Campgrounds and many state park facilities have reopened, two days ahead of schedule.

Pools, gyms and other fitness facilities were able to reopen for all of Memorial Day weekend, too. Brown County State Park’s outdoor pool is not open because it’s undergoing maintenance, an employee said, but the pool in the Abe Martin Lodge is open.

Non-contact recreational sports practices can begin; basketball, tennis, soccer and baseball courts and fields can reopen.

People can gather in groups of up to 100.

With restaurants, retail stores and churches also reopening with some restrictions, life is looking a little more normal, even though COVID-19 isn’t over yet.

In accelerating his Back On Track Indiana plan to reopen the economy, Gov. Eric Holcomb last week pointed to a decline in the number of infected people hospitalized and the continued availability of intensive care unit beds to treat those most seriously ill.

“We’ve earned the ability … to continue to move forward,” he said.

State health officials have reported 1,941 deaths of people with confirmed or presumed COVID-19 infections since mid-March. At least 543 deaths have occurred since the May 4 lifting of Indiana’s state-at-home order that was imposed March 25.

In Brown County, as of May 22, a total of 33 people had been diagnosed with the virus and one had died.

Last week, a few community organizations discussed their reopening plans for summer and later on in the year, among them Brown County Schools and the Brown County YMCA. Those plans are evolving.

The Brown County Fair leadership boards decided last week that fair will not happen this July in person. 4-H projects will be shown virtually.

Brown County Schools

In response to information circulating nationally on social media about guidelines for school reopenings, Superintendent Laura Hammack sent a message to parents saying that no decisions have been made yet about the fall semester.

At last week’s school board meeting, she announced that a Return to School Task Force has been created to create three or four scenarios for fall.

One scenario would be students returning to school buildings.

Another would be students returning to school buildings and also offering an online option for families.

A third could be running an online program if students are not able to come back to school in person.

The task force was to meet for the first time on May 26.

About the guidelines circulating on social media presented as coming from the Centers for Disease Control, Hammack said that CDC guidance isn’t the only piece of information they’ll be studying. The district also was waiting for guidance from the governor’s office and the Indiana State Department of Health, which are working with the Indiana Department of Education, she said.

“I understand that there are many of you who would like our students back in school immediately,” she wrote to parents. “I also understand that there are many of you who are deeply concerned about a safe return to school. This is a very challenging time; however, we are committed to developing strategies to address a comprehensive spectrum of needs.”

Hammack conducts a weekly chat on her Brown County Schools — Superintendent Facebook page on Mondays at 5:30 p.m. to answer questions.

Brown County YMCA

The Brown County YMCA was to reopen its pool, fitness center, multipurpose room and gym on May 26.

However, no one younger than 18 is allowed in the building, and non-members of the Brown County Y will not be admitted either. No guest passes or reciprocity passes will be honored, the Y announced on its Facebook page.

Building hours are being reduced to 5:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., with the building closed between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. every day for cleaning.

No programs or classes will operate until June 22. The steam room and sauna room are also closed.

If you come to the gym, you’ll have to bring your own basketball. If you visit the fitness center, you’ll see machines spaced further apart or taken out of service to abide by social distancing recommendations.

The Y also asks that guests come dressed for the gym to reduce the usage of locker rooms. Wearing a mask is encouraged, but not required.

If you or anyone in your household has a cough, fever or shortness of breath, the Y asks that you stay away until everyone is fever-free for 24 hours. If you’ve been contacted by a health official to tell you you’ve been exposed to COVID-19, you’re asked to not use the Y until 14 days after your exposure.

Summer care for kids

The future of many summer camps is still in limbo, but at least one summer care option will be open for children whose parents need to get back to work.

The Brown County YMCA will offer Summer Care — similar to its day camp program, but modified for COVID-19.

Registration will open on June 1 and the program will run every weekday from June 15 to July 31. Potty-trained children ages 3 and older will be eligible to attend, up to a maximum of 36 children.

The care program will take place outside in 400-square-foot wall tents with fans, said YMCA Program Director Anna Hofstetter. They will be able to move into the gym if the weather dictates that, she said.

Organizers are trying to limit crossover of Y guests and children in the care program as much as possible. Children will have access to the pool, but through a different door than Y members will be using, and at a different time than when other guests will be swimming, she said.

Children also will be kept in three distinct groups for the duration of the care program, each with its own teacher and helper, Hofstetter said. Kids and staff will be screened every day at drop-off, and anyone with a fever will not be able to attend.

Specific drop-off and pick-up times have been set for each of the three groups of children. One group of children, ages 6 and older, can be dropped off between 7 and 8 a.m. and picked up between 1 and 2 p.m. The other group of children that age can be dropped off between 8 and 9 a.m. and picked up between 4 and 5 p.m. The youngest group, ages 3 to 5, can be dropped off between 9 and 10 a.m. and picked up between 3 and 4 p.m.

The fees range between $90 and $110 per week, with scholarships available.

Children in the program will need to commit to the entire seven-week session — no pop-ins for a week or so at a time.

To register, call the YMCA at 812-988-9622 starting June 1.

This program is intended for parents who have no other options for care for their children, Hofstetter said.

The Y considered not operating a summer children’s program because of all the health and safety guidelines that are recommended, but ultimately, leaders decided that it’s the Y’s mission to do so, she said.

“We need to do this, and we need to do this right,” Hofstetter said.

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According to Gov. Eric Holcomb’s Back On Track Indiana plan, the following activities can happen in Stage 3, which is the one we’re in now until approximately June 14:

• Social gatherings of up to 100 people allowed.
• Retail stores and malls can move to 75 percent capacity with social distancing. Mall common areas like food courts and sitting areas limited to 50 percent capacity.
• Gyms and fitness centers can open with restrictions. Employees required to wear face coverings.
• Community tennis courts, basketball courts, soccer and baseball fields and similar facilities can open with social distancing.
• Community pools can open.
• Community recreational youth and adult sports can resume practices and conditioning. Sports such as football, basketball and wrestling, where players typically come into contact with other players, are not permitted. Conditioning and non-contact drills may take place.
• Raceways can open with no spectators.
• Campgrounds can open with social distancing limitations and sanitation precautions.
• Drive-in theaters can open. Other movie theaters are to remain closed.

Other details about this stage:

• Summer day camps won’t be able to open until at least June 1, and overnight camps remain closed.
• Multi-day meetings or gatherings are strongly discouraged.
• Those 65 and older and those with high-risk medical conditions should limit exposure.
• Continue remote work when possible.
• Face coverings recommended.
• Nursing homes remain closed to visitors.
• Playgrounds remain closed.
• Bars and nightclubs remain closed.
• Amusement parks and tourism sites remain closed.
• No fairs, festivals or parades yet.
• School buildings, facilities and grounds remain closed for school-sponsored education, sports and other activities, except for daycare, through June 30.
• No travel restrictions.

Gatherings have been limited to 25 people and stores to 50 percent capacity under the state’s first easing of restrictions which took effect May 4.

Tougher local restrictions are still being allowed, but that has not been done in Brown County.

The Stage 3 steps are not taking effect until at least June 1 in Indianapolis, northwestern Indiana’s Lake County and rural northern Indiana’s Cass County, where a large coronavirus outbreak infected hundreds of Tyson meatpacking plant workers.

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