Easter brunch provides a chance to redress COVID split

Jeff Green | Apr 15, 2020

For the last month, the relationship between seasonal and permanent residents of Frontenac County has become fractious.

In mid March, COVID-19 cases had been confirmed in both Toronto and Ottawa but not in the Kingston-Frontenac Lennox and Addington catchment area, and the province had already begun to shut down. The sight of Toronto and Ottawa people shopping locally as they retreated to their cottages to self isolate sparked concern among locals. To make matters worse, a few families returning from outside of the country, did not go back to their urban residents but retreated to Frontenac County and went to buy groceries and medication before self-isolating at ‘the cottage’.

By the end of March, federal and provincial politicians and public health officials, and some Frontenac Townships, urged seasonal residents not to come, a hard line to take just as the first tax bills of the year were going out in the mail.

This only underlines the fact that seasonal residents are essential to the Frontenac County economy, from south to north. In Central Frontenac, they represent over half the tax base, in North Frontenac a lot more than that. And from stores to tradespeople to restaurants, the number of local jobs that are wholly or partly dependent on people who make their money in the city and spend it here is absolutely crucial. And those seasonal residents often end up retiring to the cottage, hiring local contractors to turn it into a home, and then becoming the most active group of volunteers in our communities.

Last weekend, a virtual community Easter brunch was organised by the COVID-19 support group in Sharbot Lake. 200 family meals were prepared with volunteer labour by local chefs for a $20, a meal that four people would have a hard time finishing in one sitting. About 95 families purchased meals for themselves, but another 105 meals were purchased for other people. People sent in $20 or $40 so families who needed a free treat could have one. Some of those people were local teachers, who knew that some of the families of students in their classes could use the help, and many of those meals were purchased by cottagers who are currently self isolating back in hteir home city.

It was a small gesture from a few people, but one we should all heed going forward. We don’t know how long this pandemic will persist, but if it lasts into June there will need to be some protocol developed to allow for the return of seasonal residents, certainly before the second tax bill goes out.

By then, if the current pattern of infection rates persists, there may indeed be a requirement for a 14-day quarantine for people traveling from region to region.

The coming together of our local communities that has become a feature of life over the last month will need to extend to those summer residents at that time. They are an essential part of our communities and we need to figure out how to live together in the summer of COVID that will soon be upon us, just as we do every other summer.

It will take some accommodating from both sides, but it is something we need to prepare for, sooner than later.

Our local councils should take this on, and other community members as well. It will involve approaching public health officials to discuss how this can be done safely, but it will be worth the effort.