Baltimore City will reopen pools, playgrounds and basketball courts on July 13 with some capacity restrictions and other health guidelines to limit the spread of coronavirus, city officials announced on Thursday.
Reginald Moore, the city’s director of the Department of Recreation and Parks, announced that the city will reopen five park pools on July 13, including Cherry Hill Splash, Clifton Park, Patterson Park, Riverside and Roosevelt Park.
The city will also reopen the Ambrose Kennedy, C.C. Jackson, Liberty, O’Donnell Heights and William McAbee neighborhood pools on July 20, Moore said.
The pools will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Sept. 7.
Visitors must pre-register for a 90-minute session to access a pool. People can begin registering on July 6 by calling (410) 396-3841 or by visiting the Department of Recreation and Parks’ website.
“It is important to stress that they will not be allowed to walk up [without pre-registering] to our pools this year,” Moore said.
Guests can reserve a maximum of four spaces, and are asked to register at least five days in advance of their session due to limited slots.
Once they arrive, visitors will have their registration and temperature checked, Moore said.
The park pools will allow a maximum of 50 guests to visit during each 90-minute session, while the neighborhood pools will admit up to 14 guests per session. There will be a 30-minute break between each session for pool cleanup.
Moore said that there will not be extended pool days for Code Red heat emergencies.
The Department of Recreation and Parks will reopen playgrounds and fitness equipment on July 13, but they will not be sanitizing equipment daily, Moore said.
Instead, he urged visitors to bring their own hand sanitizer.
Basketball and bocce ball courts will also reopen on July 13.
Moore said the parks and other recreational sites will have detailed signage with coronavirus-related safety guidelines, which he urged visitors to abide.
“What we want to do is make sure that we give you many recreational opportunities, but we do not want to start or create a spread to the COVID-19 pandemic. So we encourage everyone to follow our rules and procedures,” he said.
More information about the Department of Recreation and Parks’ coronavirus response, including its reopening plan, can be found at bcrp.baltimorecity.gov.
