Following the Province of BC’s lead, the City of Surrey is taking a phased approach to recreation facilities, programs, and parks. Surrey’s approach is great for Public Health, but it can make it confusing to know what’s open and what’s not open? What activities are available and which ones aren’t. There’s also the challenge of what procedures have to be followed by recreation facility operators and people who want to participate in recreational activities. As many business owners and recreational facility staff are discovering, it’s an arduous process to fulfill all of the cleaning requirements and have people follow protocols. Thus the delay and reluctance to open facilities.
With all that in mind, we thought it might be helpful to investigate what’s open and what can you do as we move to phases in which facilities and activities are becoming available once again.
At the time of writing here are some of the things that you can and can’t do in the City of Surrey:
Want to read a book or watch a DVD?
Even though Surrey’s major Civic facilities including Parks, Recreation, and Culture and Library facilities will remain closed until early September, However, Surrey’s libraries are open for take out service.
“The response from our community through the Resuming Library Services Survey was clear,” said Neelam Sahota, chair of the Board of Trustees of Surrey Libraries. “People are eager to borrow physical materials like books and DVDs and return the items they’ve had at home since March. However, people also told us that they’re not ready to come back into the branches for programming or browsing just yet.”*
To access the service you can either call one of the six participating branches or fill out an online form at www.surreylibraries.ca/takeout. You will be able to pick up your holds and return items when you arrange a pickup time.
Outdoor Pools
Now that temperatures are warming up, you and your kids might be ready for a swim. If you are, Surrey’s outdoor pools are open for free including Bear Creek, Greenaway, Hjorth Road and Kwantlen and Crescent Beach
Fitness Classes
A common theme during COVID-19 is people complaining that they seem to be more prone to make unhealthy choices while they are stuck at home. That said, you may want to check out a fitness class. On July 19th Surrey Recreation announced that they will be opening a number of small group, outdoor fitness classes in parks. There are a variety of classes being offered that are intended to help you get out of the house and become healthy and active again with little or no equipment.
You can see what classes are being offered and what classes have been canceled at https://www.surrey.ca/culture-recreation/20654.aspx. Registration is available online or on the phone at 604-501-5100.
Summer Day Camps
On July 6th limited, outdoor summer camps for children ages 3 to 12 began. Surrey staff are offering modified day camps at locations across the city. To register you have to go online or call 604-501-5100. See https://www.surrey.ca/culture-recreation/8052.aspx
