Toronto relaxes COVID-19 rink rules as winter activities move ‘toward normal’
In recent weeks, city leaders in the Greater Boston area have introduced a number of measures to support residents as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. But if the long-term economic and physical health of our communities is our highest priority, then one of the most important steps we can take is to open up our city and protect our residents from the spread of COVID-19.
Now, as summer activities move toward normal, it’s time to review and update the rules that govern our public parks, including the public skate park at Harvard Square — the one that is also the site of the next Boston Harbor Day celebration, held on Wednesday, April 11. During this period, all public buildings and facilities such as parks, schools, and businesses are to limit occupancy to essential employees while following social distancing recommendations. When people are present on a given day in the same space, there will be no social gathering and no interaction. No walking, and people should keep a 6-foot distance from each other.
While these measures are necessary for us to reopen our economy — and for society to return to normal — we also have an obligation to protect the health, safety, and well-being of our residents. We believe closing the Harvard Square skate park could cause permanent harm to the health and well-being of our neighbors, which we hope to avoid at all cost. We are working with many partners and community partners to ensure this risk does not materialize.
There are a number of possible solutions to help protect our residents and keep people safe, including reopening and expanding our community health centers and community pharmacies, as well as improving the conditions of the parking lots that surround our public parks, and introducing temporary measures limiting people who come to work during this period. The most obvious solution is to immediately reopen Cambridge City Hall by opening all public buildings and business to essential employees, so people can resume their daily lives as normal. This is something we would like to see happen immediately.
We will continue to explore all possible solutions to this potentially concerning issue and, as we do so, we encourage all of our residents to be part
