Children still barred from Lexington playgrounds as bars and theaters reopen
When strangers approached 14-year-old Jayde Irvine and her two younger step-siblings Tuesday at the colorful Valley Park playground in Lexington, she apologetically offered to leave.
Every public playground in Lexington has been ordered closed and off-limits since March due to the infection threat posed by COVID-19. In cooperation, the Fayette County Public Schools have locked their own playgrounds to make them inaccessible.
So, as the months drag on, children either must walk past the slides, swings and jungle gyms or become scofflaws.
The Irvine kids couldn’t resist.
“He kept saying ‘park’ this morning,” Jayde explained, gesturing to her 3-year-old step-brother, Jameison, as he climbed over different obstacles on the playground.
“We live in apartments over there,” she said. “There’s not much space inside to play, and we can’t do much outside, either.”
The gradual reopening of Lexington’s interior spaces — of bars, restaurants, stores, churches and movie theaters — has mollified adults, but it leaves out children looking for a place to play outdoors. And that’s going to remain true for a while longer, Mayor Linda Gorton said Tuesday.
“We’re working on the plans (for reopening playgrounds) right now,” Gorton said. “We’re working real hard on that.”
“We have many, many playgrounds in Fayette County. It’s just taking us time to make sure we have the plans we need to keep people safe. We’re also looking at spray-grounds and whether we can go ahead and open those with safety measures in place,” Gorton said.
Gov. Andy Beshear and the Kentucky Department of Public Health have left reopening playgrounds to the discretion of local officials. Some smaller cities, like Somerset and Pikeville, decided after a short interval to welcome the children back.
Somerset Mayor Alan Keck said his city’s five public playgrounds reopened June 8. Keck said he took into account news from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that surface contact — particularly outside in sunlight, where UV radiation can kill the coronavirus — was not a likely way for the infection to spread.
That revelation made a metal swing set look less threatening than it did in March, Keck said. Just based on the infection risk, he added, it seems hard to justify keeping playgrounds closed while reopening bars on a Saturday night.
“We’re told now that compared to being in a dense crowd where the aerosol droplets from other people are going to expose you to the virus, surface contact isn’t much of a threat,” Keck said. “We monitor the crowds (at the playgrounds) to make sure they are not literally on top of one another. But we’ve really not had problems.”
“Also, the key word here is ‘balance,’” Keck said. “It’s good for the kids to get outside and get some fresh air and exercise and Vitamin D from sunshine. At some point you have to ask yourself what they’re losing by not giving them anyplace to play.”
Blake Hall of Lexington is the father of a 3 year old and 2-month-old twins. Hall said the continued closure of public playgrounds hurts families unable to afford backyard play sets, which can cost thousands of dollars — if they can be found at all. After playgrounds closed nationwide in March, play sets quickly disappeared from stores and online retailers.
“I’ve been disappointed in the (Lexington) parks department for opening up tennis courts, boat rentals and the like but not playgrounds,” Hall said Tuesday.
“I know COVID-19 is very much a real concern, but the latest evidence has been showing that the virus isn’t as much of a concern when it comes to shared surfaces. As long as social distancing recommendations are followed, it should be fine to visit playgrounds,” Hall said.
When Lexington playgrounds finally do reopen, social distancing will be required to keep children from potentially spreading the coronavirus between each other, Gorton said Tuesday.
“When you’re on a playground, you generally want to be there with your best buddies, right? Shoulder to shoulder?” Gorton said. “That is not going to be what we envision. We’re going to keep families and children safe.”
When playgrounds are open during the pandemic, the CDC advises parents to keep children from different households at least six feet apart when possible. Because the play equipment probably is not being cleaned, everyone should wash their hands with soap and water afterward or use sanitizer. And the CDC does recommend masks for children on the playground over the age of 2.
This story was originally published June 24, 2020 at 9:56 AM.
