Thomson Lake Regional Park

Gravelbourg EDO has asked that we pass this information onto the residence of Thomson Lake Regional Park.

In the spirit of co-operation, Southland Co-op will be opening the Gravelbourg Food Store to minimal foot traffic starting Monday, April 6, 2020. Gravelbourg EMO and Southland Co-op have been meeting regularly to discuss how to best meet the needs of the community while co-operating with the wishes of the local EMO to provide for the safety of local residents and staff. Over the past two weeks, the Gravelbourg Food Store has been limiting foot traffic to one person at a time for the sole purpose of making payment for grocery orders that have been placed by email or over the phone.
During those two weeks, Southland Co-op has continued to implement new measures on a regular basis in all its other facilities around south central Saskatchewan to protect both staff and customers from the current pandemic facing our nation. Southland Co-op is confident that these measures that are in place are addressing the critical safety needs of everyone affected. Using these same measures in the Gravelbourg store will provide the same protection to the local community that has been in place in all other locations.
Southland Co-op is prepared to make adjustments as often as necessary to the measures currently in place to ensure everyone’s safety. Measures that are in place may be changed daily or hourly as needed and as circumstances change. This is a commitment that has served the Co-op well over the past two weeks in other locations to mitigate potential risk.
The commitments that are currently in place for the Gravelbourg location will be monitored to ensure that they are meeting the needs of the community to obtain its essential services of food and supplies as well as meeting the safety needs of the staff and members.
Anyone who visits the Gravelbourg Food Store who has not been there over the last two weeks to pay for their online or phone order purchases will notice the following in place:
– Plexiglass shields at each till
– Sanitization of the till area including pin pads after each transaction
– Sanitization of all door handles, cooler doors and high touch points in the store every half hour
– Red circles on the floor every 6 feet to mark social distancing requirements
– Directional arrows on the floor circles to ensure one way traffic down each aisle
– No reusable shopping bags will be allowed in the store at this time to minimize the risk of outside contamination coming into the store
– No returns will be accepted at this time to minimize potential for outside contamination.
– Members are encouraged to avoid the use of cash as it is an item that is handled many times by many different people over its life cycle
– Staff members are encouraged to wash their uniforms daily to minimize the potential to carry any contaminants between personal households and the public space where they work
– All water bottles coming in for refill must be washed and sanitized with a bleach solution before coming into the store. All touch points on the water machine are sanitized regularly throughout the day.
– Members are encouraged to minimize the number of trips they make to the store by planning their grocery purchases for the week and sending one member of the household to the store only once per week to pick up what they need.
– Phone and email orders are still available for those that should remain at home during this time.
– A maximum of 5 shoppers will be permitted in the store at one time to ensure that social distancing is respected and that the staff are still able to navigate the store safely themselves to fulfill phone and email orders.
– The store will be open Monday – Saturday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm.
– The first hour the store is open is reserved for seniors over the age of 60 and members who are immuno-compromised.
– With the support of Saskatchewan Lotteries, Southland has shut down the sale of lottery tickets in Lafleche and Coronach where tickets were available. This is to minimize another touch point between members and staff.
– All Southland staff have been asked to voluntarily self-monitor to stay ahead of potential symptoms and health concerns. Non-contact thermometers have been ordered to allow staff easy access to the tools they need to regularly check their temperatures at the start and end of their shifts.
There are many more measures in place, but this is simply a highlight of many things that have been implemented to ensure the safety of the staff and community during this critical time.
Southland thanks the community for their support and encouragement as these measures are put in place for everyone’s benefit.
Please stay safe and stay home so we can all contribute to flattening the curve.