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Date: 10/7/2020
EASTHAMPTON – Gov. Charlie Baker announced the transition to step two of phase three for lower risk communities.
Effective Oct. 5, indoor performance venues will be permitted to open with 50 percent capacity with a maximum of 250 people. Outdoor performance venue capacity with an increase to 50 percent with a max of 250 people.
Arcades and indoor and outdoor recreation businesses like trampolines, obstacle courses, roller rinks are allowed to open and with a capacity of 50 percent. Fitting rooms are allowed to open in all retail stores. Gyms, museums, libraries, and driving and flight schools can also increase their capacity to 50 percent.
The limit for indoor gatherings remain at a maximum of 25 people, outdoor gathering at a private residence and in a private backyard will remain at a max of 50 people, and outdoor gathers at event venues and in public settings will have a limit of 50 people in step one communities, and a limit of 100 people in lower risk, step three communities.
Despite Baker's recent guidelines, town buildings remain closed in the city of Easthampton until Jan. 1, 2021, per order of Mayor Nicole LaChapelle.
Director of the Emily Williston Memorial Library Nora Blake said the library would also remain closed. She indicated there were two reasons for this decision, the first being that the building that was built in 1887 lacks an HVAC system. Blake said there is no air circulation in their building.
“We are exploring the cost of having an HVAC system installed but are not sure that we can afford to do this,” said Blake.
The second issue is the mayor’s order to close municipal buildings. While the library is not fully a department of the city, Blake explained they are owned and operated by a private, nonprofit corporation that holds a contract with the city to provide library services to the community so they want to support the cities policies.
Since the library closed to the public they have been offering pick-up services on the sidewalk of the library. Blake said they allow people to place requests for materials in their collection or from the collections of the other 140 member libraries in the library network. The library is also allowing people to email items to them that they need to be printed. They will print the pages and bring them outside to them for pick-up. They are also doing the same for photocopying and faxing.
“People can come to the table outside, call us and a staff member will come out and take the item(s) that people need to fax or have photocopied. We taken them inside, perform the function and bring the items back out for the person to take back,” said Blake.
When a resident returns an item to the outdoor book return, the staff wears a mask and gloves to retrieve the item. It is then placed in a pile on one of the reading tables where it will sit in quarantine for five days. Once the five days have passed, the item is checked back into the system and put on the shelve.
When it is deemed safe for the public to go into the library, there will be limits on the amount of time people can stay inside. There will no longer be places for people to sit and read or to sit and use the wireless internet. People will be able to use their public computers but the staff will not be able to provide help and the usage will be limited to about 30 minutes.
Masks will be required and if someone does not have one the library will provide the person with a disposable mask or the staff will ask them to wait outside and they will bring their materials to them.