
Mayor Marty Walsh stated that the return will be effective Wednesday, December 16.
In an effort to reduce the further spread of COVID-19 and its impact on Boston’s health care system and essential services, Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced that effective Wednesday, December 16, the City of Boston will return back to a modified Phase Two, Step Two of the Reopening Massachusetts plan.
What these changes mean for you:
Businesses: Please check if your industry will be impacted by changes at boston.gov/reopening.
The City of Boston has been hosting webinars today to provide guidance and answer questions from business owners. All of the webinars were recorded and are on the Office of Economic Development’s Facebook page.
The following industries in the City of Boston are required to close starting Wednesday, December 16 for at least three weeks:
- Indoor fitness centers and health clubs, including gyms using alternative spaces. One-on-one personal training sessions are allowed.
- Movie theaters
- Museums
- Aquariums
- Indoor recreational and athletic facilities (except for youth 18 and under). Note: This does not apply to collegiate or professional sports. Collegiate sports teams in the City of Boston may continue to use indoor recreational facilities and fitness centers. Indoor pools may remain open for all ages under pre-registration format structure limited to one person per swim lane.
- Indoor recreational venues with potential for low-contact (batting cases, driving ranges, bowling alleys, rock-climbing)
- Sightseeing and other organized tours (bus tours, duck tours, harbor cruises, whale watching)
- Indoor historical spaces & sites
- Indoor event spaces (meeting rooms, ballrooms, private party rooms, social clubs*)
- Private social clubs may continue to operate, if they serve food, consistent with restaurant guidance.
- Indoor and outdoor gaming arcades associated with gaming devices
The following industries in the City of Boston may remain in operation with the following restrictions in place starting Wednesday, December 16 for at least three weeks:
- Office spaces may remain open at 40 percent capacity. Employers are strongly encouraged to allow employees to work from home as much as possible.
- Indoor dining in restaurants may remain in operation with restricted bar seating. The 90 minute limit on seatings to reduce crowding and prevent the spread of COVID-19 will be strictly enforced. No member of any dining party may remain in a restaurant for more than 90 minutes in any calendar day. Ancillary activities such as pool tables, darts, trivia, etc. are prohibited.
- Bar seating is prohibited unless express written approval is issued by Boston’s Licensing Board, after Licensees submit a Bar Seating Plan for review and approval.
- Indoor non-athletic instructional classes in arts, education & life sciences for persons 18 years and older may continue to operate within the 10-person capacity limit.
- Outdoor event spaces used for gatherings and celebrations under the 25-person capacity limit, including those in parks, reservations, and other outdoor spaces not designated in Phase Four.
- Outdoor theaters and outdoor performance venues may continue to operate under the 25-person capacity limit
- Motion picture, television and streaming production may continue to operate
The following State orders remain in effect to reduce the spread of COVID-19:
Face covering order: face masks or cloth face coverings are required in all public places, indoors and outdoors, even where you are able to maintain 6 feet of distance from others.
Travel order: all visitors entering Massachusetts, including returning residents are required to:
- Complete the Massachusetts Travel Form prior to arrival, unless visiting from a lower-risk state designated by the Department of Public Health.
- Quarantine for 14 days or produce a negative COVID-19 test result that has been administered up to 72-hours prior to arrival in Massachusetts.
Stay-at-Home Advisory: residents of Massachusetts are advised to stay home between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
For more information about Boston’s reopening, please visit boston.gov/reopening. For additional questions or programs, please visit our coronavirus website or call 3-1-1, Boston’s 24-hour constituent hotline. Text BOSCOVID to 888-777 to receive text alerts on a regular basis, available in 11 languages.
Dig Staff means this article was a collaborative effort. Teamwork, as we like to call it.