WINDSOR, ONT. -- The City of Windsor is announcing the cancellation of many more spring events during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The annual mayor’s walk and city birthday celebration events, the perennial plant sale and regular spring recreation and culture programming have all been cancelled.

The annual Art in the Park event, which usually runs at the beginning of June, is another casualty of the virus.Art in the Park

“As the impacts of COVID-19 continue to impact all aspects of our daily lives, it is vital that we take all possible steps to flatten the curve in our community,” said Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens. “It is my hope that these signature events as well as regular culture and recreation programing can be restarted this summer.”

City officials say due to facility closures and social distancing requirements of COVID-19 and the impact on staff members who are counted on to organize the celebrations, the cancellations are deemed unavoidable.

The plant sale, which is a fundraiser for the Paul Martin Gardens, is regularly held each May, but with social distancing and the call for residents to stay home, Dilkens feels cancellation is the right course of action.

The city says for recreation and culture programming, credits will be applied to all accounts where payments have been received for use in the future when programming restarts.

The Summer Activity Guide will be available in May, 2020 and, subject to guidance from public health officials, the City of Windsor will plan for a resumption of culture and recreation activities for all ages as soon as safely possible.

Residents with specific questions regarding their accounts are encouraged to contact the city via parkrec@citywindsor.ca or by calling 311.