IMPORTANT COVID-19 UPDATE

May 25, 2020
 

On May 14, 2020, the Government of Ontario announced we are in the “Restart” phase of the Reopening Our Province Plan and some of the restrictions that have been in place during the state of emergency will begin to relax.  This remains an evolving situation with direction from the government and public health authorities guiding our response to this welcome news.

We would like to provide you with a brief update on our response to these measures and other recent public health recommendations and what it means to you as a resident.  The health and safety of our residents and our staff members remains our utmost priority.

What remains the same:

• All visitors, residents and staff members must rigorously follow all posted protocols.
• Enhanced cleaning routines in all buildings will continue.
• Physical distancing is required in all elevators, laundry rooms, and common areas including the prohibition of social gatherings in lobbies.
• All amenities (except laundry rooms) remain closed.
• Physical access to rental and site offices will remain restricted. Our staff members continue to work on-site and can be reached by phone.

What is changing:

• We are working on plans to re-open our indoor and outdoor amenities in a safe and responsible manner.  We are carefully reviewing the guidance of public health authorities and the direction of the provincial and federal governments and we will update you with more information when your building amenities are open for use.

• We are working towards safely resuming regular maintenance activities, including non-essential in-suite work that was deferred from March 17, 2020.  If this impacts your suite, you will be provided with appropriate notice.
• We have begun to safely continue major restoration projects.  We will be communicating to those residents who will be impacted as start dates of work are known.
• You will start to see outdoor swimming pool maintenance beginning, however pools will not open until all health and safety regulations have been met.  We expect government guidance on additional COVID-19 opening requirements will be released soon.
• On May 20, 2020 Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer provided updated guidance about use of non-medical masks and face coverings as an added layer of protection when physical distancing is difficult to maintain.  We encourage residents to wear a non-medical mask where a 2 metre distance cannot be maintained.

If you are feeling unwell, please DO NOT ENTER our offices or approach other persons in close proximity. 

Contact Telehealth Ontario 1-866-797-0000 if you experience symptoms of COVID-19 and follow their instructions. 

If you are experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19, you may qualify for financial assistance through special government programs. Information is regularly updated at Canada.ca and Ontario.ca.

We appreciate your continued co-operation as we all work together to reduce the spread of COVID-19.  If you have questions about how we are responding to the COVID19 situation, please contact us at questions@homestead.ca

Stay safe and healthy!

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IMPORTANT COVID-19 UPDATE

APRIL 9, 2020

We would like to provide you with a brief update on our response to the COVID-19 situation. As a responsible property owner and member of the community, the health and safety of our residents and our staff members remain our utmost priority. We know this is a stressful time and together we each have a part to play to limit the spread of COVID-19.

 

We continue to follow the guidance of Public Health Authorities for all our business operations. Here is what Homestead is doing in your building:

• Germguard (a bonding disinfecting agent) has now been applied to all high frequency touch points in all common areas of your building.
• We are continuing the enhanced daily cleaning routines focusing on high-frequency touch surfaces that we began in March.
• We have introduced safe-distancing guidelines in elevators to limit the potential for close encounter with others.
• All indoor and outdoor amenities, except laundry rooms, will remain closed in accordance with new rules updated by The Province of Ontario on April 3rd.
• We continue to enter occupied suites for essential reasons only.
• Although working behind closed doors, our staff remain on site to assist. As always we encourage our residents to give us a call.

 

We continue to ask that all visitors, residents and staff members rigorously follow the protocols outlined below to ensure your health and well-being.

• If you are feeling unwell, please DO NOT ENTER our offices or approach other persons in close proximity.
• If you experience symptoms of COVID-19 such as fever, cough and/or shortness of breath, contact Telehealth Ontario 1-866-797-0000
• Wash your hands regularly with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer.
• Please do not gather or socialize in any of the common areas, on the grounds or in the lobby. The Ontario State of Emergency prohibits these types of social gatherings.
• Always respect social distance requirements: keep at least two metres apart from others and avoid physical contact (no handshakes, physical embracing, etc.), limit the number of people in an elevator, limit the number of people in the laundry room
• Keep yourself informed about COVID-19 by checking reliable websites:
  • Ontario.ca, Canada.ca and/or your local public health unit

If you are experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19, you may qualify for financial assistance through special programs from the Governments of Canada and/or Ontario. Information is regularly updated at Canada.ca and Ontario.ca.

If you have questions about how we are responding to the COVID19 situation please contact us at questions@homestead.ca

Stay safe and healthy!

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SUPPORT FOR RESIDENTS DURING COVID-19

March 23, 2020

Dear Residents,

These are unprecedented times and as a responsible residential property owner and manager, we want to support our residents with important information and resources. We understand this is a difficult and stressful time for you and your families.

We want to make sure you are aware of measures the federal government has put in place to support residents who may be suffering financial hardship related to job loss, additional responsibilities caring for family, or illness due to COVID-19.

Here are some financial resources that may help you:

Employment Insurance

• Visit:  https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/ei/ei-sickness/apply.html

Emergency Care Benefit 

• Visit Canada Revenue Agency website:  https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/e-services/e-services-individuals/account-individuals.html
• Intended for those who don’t qualify for EI, can’t go to work, and don’t have paid sick leave
• provides up to $900 every two weeks for up to 15 weeks, to those affected by COVID-19
• Who can apply:
  • Workers — including self-employed — who are quarantined or sick with COVID-19
  • Those staying home to take care of a family member with COVID-19 who doesn't qualify
  • Parents staying home to care for children because of school closures

The Emergency Support Benefit

• Visit Canada Revenue Agency website:  https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/e-services/e-services-individuals/account-individuals.html
• Intended to be a long-term income support
• More details to come from federal government

 

We are suspending all scheduled rent increases effective April 1, 2020 during the COVID-19 situation.  That means the rent you were charged for March 2020 will be the rent that you pay on April 1, 2020 and thereafter until further notice. In addition, we will not issue any further rental increases during this period of crisis.

Our top priority is to protect the health and safety of our residents and employees and to continue to provide essential housing services in a healthy and safe manner. Alongside a number of like-minded rental companies, we are in contact with all levels of government and will continue to work with them to identify additional initiatives to further support our residents and employees.

We will continue to monitor the situation and will communicate updates to you as the situation changes. We urge you to follow the guidance of public health authorities.  If you have questions about our action plan please contact questions@homestead.ca.

Stay well and stay safe.

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IMPORTANT COVID-19 UPDATE

March 17, 2020

With the global concerns surrounding COVID-19 (also known as the "coronavirus") and the growing number of cases within Canada, we want to provide our residents and stakeholders with an update on our actions to date. The health and safety of our residents, staff and anyone visiting our communities are our utmost priorities. The following measures have been implemented across all Homestead buildings:

• Continuation of an enhanced cleaning routine focusing on high-frequency touch surfaces.
• Temporary closure of all amenities. Laundry facilities will remain open.
• Temporary closure of all branch offices.
• In-suite maintenance will be completed on an urgent/critical basis only. We ask for residents' understanding that non-urgent and cosmetic work orders will be deferred until a later date.
• Suspension of all rental operations including the showing of apartments.
• We encourage residents to make rental payments online instead of in-person.
• Hand sanitizer stations have been ordered for all buildings.
• Suspension of all non-life safety capital projects at all buildings.
• Implementation of internal policies to promote social distancing (maintain a distance of 2 metres between individuals) and a reduction of large meetings of staff members.

The Canadian health authorities advise that the symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough and/or shortness of breath. Anyone experiencing these symptoms is strongly encouraged to contact Telehealth Ontario immediately 1-866-797-0000 to receive further direction.

We are all working together to keep our communities safe in these uncertain and unprecedented times. We have all heard media reports from public health officials that anticipate an increased occurrence of confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus. In the event that there are cases in our communities, we will be guided by and fully cooperating with governing public health organizations.

We ask everyone to do their part by washing their hands regularly, implementing social distancing practices and proactively consulting with the medical authorities. We encourage all residents to review Ontario.ca, Centre for Disease Control (www.cdc.gov) and/or the World Health Organization (www.who.int) for the most up to date information on the virus.

Please contact questions@homestead.ca with any questions regarding our action plan.