As much as you’d like to have a yard or garage sale to get rid of everything you’ve accumulated during the pandemic, right now, it’s against the law.
City clerk Steph Palmateer says that’s because under the stay-at-home order, a yard sale is not an essential service.
“If the stay-at-home order is ended in early May like originally slated by the province,” he notes, “then yard sales would be permitted, providing people would have to cover all the other public health measures in place.”
That mostly means physical distancing, face masks, and hand sanitization. Without all that, the buyer and seller could be charged.
“The potential would be there’d be multiple penalties,” Palmateer states. “Penalties would be on the individual for not following social distancing and penalties would then be on the actual person hosting the yard sale for not ensuring compliance with public health rules.”