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.

Remaining closed to public access: 

• 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
• The Animal Care & Adoption Centre is closed; for emergenices contact Access St. John's at 311, 754-CITY (2489) or access@stjohns.ca

Contact Us
Access St. John’s at City Hall is open to the public by appointment only. To book a phone appointment with a City representative:

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

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

Please note: 
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.

Businesses and Developers
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.

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.

Council Update

• All public meetings and events hosted by the City are cancelled until further notice
• Committee of the Whole resumed its regular, biweekly meeting schedule on Wednesday, May 27. 
• As of Monday, July 6, City Council will resume in-person meetings in Council Chambers. To maintain physical distancing Council Chambers will remain closed to the public and media. Council meetings will be webcast, but are closed to the public. See calendar online.

Garbage and Recycling

• Regularly scheduled garbage collection is not impacted by COVID-19.
• Beginning Monday, June 1 the regular, biweekly curbside collection of recycling and yard waste resumes. 
• Yard waste placed at the curb - including grass, leaves, soil, sod and small branches - must be placed in paper yard waste bags to be collected. All of the paper bagged yard waste will be composted on-site at Robin Hood Bay.
• Bulk garbage & metal collection will begin Monday, July 6. For details on how to book an appointment click here.

Residential Drop-Off
The Residential Drop Off at Robin Hood Bay is accepting all forms of waste. Hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday and 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday. Please maintain appropriate physical distancing of 2 m or 6 ft at all times and be patient as line-ups may be long.

Please note:

• The Home Again Furniture donation program will not resume until further notice.
• Household Hazardous Waste is only accepted on Wednesdays. 

Humane Services 

• The City of St. John’s Humane Services ha resumed its low cost cat neuter program and begin offering contactless animal adoptions. For details, go here.
• ​The shelter remains closed to the public. During this time our services are suspended for the low cost spay program, owner surrenders for adoption and euthanasia service.
• We are responding to stray medical emergencies and animal control issues. If you have an emergency or animal control concern, contact Access St. John's by calling 311 or 754-2489 (CITY) or email access@stjohns.ca.
• Report lost and found animals by email at humaneservices@stjohns.ca.

Municipal Parks

• Outdoor pools at Bannerman and Bowring Parks opened on Thursday, July 2. 
• Rotary ‘Sunshine’ Park beach is now open to the public. Physical distancing is required. 
• Picnic areas at City Parks are now open to the public.
• As announced on June 18, municipal outdoor sports fields in St. John’s are reopening on a case-by-case basis as ‘return to play’ documents for various sports organization are approved.
• Skate parks and hard surface courts open 
• Playgrounds open June 27; please bring and use hand sanitizer after every use.
• City-owned tennis courts are available for play.
• The Loop in Bannerman Park is open with a maximum capacity of 15 patrons; this is required to eliminate overcrowding and maximize physical distancing.
• The duck pond at Bowring Park is open.
• Gatherings are permitted according to the current provincial Alert Level; please check the provincial site for guidelines.
• Garbage receptacles are installed and serviced in parks.
• Dog Parks are open. Dogs are not permitted in City outdoor sporting facilities (ie. ball fields) but are permitted to be walked on-leash in parks and open spaces. Please pick up after your pet. 
• Outdoor washrooms will be open and serviced twice per day; before noon and mid – afternoon; the hours of operation for washrooms will be posted at each facility.
• Community gardens are also permitted to operate, with restrictions posted at the site.
• Outdoor activities, including walking, hiking and riding are encouraged as long as physical distancing can be maintained and you are not required to self-isolate for any reason. Residents are asked to please stay within their ‘bubble’ and to practice physical distancing while enjoying the City’s municipal parks. One directional travel signs will be posted on trails that do not allow for 2m separation for two way directional walking/riding.

For a full list of parks operated by the City of St. John’s, please visit the City’s parks page.

Parking Permits: 

• The process to renew expired Residential Parking Permits is being completed. An update will be provided once the new process for renewal is finalized.
• 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.
• New residents requiring a permit should contact Access St. John’s 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 telephone. Please call Access St. John’s at 311 or 754-CITY (2489). 

Permits - Residential and Commercial

• Patios and decks
• Fences
• Accessory buildings (such as sheds)
• General Repairs

A Discretionary Use application was approved for Outdoor Eating Areas and Lounges for Commercial Zones in the Downtown, located outside of the Water Street Pedestrian Mall. Applications for outdoor patios located on city owned sidewalks or parking lanes will no longer require a discretionary use application and public advertisement. This will reduce the amount of time required for individual businesses to utilize outdoor space.

NEW Outside Downtown Commercial Development
For any Discretionary Use application that is outside of the Downtown an e-poll decision of Council is being implemented to speed up the process following public advertisement. Discretionary use application fees will also be waived, as previously announced.

For more on the permit process, please visit our permits webpage. 

Recreation

• Indoor pools at Mews & Paul Reynolds, and all recreation facilities and community centres open Monday, July 6 for indoor swims and day camps. Aquatic fitness begins July 13. 
• Pre-registration is required for indoor swims and aquatic fitness classes, for this and more details read our Reopening Plans.

Sewer Back-Ups
Effective Tuesday, June 30 the City is re-initiating sewer backup service to residents. This service was temporarily halted due to concerns around COVID-19.

In consultation with provincial agencies, the City can now provide the clearing of sewer backups while maintaining the ability to protect the health and safety of our employees and residents requesting this service during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tax Payments: 

• NEW Effective immediately, the City will not be charging interest on commercial and residential property taxes or water meter tax up to and including December 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.
• NEW 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 August 1, 2020 to January 1, 2021.
• 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
NEW Council Extends Interest Relief and Expedites Application Process for Outdoor Spaces
Update on City Services July 3
Sewer Backup Service Re-instated
Outdoor Pools Open July 2
Update on Service June 25
Update on Service June 18
Transportation Changes to Support Social Distancing
Book an Appointment for Bulk & Metal Collection
Alert Level 3 Impact to City Services
Restrictions Easing in Municipal Parks; Tennis Courts to Open May 29
Waste Announcements: RDO & Curbside Recycling & Yard Waste
Bulk Garbage Accepted as of May 19
City Officials Concerned About Behaviour in Parks
Humane Services to Offer Low Cost Cat Neuter and Contactless Adoptions
Municipal Parks to Reopen May 11
RDO to Open for Bagged Household Garbage May 11
Planning Underway to Repoen RDO and Parks
Fast Facts on Litter Collection
Yard Waste Pick-Up Postponed for May
Recycling to Resume Monthly; St. George's Day Notices
Fast Facts on Laptop Purchases
Council Considers Street Network Changes
City Seeking Feedback on Public Engagement
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.