Having twice postponed a 100-person wedding at Hatley Castle that was supposed to include her beloved grandfather, Tess Hunter is now opting for a simple backyard event this summer as the province emerges from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I really wanted to be married so that we could start a family, especially for my grandfather who just passed,” said Hunter.
“He was just a very special person to me and I wanted to give him the gift of a great grandchild, but things happen, plans change.”
Instead, the 31-year-old licensed practical nurse working on the front lines of COVID at Vancouver General Hospital went to Ottawa to give her grandfather, 92, end-of-life care, “which was really hard but really rewarding at the same time.” Dr. James Dickson died on April 19.
As part of the restart plan unveiled this week, the province has said capacity numbers for gatherings will increase throughout the summer and into the fall if COVID case counts, hospitalizations and other indicators continue to decline and vaccinations continue to increase.
“I don’t want to wait any longer, so we just decided to throw together a backyard wedding this summer,” said Hunter, who will marry Spencer Dalziel, 37. The event will include parents and siblings, aunts, uncles, nephews and nieces.
“I think everybody is just ready to celebrate regardless if they’re getting married or not,” said Hunter.
Indoor weddings are still limited to 10 people.
Barb Walker, of French Kiss Events in Oak Bay, said she appreciates the province’s step-by-step guide to reopening after months of uncertainty, but plans to proceed slowly, having learned that “things could change any minute.”
“I’m definitely not someone who is thinking that, you know, it’s a for-sure thing that we can have a 200-person wedding in September,” she said.
Clients happy with a capacity of 50 people outdoors are continuing with planned nuptials and rentals, some are pushing dates to August and fall in the hopes of having a larger guest list, while many set on a big bash are waiting until next year, Walker said.
“Couples that have chosen to carry on with their plans this year, they’re all really at peace with the smaller gathering,” said Walker. “The mentality has really shifted. They’re saying: ‘We just really want to be married and have the most important people around us and we’re OK sacrificing the big party.’
Walker, who has been in the industry for 11 years, said she expects to continue to see a shift to smaller gatherings. “The one thing that I think is really interesting is even the couples looking at next year, there’s been a mental shift. It probably won’t be like a party in 2019. There will be things in our industry that will be forever changed.”
Amid the tears and heartache of cancellations — weddings where important family and friends couldn’t attend — Walker has also seen resilience and grace, she said.
The province released updated guidelines for indoor faith services on Thursday for up to 50 people inside places of worship.
Bishop Anna Greenwood-Lee said in a memo to lay and ordained members of the Anglican Diocese that, while it’s “heartening” to hear the government’s restart plan providing “light at the end of what’s been a very long tunnel,” the diocese has learned over 15 months not to immediately change course after such announcements.
Places of worship had originally been exempt under the provincial health officer’s orders to hold indoor services over Easter, for instance, only to have those plans cancelled due to surging COVID case counts and hospitalizations.
This time around, “Bishop Anna,” as she is called, is asking for patience as leaders take their time to plan, starting with a meeting on June 2, how to host safe indoor services with proper distancing and COVID protocols. She noted the best option for some congregations will be to wait for September, when the province plans for a full reopening.
“We have journeyed a hard road together this last 15 months,” said Bishop Anna. “We will be together again soon, and what a celebration it will be.”
Rabbi Harry Brechner of Congregation Emanu-El is approaching the reopening with the same caution.
“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should,” he said, noting that several considerations need to be factored in — limitations on singing, for example, or the comfort level of congregants who have become used to adhering to pandemic protocols. He suspects the synagogue will see small outdoor gatherings before holding indoor services again.
Elements Casino in View Royal is planning to reopen in July.
B.C. Lottery Corporation spokeswoman Lara Gerrits said capacity will depend on each facility’s floor plan and other factors. “Occupancy will be limited to as many players as there are active gaming seats on the gaming floor,” Gerrits said.
There will be fewer gaming seats than pre-pandemic to allow for physical spacing of at least two metres. That means no mingling or congregating to watch others. There will be limited numbers for related restaurants and lounges.
“Casinos and community gaming centres can reopen as early as July 1, [dependent] on vaccination rates continuing to go up and COVID numbers continuing to go down,” Gerrits said. “So we don’t know an exact date yet, but we’re super-excited to be one step closer towards reopening and that does include Elements.”
Casinos can be lucrative for local governments because host municipalities receive 10 per cent of net gambling income. In Greater Victoria, that had translated into about $4.3 million a year, which is shared among seven West Shore municipalities and two First Nations. View Royal, with a population 10,408, gets about $2.3 million because the casino is in the town.
View Royal Mayor David Screech imagines it will take a long time to see such revenues again. “For our community in terms of an economic generator, it’s nothing but good,” Screech said. “The jobs will come back that have been lost and our casino revenue — although I think it’s going to take a long time to get back up to where we were — will obviously be very welcome back to the town because we’ve lost almost a year and a half before it opens again.”
Screech said the Elements casino was outfitted to meet COVID safety protocols last year and was toured by public health officials.
Screech is concerned about the economic viability of the casino if the required capacity numbers are too low. On the other hand, he said, people are excited to return to the venue.
