Here at Edenvale Retreat and Conference Centre your health and safety are our main priority. We’ve developed a COVID-19 safety plan we’re proud of to keep our guests and staff safe.

We have made the decision postpone residential retreats at this time. Currently we are looking to reopen the residential portion of our facility September 2021. This date may change as we move forward with government regulations, keeping in mind the health and safety of our guests. If you have a booked retreat prior to September 2021, our Administrative Manager will be in contact with you.

We have several other ways you can continue to enjoy the warmth of Edenvale and its beautiful surroundings:

1. Reschedule your booking to a later date – If your booking is between now and September 2021, we’d be happy to reschedule your booking to a later date. Though we understand this is not ideal we highly recommend you reserve dates now for later in the year as we fill up quickly. We will miss you, but keeping you healthy and safe is our priority. Contact us to reschedule your booking.

2. Book a day event – although we are not hosting residential retreats at this time, our doors are still open. We have set up our 2 beautiful meeting spaces the Seminar room and Conference room to be physically distanced and COVID safe. We encourage guests to see if this option might meet your group’s needs during this time. Our day events usually last 6-8 hours and during COVID-19 you have the option to add beverage service, catering or to bring your own personal meals. To find out more about day rentals visit our Day Rentals page.

3. Personal Retreats – We understand these are stressful times and Edenvale has been an oasis for many of our guests throughout the years. We wanted to offer you an option where you can still relax and rest in the beauty of Edenvale. Our Personal Retreats offer a private room, with adjoining washroom. We’ve arranged these rooms to offer comfort and warmth for a remote workday getaway, couples retreat or time of rest. To find out more visit our Personal Retreat page.

We look forward to seeing you soon! Please see below for more specifics on what we are doing at Edenvale to make our space COVID safe.

The following are requirements when attending an event at Edenvale:
· Hand Sanitize – upon entering, exiting, before getting beverages or food, after eating and upon touching your face.
· Physically Distance – remain 2M (6ft) distant at all times. Your meeting room will be arranged ahead of time to be physically distanced, please do not move tables and chairs.
· Masks – must be worn upon entering the building and moving about. Please feel free to remove your mask when you are at your designated station and others are 2M away from you.
· Stay Home – If you feel any kind of flu/cold like symptoms, please stay home. These symptoms may or may not be related to COVID, however at our facility we would like to err on the side of caution. If you have traveled outside of the country within the last 14 days, or have been in contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID, please stay at home.

Our commitment to our guests:

We’ve always been good at staying on top of housekeeping and cleanliness, but COVID-19 has forced us to be better. At Edenvale we’re blessed with luscious grounds and beautiful trails. We encourage all of our guests who will be staying with us for short or long periods of time, to make use of our outdoor spaces. Take your lunch outdoors or use a coffee break to catch a quick walk along the scenic paths.
The health and safety of Edenvale’s staff and guests is our number one priority.
COVID-19 is an infectious disease that mainly spreads through direct contact with an infected person and their respiratory droplets. Respiratory droplets are generated by breathing, speaking, coughing, and sneezing. Your exposure risk is greatest when you have prolonged exposure with an infected person. The virus can also spread if you touch a contaminated surface and then touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. A surface can become contaminated if droplets land or someone touches it with contaminated hands.
Outlined below are the safety measures, as recommended by WorkSafe British Columbia, put in place to help us all stay safe during this time.

Control measures, as recommended by WorkSafe BC, are first broken down by a 4-step general protocol list as:

1) Elimination
2) Engineering Controls
3) Administrative Controls
4) Person Protective Equipment

1st Level Protection: Elimination

· Established a 50% occupancy limit for each building and have posted occupancy limit signs in each applicable room
· Implemented measures to keep workers and guests at least 2 m apart
· Re-organized work stations
· Spaced out seating
· Reduced number of guests on-site
· Markings on floor to indicated physical distancing and flow of traffic, where appropriate
· Disinfecting stations set up for staff and guests to disinfect regularly
· One guest per room, unless prior communication with management of guests being in the same bubble.
· Guests are required to refrain from entering other guest rooms, other than their own.
· Staff are not able to attend work if they are feeling ill or have traveled out of the country within 14 days.
· Prior to the start of their shift, staff are required to do a symptom self-assessment and temperature check.
· Guests are asked to not visit if they are feeling ill or have traveled out of the country within 14 days

2nd Level Protection: Engineering

· Plexiglass barriers between kitchen staff and guests
· Vinyl barriers between guest work stations
· Plexiglass barriers on dining tables

3rd Level Protection: Administrative

· Staff rules and guidelines are communicated through signage and training. See Appendix A.
· Hand-washing signage posted at every sink
· Cleaning schedule documentation
· Proper hygiene practice posters are posted in the kitchens and housekeeping rooms.
· Prior to returning to work, the staff must read our COVID guidelines, protocols, and necessary safety information. In addition, staff will receive any additional training that is required.

4th Level Protection: Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

· The kitchen staff will use face shields and/or masks and disposable gloves when serving food.
· Dishwashing staff will use face shields and/or masks, and disposable gloves.
· Housekeeping staff will use face shields and/or masks and disposable gloves appropriately when cleaning facilities.

Appendix A – COVID-19 Rules & Guidelines

Housekeeping

· Staff are responsible for practicing good hygiene practices (e.g., frequent hand washing, covering coughs and sneezes, and not touching their face).
· Staff are provided with the appropriate personal protective equipment (i.e., disposable gloves and face masks). Staff are encouraged to notify their supervisor if they require any additional equipment.
· Disposable gloves will be changed after cleaning each washroom, handling dirty laundry, and when going between guest rooms.
· Staff are not permitted to enter a room when in-use by guest(s). Staff must wait until room is vacated before cleaning.
· Rooms are vacuumed with Hepa Filter vacuums.
· All hard surfaces will be cleaned with disinfectant and a cloth.
· Bathrooms will be cleaned with disinfectant and a cloth.
· Dirty cloths will be washed with bleach and hot water.
· High-use touchpoints will be sanitized during group changeovers (for individual rooms and common areas), and daily in public areas (i.e., dining halls):
· Tabletops
· Toilet seats
· Sinks
· Chairs
· Remotes
· Phones
· Light switches
· Fridges
· Doorknobs
· Disinfectant stations will be available for guests to do self-cleaning.

Kitchen – Cooking & kitchen use

· Staff are responsible for practicing good hygiene practices (e.g., frequent hand washing, covering coughs and sneezes, and not touching their face).
· Staff must wash hands between kitchen tasks, after breaks, cleaning, washroom-use, coughing and sneezing, upon entering or exiting the building, eating and/drinking, and after removing the garbage.
· Aprons must be removed before going outside and going to the bathroom.
· Enhanced cleaning of touchpoints – kitchen staff are responsible for cleaning high-use touchpoints after each meal.
· High-use touchpoints are the following:
· Countertops
· Fridge doors
· Door handles
· 12’’ above and 6’’ below each door handle
· Phones
· Commercial equipment and knobs
· Ovens
· Dishwasher machine
· Stoves
· Sinks and taps
· Staff must soak cutlery in pre-soak solution prior to the dishwasher

Serving

· Staff are responsible for serving guests their meals behind the plexiglass barrier.
· Self-serve beverage areas will have proper signage with guidelines for use.
· Please wash hands or sanitize prior to use.
· Meals will be served at the servery, with guests remaining 2m apart. Markings will be placed on the floor to help keep people 2 m apart and guide the direction.

Dining Hall Setup & Cleaning

· The tables will be set up with 2 m spacing.
· No more than 4 people per table.
· Plexiglass barriers will be used at dining areas.
· Outdoor seating is encouraged, when appropriate
· Dirty dishes will be placed in marked containers.

Administrative & Management

· Management/administrative staff are responsible for practicing good hygiene practices (e.g., frequent hand washing, covering coughs and sneezes, and not touching their face).
· Management/administration staff are responsible for sanitizing their own work stations.