroke and death in people who consume the highest levels of the sweetener, a new study found.
Florida woman charged with leaving her boyfriend to die in a suitcase faces October trial
A Florida woman charged with leaving her boyfriend to die after he was zipped into a suitcase in their home will go on trial in October following a hearing on Friday.
Lawyer for Jontay Porter says now-banned NBA player was 'in over his head' with a gambling addiction
Jontay Porter, the former Toronto Raptors forward who was given a lifetime ban by the NBA because of a sports betting scandal, was 'in over his head' with a gambling addiction, his lawyer said Friday.
A real nut case: Cold Stone Creamery faces suit over lack of real pistachios in pistachio ice cream
A federal judge in New York has given the go-ahead to a Long Island woman's class action lawsuit that claims consumers are being duped by Cold Stone Creamery when they purchase certain flavours that "do not contain their represented ingredients."
Some Florida beaches temporarily closed to swimmers after 2 reported shark attacks
Two reported shark attacks Friday led authorities to temporary close beaches to swimmers in Walton County, on the Florida Panhandle.