NORTH BAY -- As most of the province settles back into the colour code COVID-19 system, North Bay remains in shutdown causing members from both the North Bay & District Chamber of Commerce and the Parry Sound Area Chamber of Commerce to speak out.
"The Chamber of Commerce is always the voice of business," said Christy Cafovski the Executive Director of the Parry Sound Area Chamber of Commerce.
"We will always stand by our businesses and the business community as a whole."
Cafovski is just one of several who have wrote public letters asking the North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit to provide an explanation for the lockdown extension and hopefully reconsider.
"The answers that we’re really looking for is that empirical data," she said after explaining that she hasn’t heard back from the health unit yet.
"We’re looking to find out why the lockdown was extended when our surrounding districts in the Simcoe and Muskoka region have over 600 active cases at the moment. The Parry Sound district has seven."
"What we’re asking for is perhaps a separate consideration in this special circumstance," she added noting that North Bay is currently experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak.
However, North Bay & District Chamber of Commerce chair Rebecca McGlynn has also wrote a public letter on behalf of local businesses within the city.
"I thought it was important to share some of the perspectives of local businesses who are going through a tough time right now with the lockdown," said McGlynn.
"I wanted to advocate for more communication and more advance notice."
She states that while the chamber fully supports the recommendations from the health unit and medical professionals, local businesses are struggling as well.
"Businesses have to line up their schedules, their appointments, you know, their staff for the coming week and that’s a lot of work and when the announcement came out on Friday afternoon, it wasn’t a lot of time for businesses to prepare," she said.
The North Bay & District Chamber of Commerce currently represents over 600 businesses whereas the Parry Sound Area Chamber of Commerce represents over 165.
"COVID's going to be a factor for a long time," said Cafovski.
"So as far as our region goes the long term we are looking to make sure that our businesses are safe, that they are able to reopen safely and they are able to house those patrons that they rely so heavily on."
"In the short term, what we’re looking for is immediate reopening," she adds.
Right now the shutdown order is expected to lift on Feb. 22.
"We’ve also released a campaign asking the community to step up for small local businesses," said McGlynn.
"We’re really hoping that the community as a whole really shows their support by eating locally right now during this difficult time. We’re hoping that we hear a lot more about the framework and all the preparations that local businesses should be doing at this time so they can get ready for reopening."
CTV News reached out to the North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit for comment and had not yet received a response at the time of publishing.
