Black Friday is tomorrow and Niagara is preparing for what could be a busy weekend.
With Toronto and Peel in lockdown and much of the rest of the GTHA in the red restrict zone, shoppers have already been noted in other communities despite please by area mayors not to region hop.
N-O-T-L Mayor Betty Disero says she's received a lot of messages from local residents worried they'll be inundated with visitors from other regions this weekend and they want to know what's being done to protect citizens as well as workers in the service industry.
Disero says the town has been working closely with management at the Outlet Collection mall and she's confident they're ready for whatever comes their way tomorrow.
"They do have the ability to close their gates, so people just can't get off the highway, or into their parking lot, so if it becomes really outrageous they have the ability to do that."
Disero says Niagara Health has approved the mall's safety plan, adding paid duty officers, security crews as well as bylaw officers will be on hand at the Outlet Collection tomorrow and Saturday.
Mall management also now confirming that masks are mandatory outdoors at the Outlet Collection effective November 27th.
Earlier this week the Mayors of Peterborough and Guelph took to twitter to advise residents in the hot spots not to come shopping in their zones.
Disero questioned whether that kind of move would have any impact, given the original message - for those regions to stay home and not travel - came from Premier Doug Ford and is being ignored.