Mandatory Mask Bylaw
What is the Bylaw?
- The Mandatory Mask Bylaw (2020-20) compels residents, visitors, and businesses to wear a mask or face covering in all public indoor settings (some exceptions apply), as well as when they are outside in a line-up at any retail or food establishment.
- This temporary bylaw came into effect on Aug. 7, 2020 and was amended on Dec. 15, 2020.
- This bylaw will help restore confidence in the community who don’t feel safe when those around them are not wearing masks while serving as a visual reminder that the pandemic continues to remain a health risk.
- The bylaw mandates that face coverings be worn in the following places:
Place
Example
Public transit
Roam Transit
Public vehicles for hire
Taxis, shuttles
Public indoor spaces
Malls, grocery stores, retail businesses, churches
Town of Canmore facilities
Canmore Recreation Centre, Elevation Place, Civic Centre
Outdoor lineups
In any line-up outside a retail or food establishment.
Essential information
“Public premises” means the interior area of any building or structure to which the public is invited or permitted access, either expressly or by implication regardless of whether a fee is charged for entry, in order to receive or to provide goods or services, including but not limited to the public areas of the following:
• Restaurants, cafés, cafeterias, and outdoor patios associated with these establishments;
• Retail establishments;
• Shopping malls or similar structures that contain multiple places of businesses;
• Grocery stores;
• Churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, or other places of worship;
• Libraries, museums, art galleries, recreational facilities, cinemas, theatres, concert venues, special event venues, convention centers, or other similar entertainment, cultural, or leisure facilities;
• Common areas of sports facilities, sports clubs, gyms, yoga studios, or other similar establishments, such as lobbies, elevators, and locker rooms/changing rooms;
• Common areas of hotels, motels, and other short-term rentals, such as lobbies, elevators, meeting rooms, or other common use facilities;
• Health and wellness facilities and personal services facilities;
• Temporary facilities, such as construction trailers and temporary sales offices;
• Municipal facilities; and,
• Other businesses, organizations, and places that are permitted to operate in accordance with the Government of Alberta’s Relaunch Strategy.
• Public vehicles, unless the person is separated from other persons by an installed screen, shield, or other barrier.
• When located either within or behind a physical barrier including but not limited to an installed screen, shield, or another barrier, implemented between any person not required to wear a face-covering under this exception and any other person.
Exemptions
• persons with an underlying medical condition or disability which inhibits their ability to wear a face-covering;
• persons who are unable to place, use or remove a face covering safely without assistance;
• persons who are eating or drinking at a public premise that offers food or beverage services in designated seating areas;
• persons engaging in an athletic, fitness or water activity, the latter being an activity where their face may be submerged in water, including but not limited to persons employed as a lifeguard;
• persons who are caregiving for or accompanying a person with a disability where wearing a face covering would hinder the accommodation of the person’s disability; or
• persons who have temporarily removed their face covering where doing so is necessary to provide or receive a service.
Please note: Proof is not required if someone has an exception. Businesses are also not expected to deny services as not everyone is required to wear a face covering. Businesses are not expected to enforce this bylaw.
• Day Care and Day Home facilities, as defined in the Town of Canmore’s Land Use Bylaw;
• Portions of buildings that are being used for the purpose of providing day camps;
• In areas not open to the general public in offices of professional service providers such as lawyers and accountants where clients receive services;
• Hospitals, independent health facilities, and offices of regulated health professionals; and
• School busses.
Mask Requirements for Business
Under the bylaw, business employers, operators, or proprietors are required to display messaging in public entryways of the business.
INDOOR PREMISES
Canmore Mask Bylaw Poster - General
Canmore Mask Bylaw Poster - Food and Beverage
pdf Canmore Mask Bylaw Poster - Fitness Facilities (434 KB)
OUTDOOR LINEUPS
Retail and food establishments must post the following signage in addition to the above if they have outdoor line-ups to manage their visitation levels. Businesses that do not have outdoor line-ups are exempt from posting this signage.
pdf
Canmore Mask Bylaw - Outdoor Line-Ups
(307 KB)
Frequently Asked Questions
• Restaurants, cafés, cafeterias, and outdoor patios associated with these establishments;
• Retail establishments;
• Shopping malls or similar structures that contain multiple places of businesses;
• Grocery stores;
• Churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, or other places of worship;
• Libraries, museums, art galleries, recreational facilities, cinemas, theatres, concert venues, special event venues, convention centers, or other similar entertainment, cultural, or leisure facilities;
• Common areas of sports facilities, sports clubs, gyms, yoga studios, or other similar establishments, such as lobbies, elevators, and locker rooms/changing rooms;
• Common areas of hotels, motels, and other short-term rentals, such as lobbies, elevators, meeting rooms, or other common use facilities;
• Health and wellness facilities and personal services facilities;
• Temporary facilities, such as construction trailers and temporary sales offices;
• Municipal facilities; and,
• Other businesses, organizations, and places that are permitted to operate in accordance with the Government of Alberta’s Relaunch Strategy.
• Public vehicles, unless the person is separated from other persons by an installed screen, shield, or other barrier.
Businesses may have their own policies for managing mask use on their property, but they are not required to enforce the Town’s bylaw and should avoid confrontation. Businesses are not required but are welcome to share information about the bylaw requirements and exemptions.
"All persons must wear a mask or face covering that fully covers the nose, mouth, and chin as required by Town of Canmore Bylaw 2020-20."
A sign posted in public premises must be at least 20 cm by 26 cm and must have a surface area of not less than 520 cm², and a sign posted in a public vehicle must be at least 10 cm by 10 cm and must have a surface area of not less than 100 cm²
Retail and food establishments must post additional signage to the above if they have outdoor line-ups to manage their visitation levels. Businesses that do not have outdoor line-ups are exempt from posting this signage.
The Town of Canmore has provided signage on our Business Hub that you can use.
As of Nov. 2, 2020, the Town of Canmore is offering a new free single-use mask program, courtesy of the Province of Alberta. Residents can pick up a package of 5 masks between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at the Civic Centre Community Common Area or at the Front Desk. The program will run until supplies last.
Background
- The Chief Medical Officer of Health for Alberta, Chief Public Health Officer for Canada, and the WHO strongly recommend the wearing of masks or face coverings to limit the spread of COVID-19 where physical distancing cannot be maintained, especially in indoor settings and in spaces where people spend extended periods of time in close proximity with poor air circulation.
- The Mandatory Mask Bylaw (2020-20) was passed unanimously and went into effect on August 7, 2020.