December 3, 2020 Vol. 20, No. 48
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Ultramar Gas & Convenience Remains Open After cleaning, Subway re-opens in Sharbot Lake, with alternate staff
By Jeff Green here was a mini-outbreak of COVID19 among the staff at the Sharbot Lake Subway restaurant Anil Gajar is the franchise owner of the restaurant. Four employees work in the store, including the store manager. One of the employees was planning to travel overseas, and in order to do so, had to take a COVID-19 test last week. On Thursday, (November 26) the test came back positive. “They called me from the store to tell me the result, and we closed the store right away” said Gajar, in a phone interview on Monday morning (November 30). “The three other employees have all been tested and are now in isolation.” Of those three tests, whch were done on Friday, November 27, two came back positive. In total 3 of the 4 Subway employees have tested positive, and all of them are asymptomatic. “I talked to the Public Health people and they said the employees should all remain in isolation until December 7, and as long as they don’t develop symptoms they can come back to work. Public Health is in touch with them and will confirm with them when they can come back to work.”
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Over the weekend the store was cleaned using bio-firm and electrostatic techniques, and re-opened on Monday. “I will be working in the store myself today and tomorrow and I am bringing in outside people to work for the rest of the week,” said Gajar. “I have been in touch with Public Health and we are following their protocols.” The first Subway employee who tested positive lives in the same house with two employees of the Sharbot Lake Ultramar/ Square Boy Pizza store, which is located near the Subway store. Both of them have also been tested and are now in isolation. One of them, who runs the Square Boy, tested negative. The other, who runs the Convenience store, has not divulged his test results. Hina Shah, who owns the Ultramar/ Square Boy franchises with her husband Dharmesh, arrived with her son on Thursday, (November 26) to work in the store because it was short staffed. Hina and her son have been alone in the store since Thursday, with the exception of Dharmesh, who came on the weekend with supplies. “We spent a lot of time on the weekend, cleaning and disinfecting everything, the bathroom, all the surfaces and the Pizza
area,” she said on Monday, in a phone interview from the Ultramar. “I have not talked to my gas bar employee, but I know he has been tested. I don’t know the results of the test, but he is in isolation and will only come back to work when Public Health tells him that he can. It is not easy for either of the employees at the moment, but Public Health is checking
South Frontenac Council Scorches Burn Bylaw O n Monday Nov 24, South Frontenac Council held what was to have been a brief meeting to approve some revisions to the recently passed Burning By-law, which is slated to come into effect January 1st. Fire Chief Darcy Knott, who was unable to be present because of other commitments, said in his report that staff had “identified language discrepancies in the by-law which would result in permits being required for several types of fires that were not intended to be subject to permits.” The recommended minor revisions led to a lively discussion. Most if not all Councillors had heard feedback from the public expressing concerns about the new bylaw. The By-law will restrict hours of burning during the April 1st - Oct 31st fire season. Councillor Alan Revill pointed out that this could be interpreted to mean there were no restrictions during the rest of the year. Councillors Randy Ruttan and Ron Sleeth said that most brush-burning was done during the winter, and burn barrels are used year-round. Twice, CAO Neil Carbone pointed out that the request to Council was simply the approval of the revisions in wording that were before them. “There’s been a significant amount of
concern about this bill,” said Councillor Ross Sutherland; “I would like to have had more public consultation. Unless we pass these changes, there will be a lot more resistance fomenting." “I have not supported this by-law,” said Mayor Vandewal; “it’s much too complicated, makes no logical sense. If fires are going to burn, they’re going to burn, and we’ll go after them.” Ruttan agreed that he could not support the bylaw: “We need to govern in broad strokes; if we get too (detailed), people won’t follow it. We need more consultation to work through some of people’s concerns. We’re just raising more concerns.” Councillor Norm Roberts suggested the bylaw be withdrawn, so they could start over. This changed the tone of the discussion. Revill said clarification could be done through amendments, and "there is ample time before January 1 for more discussion.” Sutherland said he felt there were some useful things in the By-law, and it might be better to reconsider, rework, and bring changes back for final approval later. Councillor Pat Barr, speaking online, said “It’s a mixed-up mess: I think we should vote to reconsider it.” Ruttan said there was “Some great stuff in (the bylaw); the problem is compliance. It’s no good if people don’t comply.”
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Mayor Vandewal summed up the predicament as “passer’s remorse: perhaps we passed (the bylaw) too quickly. We need time to think it over, and get more public consultation.” Sutherland reminded Council that the former burning bylaw becomes invalid January 1st. “If we move to reconsider, we want to ensure we’re going back to at least the one before.” A motion to reconsider the new Burn Bylaw passed unanimously. CAO Carbone said that since there seemed to be support in principle for parts of the new bylaw, it would be necessary to extend the previous bylaw past January 1st, to allow sufficient time to conduct discussions and consultations about revisions to the new bylaw.
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in with them. The Shahs are hoping to open the Square Boy later this week, if they can find a replacement employee. They are working with Square Boy to try and find someone to work. The gas bar and convenience store remain open. People can pay at the pump for gas or enter the store to pay.
‘Tis the Season Here at the News, we’re gearing up for the production of our annual Christmas issue. Attention Readers: Please send us your stories, poems, memories, crafts, and favourite recipes of Christmas. Attention Clergy: Please let us know the dates and the times of your Christmas services and any special events at your churches. Attention Young Artists: Our annual Christmas art contest is open to all elementary school-aged children. The winning entries will be published on the front pages of our December 21st issue. The judges are looking for entries that will carry a special Christmas message to our readers. Entries must be original artwork, 8½”x11”, done in pencil crayons (no markers) on white paper, and must be clearly marked with the child’s name, age, grade, and school (if applicable). Please mail submissions to: P.O. Box 229, Sharbot Lake, ON. K0H 2P0, or deliver to our office at 1095 Garrett Street in Sharbot Lake. Please send us your submissions, information and art contest entries by Monday, December 11.
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