The Cortez City Council approved April 28 a series of gradual reopenings for some city facilities, starting Friday.
The reopenings will take place under strict safety guidelines and on a limited basis in some cases.
The Montezuma County Board of Health and Southwest Health System have both signed off on the plan, City Manager John Dougherty said. Cortez is still waiting on the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to process the order, as the city is seeking a few variations from the governor’s directives currently in place, but the facilities will open on schedule.
The reopenings include:
Conquistador Golf Course, May 1.City Hall, May 4.Service Center, May 4.Library (limited), May 4.Recreation Center and parks, possibly on June 1.The golf course has been closed since March 27 – a closure that raised opposition from many local golfers – but the council held firm to the decision at its April 14 meeting, with the majority ruling that it was better to err on the side of caution.
Beginning Friday, though, it is opening up again, with precautions taken to limit interactions. Groups can have no more than four players, tee times will be spaced out, and social distancing regulations will be enforced, among other rules.
“I think as much input as we’ve gotten from golfers, they’ll be paying attention and making sure everybody else does, because I’ve already warned them, if you don’t follow the rules, we’re not going to be able to stay open,” Dougherty said.
The city’s disc golf course also opens May 1.
City Hall and the Service Center are both set to open Monday, and will be fully operational. City Hall visitors will be expected to wear masks and may be asked to step outside if the lobby gets too crowded. A sneeze shield has also been installed to protect those working at the front desk.
The Cortez Public Library will begin curbside services on Tuesday, with staff returning to the library building the day before in order to prepare for operations. Starting Tuesday, staff will be available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday by phone or email, in order to take requests, answer questions, and assist with technical issues.
Library users will be able to pick up their checked-out items at 10 a.m., 12 p.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Returns won’t be accepted until the following week, starting May 11.
“Since there is a backlog of items out at this time, we are asking you to return books for a few weeks on a schedule according to the first letter of your last name to allow staff to safely isolate and handle materials,” the library’s interim director Alissa Baxstrom wrote in a letter posted online.
The schedule has those with last names beginning with the letters A through E returning materials on Monday; F through J on Tuesday, K through O on Wednesday; P through T on Thursday; and U through Z on Friday.
Returned materials will be isolated for about a week to make sure they are COVID-19-free, Dougherty said at Tuesday’s meeting.
The Cortez Recreation Center’s prospective opening is still up in the air, although Dougherty set a proposed date of June 1. As of now, the cardiac equipment has been moved from the upstairs area to the downstairs gymnasium, and is widely spaced out.
“It would be very difficult for people to do their workout with masks on, so we do need to separate them as much as possible,” Dougherty said. “The gym isn’t going to be used for quite some time, since there are no crowds.”
Councilors unanimously approved the reopenings, although there was some discussion about why the tennis and pickleball courts couldn’t be brought back, if the golf course is reopening and the Rec Center may open its doors in a month.
Dougherty said he would bring it up with the health department. He added, though, that tennis and pickleball were seen as more high-risk because in those sports there is some exchange of the same ball, while in golf, players tend to keep the same ball.
Other newsThe city’s residential curbside recycling service has been back in business since April 27, with a few adjustments.
Plastics will not be accepted yet, until additional guidance is offered by the county’s health department and processors, the city wrote in a Facebook post.
“This is due to the longevity of the COVID virus living on these surfaces,” the post states.
The public drop-off will stay closed until further notice.
Materials that are accepted include mixed cardboard, mixed glass, aluminum cans, tin/steel ferrous metals, and office paper mix. All materials should be clean and separated.
ealvero@the-journal.com