Local event organizers are scrambling to get last-minute safety plans approved before popular upcoming events.
Gov. Eric Holcomb last week signed an executive order that requires indoor and outdoor events with expected attendance of more than 250 people to have an event safety plan approved by the local health department prior to the event. The order applies to all events set to occur after Thursday.
Several organizations planning large annual events have already submitted safety plans to the health department for review, said Betsy Swearingen, director of the Johnson County Health Department. Plans submitted so far include Discover Downtown Franklin for Strawberries on the Square, Johnson County Parks and Recreation for events at Hoosier Horse Park, Greenwood Parks and Recreation for weekend concerts at the Greenwood Amphitheater and Edinburgh Community Schools for sporting events, she said.
The first big event to be impacted by the order is Strawberries on the Square. The order does not specify a time when event guidance will expire, but the order itself is set to expire July 31, with Holcomb expected to announce next steps of the state’s reopening plan around that time.
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Strawberries on the Square, set to kick off at 11 a.m. July 31 in downtown Franklin, will have marked changes, given that thousands attend the event every year, said Jess Giles, Discover Downtown Franklin’s executive director.
Instead of having hundreds of people at a time gathered together on the courthouse lawn while waiting for their strawberry shortcake order, organizers decided to make the shortcake tent a drive-thru, and move it to the Franklin Farmer’s Market parking lot per the city’s guidance, Giles said.
Typically, between 4,000 and 6,000 servings of shortcake are sold, she said.
“Not everyone will be there all at one time, but we wanted to do this to respect the volunteers’ health and time,” she said.
The hours of the event will also be shortened, with the last shortcake to be served by 8 p.m. Any extra servings of shortcake will be sold at the farmer’s market the next day, Giles said.
The planned concert will move to the parking lot and be arranged so patrons can watch from their cars while they’re in line or park and enjoy after they pick up their food, she said.
Event sponsors will still set up booths, and four food trucks will still set up around the courthouse square during the event, Giles said.
“We still wanted to be an enjoyable experience for families. So, we are giving them a different avenue to enjoy it,” Giles said. “It should be a wonderful time still, and the shortcake is still delicious.”
The safety plan has been approved by the health department and the Franklin Board of Works and Public Safety agreed to close streets and provide the parking lot for the event Monday evening. Included in the safety plan is a requirement for volunteers to wear a mask and gloves and sanitize their work stations frequently. Volunteers will also be asked health and potential exposure questions before being cleared to work the event, she said.
There was already a safety plan in place for Greenwood parks’ Summer Concert Series, but it had not been formally approved by the health department prior to Holcomb’s order, said Rob Taggart, parks director.
The plan already included all the governor’s required safety measures except one, contact tracing, he said. So now, concert attendees will be asked to provide their name and phone number in case a potential exposure is found, Taggart said.
The two concerts in the series so far have had “comfortable” attendance, he said. At reduced capacity, the amphitheater can hold up to 1,215 guests, and the most recent concert had about 750 attend, he said.
The health department expects to be busy approving event plans for the foreseeable future, Swearingen said. Assuming event organizers follow through on their plans, the events, especially those held outdoors, can be relatively safe, she said.
Swearingen also encourages residents to be diligent about staying home if there is any reason to believe they could have been exposed to COVID-19. For example, individuals who are awaiting their test results should stay home until they know the results, she said.
“I think that these events can be held as long as people are very diligent about maintaining these precautions and their own health,” Swearingen said.
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Gov. Eric Holcomb’s executive order requires event plans with attendance expected to exceed 250 to include the following:
Capacity Limits; plans must outline what steps will be taken to ensure the overall capacity does not exceed allowable limits of Stage 4 or Stage 4.5 and how social distancing will be achieved;
Guest Information; provide guests with appropriate information such as to stay home if sick or part of a vulnerable population, engage in social distancing, increase handwashing, etc.;
Staff and Volunteer Screening; appropriately screen staff and volunteers for COVID-19 symptoms;
Social Distancing Measures; identify measures to ensure attendees engage in social distancing such as use of multiple entrances, designated seating, one-way flow of attendees, ground markings, etc.
Increased Sanitation; outline steps to ensure the event space is appropriately cleaned and sanitized, and that additional handwashing or hand sanitizing is available;
Face Coverings; identify if face coverings are recommended or required;
Compliance; identify the number of event staff or volunteers who will be available to sufficiently monitor and ensure compliance with the approved plan and other executive orders.
Source: State of Indiana Executive Order 20-36
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