The St. Lawrence Market has remained a steadfast fixture of downtown Toronto for over two centuries and is filled with an abundance of fresh produce, deli meats and peameal bacon sandwiches! While a huge attraction to both tourists and Torontonians alike, the market does have some restrictive hours which can make visiting a little difficult. To help make the market more accessible, the City of Toronto announced earlier this year that they were going to pilot new weekend hours starting March 15, with the market opening on Sundays from 10 am to 5 pm. The market will remain closed on Mondays and maintain their original hours from Tuesday - Thursday (8 am to 6 pm), Friday (8 am to 7 pm) and Saturday (5 am to 5 pm).
While the city was excited to see the launch of the new weekend hours, the pilot has now been paused due to the current COVID-19 situation around the city. Based on the notice posted on the St. Lawrence Market's website, "the Market has decided to exercise an abundance of caution and postpone the launch of the new Hours of Operation Pilot Project and all related activities and events. A change in hours will be deferred to a later date and launch events will be rescheduled."
In light of the announcement, the Market has also put additional measures in place during their regular hours to protect visitors and workers:
- Additional hand sanitizer dispensers have been placed in public access areas of the Market, such as entrances, washrooms and seating areas.
- The frequency of disinfecting and cleaning heavily touched surfaces in the Market has increased and is being regularly monitored by all staff. These areas include door handles, handrails, elevators, tables, chairs and more.
- Staff are emptying garbage receptacles in public areas more frequently.
- Washrooms are being maintained more often.
- The supply of soap and sanitizing solution in staff and public areas is being regularly monitored.
