This page is for all the news and announcements from the City of St. John's related to precautionary measures undertaken to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of St. John’s is activating its Business Continuity Plan and taking measures to proactively help prevent the spread of the virus. Following advice from public health officials, the City will be concentrating on work-from-home and remote deployment solutions for our staff to increase social distancing.

City Hall and all City facilites are closed to public access.  
To book a phone appointment with a City representative contact Access St. John's:

• call 311 or 754-CITY (2489)
• email access@stjohns.ca

Non-profit housing clients may call 576-8196 or email housing@stjohns.ca.

You may be asked screening questions by City staff for in-person service: City staff will be provided with a list of standard screening questions they may ask residents before meeting with any members of the public or entering any private or commercial property; these measures are being taken to protect both staff and the general public and to ensure the continuity of services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Please note:
Residents can continue to contact the City through the Access Centre in the following ways:

• Report problems via our free app 311 St. John's
• Submit a service request online
• Email access@stjohns.ca
• Call 311 or 754-CITY (2489)

Anything that can be emailed should be sent to access@stjohns.ca instead of faxed, due to the fact that many staff are working remotely. Most payments by debit or credit card can be made by calling 311. Please do not fax or email credit card information.

Information for Businesses: NEW
The City has developed a new resource page for business-owners or those looking for infomration on business in St. John's. The page includes a business resource and information hub with links to resources for businesses during the global pandemic.

Information for Developers: 
The City of St. John's will only be accepting Development Applications electronically. You may download application forms, complete & sign the application, and email a PDF of the signed application to access@stjohns.ca. Once received, an Access St. John's  representative will be in contact to obtain the payment of the application fee. After the fee has been paid, development staff will perform a cursory review of the application and advise how and where to submit any other required electronic attachments such as legal plans, engineered drawings, etc. As staff are working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, there may be some delays in processing and reviewing your application and we apologize for any inconvenience caused.

Up-to-date closures, cancellations and other timely information; for complete details see All City Messages below.

• All public meetings and events hosted by the City are cancelled until further notice
• Committee of the Whole will not meet at this time, all matters requiring Council decision will go directly to the regular meeting.
• Council meetings will occur and be webcast, but are closed to the public. See calendar online.
• Recycling collection is suspended an additional two weeks (up to and including April 9) 
• Grooming of the ski trails in Pippy Park, a service the municipality performs in this provincial park, has been suspended for the season.

Facility closures, until further notice:

• City Hall and all public facilities operated by the City of St. John’s are closed to the public for walk-in service. 
• The Residential Drop Off at the Robin Hood Bay Waste Management Facility is closed
• All Community Centres and recreation facilities, including The Loop, are closed 
• All City parks and playgrounds are closed, including ball fields, skate parks, hard surface courts and dog parks 
• All recreation programs, including after school care, are cancelled 
• The Animal Care & Adoption Centre is closed; for emergenices contact Access St. John's at 311, 754-CITY (2489) or access@stjohns.ca
• The Welcome Centre, 348 Water Street, is closed. Contact us: Business 576-8107 or business@stjohns.ca; Visitors 576-8106 or 1-844-570-2009 or tourism@stjohns.ca
• The City Archives, 15 Terra Nova Road, is closed
• The Railway Coastal Museum is closed

At this time, the closures of City Parks does not apply to passive open spaces or trails running through open spaces. The Grand Concourse Walkway outside the boundaries of municipal parks will remain open.

Sewer Back-Ups: 
The City has discontinued clearing private sewer laterals of owner-occupied homes due to Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) concerns related to COVID-19. Servicing private sewer laterals places staff at an increased OHS risk as it requires staff to enter private dwellings and potential contact with sewage.The City will continue to respond to sewer back up calls to ensure that the public systems are operating properly and are not causing the back up. If a sewer problem is determined to be within the private lateral, homeowners should contact a private contractor.

Parking Permits: 

• All parking permits with a March 31 deadline are extended automatically to April 30, 2020.
• The City will not be issuing tickets to vehicles that are displaying expired 2020 Residential Parking Permits, provided permits are used in the correct Area. Residents will be given the opportunity to renew their 2020 permits when City Hall reopens to the public. New residents requiring a permit should contact Access St. John’s at 311 or 754-CITY (2489) to start the application process.  
• There are no exemptions for Commercial Parking Areas and enforcement will continue. Applications for new commercial permits and renewal for current monthly permit holders can be processed by phone. Please contact Access St. John’s at 311 or 754-CITY (2489). 

Tax Payments: 

• Effective immediately, the City will not be charging interest on commercial and residential property taxes or water meter tax up to and including August 31, 2020.
• In order to keep taxpayers informed, bills will still be issued and sent, however taxpayers will automatically not be charged interest on late payments.
• This relief does not apply to Robin Hood Bay tipping fees, however the scheduled tipping fee increase from $67.60 to $75 has been delayed from April 1, 2020 to August 1, 2020.
• The vacancy allowance claim period has been extendedfor commercial property owners. Claims for the first quarter normally due April 30, 2020 are not due until May 31, 2020.
• Commercial tax bills for the second quarter normally sent early May will now be sent in early June.
• Property owners have their tax and mortgage payments combined by their bank need to contact your bank to discuss options regarding tax relief.
• If you have questions or concerns about this tax relief announcement, please call 576-8251 to speak with a staff person.

Tax payments can be made online or through bank deduction. See below for details on how you can make preauthorized payments through your bank for City of St. John’s taxes. Your account number is on your municipal tax bill. Omit the first two zeros when prompted for your account number.

All City Messages
Private Sewer Lateral Service Discontinued
Thank-You Virtual Event for Essential Workers
COVID-19 Update for March 25, 2020
COVID-19 Update for March 24, 2020
Tax Relief for Commerical and Residential Property Owners
City Council Meeting Postponed
COVID-19 Update for March 21, 2020
COVID-19 Update for March 19, 2020
COVID-19 Update for March 17, 2020
Factility Closures Due to COVID-19
City Monitoring COVID-19 Situation

Other helpful links:
Self-isolation information from the provincial government.
Provincial COVID-19 website
Travel advisories in Canada are posted here.
Information on COVID-19 from the Public Health Agency of Canada.