COVID-19 Resources

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a direct impact on everyone. Most of Ottawa has been shut down including all community sports facilities- arenas, gyms, fields and pools that you, our members depend upon for your programming. Ottawa city manager Steve Kanellakos has said that he doesn’t expect Ottawa’s fields to open before the end of June.  This will have a large impact on Ottawa’s summer community sport organizations, similar to the impact now being felt by the winter sport organizations. The inability to provide programming has left many wondering how and if they will be able to survive the COVID-9 pandemic.

We have listed links to resources below that we believe will assist you during this crisis. These resources include financial information- for both your organization and your participants, governance information, physical activity suggestions and links to other COVID-19 resources. New information is available daily- we will continue to add to and update this list of resources on a regular basis.  

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU: 

The Ottawa Sport Council is passionate about community sport, recreation and physical activity. Our mandate is to support Ottawa community sport organizations which in turn build community. That need for community has never been stronger than right now. If there is help we can provide, don’t be afraid to reach out. Remember, WE ARE STRONGER TOGETHER.

FINANCIAL:

Government of Canada Wage Subsidies:

The Government of Canada has introduced two wage subsidies- the Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers (TWSE) which provides 10% up to a maximum of $1375 per employee/$25000 per organization, and the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) which provides up to 75% of remuneration on a maximum amount of $57,800 over a 3-month period equal to $847/week maximum.  More details

Temporary Income Support – Canada Emergency Response Benefit.  UPDATE: CERB now covers workers who are earning up to $1000 per month 

Financial Support for Sports Organizations during Covid-19– Gowling WLG Webinar

Changes to Canada Summer Jobs program to help businesses and young Canadians affected by COVID-19– Government of Canada

Canada Emergency Business Account – The new Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) will provide interest-free loans of up to $40,000 to small businesses and not-for-profits, to help cover their operating costs during a period where their revenues have been temporarily reduced. To qualify, these organizations will need to demonstrate they paid between $20,000 to $1.5 million in total payroll in 2019. If the loan is repaid by December 31, 2022, 25 per cent (up to $10,000) will be forgiven. If the loan is not repaid by December 31, 2022, the remaining balance will be converted to a three-year term loan at 5 per cent interest.    This program is now available – business owners can apply through their banks and credit unions.

GOVERNANCE:

Annual General Meeting (AGM) timing affected by COVID-19 restrictions:

On March 31, the Government of Ontario announced support for registered corporations, by implementing an Emergency Order to provide flexibility for corporate meetings. This Emergency Order includes not-for-profit corporations incorporated under the Ontario Corporations Act (CA) and provides the ability to hold virtual meetings, and extends the timeframe for AGMs to be held. The Emergency Order is in effect province-wide and is retroactive to March 17, 2020.

This Emergency Order will enable organizations to:

  • Hold meetings of directors, shareholders and members electronically or over the phone even if legislation (Ontario’s Corporations Act) or organizational bylaws do not allow this. The electronic or phone system has to allow people to communicate with each other simultaneously and instantaneously.
  • Extend the timeframe by which corporations under the Corporations Act and Business Corporations Act must hold Annual General Meetings (AGMs). The deadlines for non-profits to hold their AGMs are now extended to:
    • 90 days after the state of emergency is ended by the Ontario government.
    • If the government ends the state of emergency within 30 days before an organization’s current deadline, the organization will have until 120 days after the state of emergency ends.

Simply Voting is an online platform which allows organizations to conduct secure, third-party voting events (motions and elections) in tandem with a virtual meeting.  The Sport Law and Strategy Group has acquired a subscription package with Simply Voting, to support sport organizations in hosting effective and secure electronic meetings. To learn more about this support, contact Sport Law and Strategy Group.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

EDUCATION

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ottawa Sport Council has moved our Concussion Education Initiative to a virtual format. Sessions will now be conducted online in order to respect social distancing guidelines. These sessions can accommodate groups up to 100 and are based around your organization’s schedule and needs. If you would like to book a session or receive more information, please click here.

COVID-19 RESOURCES:

LAST NOTE:
And finally- some uplifting news-  CBC Ottawa is highlighting small acts of community kindness during the pandemic. Learn about the positive things your neighbours are doing!