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NYC Summer Camps Await Cuomo's Permission To Open This Year
By
Sophia Chang
and
Annie Todd
Published May 30, 2020
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By
Sophia Chang
and
Annie Todd
Published May 30, 2020
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As city-run summer camps have announced they will not operate in person this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, some private and community organizations are eagerly awaiting Governor Andrew Cuomo's authorization to open their doors this summer.
JCC Brooklyn has announced that its Fort Hamilton camp in Bay Ridge will operate this summer pending approval. “After careful consideration, and provided that there is clearance from the New York City Department of Health in line with CDC recommendations, JCC Brooklyn is excited to announce that summer camp 2020 for ages 4-15 will be open!” the JCC’s website said.
The camp had 600 participants last year and is capping attendance at 300 this year, said Leonard Petlakh, executive director of the Kings Bay Y. "The fine print in our declarations is when the authorities grant permission we are ready to open," he said in an email.
Cuomo has said he would delay making any recommendations regarding New York’s summer camps or school openings until June. When asked for an update Thursday, his office said "a decision about summer camps has not been made yet, the state is still reviewing the facts."
Last week, Cuomo said one of the reasons for the delay was the emergence of Pediatric Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome, which has so far sickened 179 people and killed three children in the state.
"Until we have this answer on this pediatric syndrome, as a parent, until I know how widespread this is, I would not send my children to day camp," said Cuomo. "If I won’t send my children to day camp, I wouldn’t ask anybody else to send their children to day camp. It’s that simple."
Meanwhile, the city-run camps have been canceled for the season -- and the city also shut down playgrounds and will not open pools this season. Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city will develop digital offerings to entertain homebound children this summer.
“Virtual field trips is something that offers kids a whole opportunity to see things that they care about and want to learn about. New educational programming on TV, radio, as well as online – eBooks being made available with lesson plans,” he said at his May 19th briefing.
Like the JCC Brooklyn’s campus at Fort Hamilton, some of the New York City private camps with expansive grounds are holding out hope they can operate this summer.
With access to four aircraft hangars on 35 acres of land in Floyd Bennett Field in Gateway National Recreation Area, Aviator Sports’s website said its summer day camps "will take place as scheduled if we have approval from New York State, New York City, and National Park Service.”
Camp operators pointed out the lack of guidance was frustrating because there’s a lot to do before opening for the season.
Mike Goldstein, the operator of Manhattan Beach Summer Camp, which runs out of the Manhattan Beach Jewish Center, said in order to open for the season he has to fill the pools, clean facilities, buy supplies, and food. Without guidance from the state, “it's hard to make a decision."
Jack Grustbard, owner of Mill Basin Day Camp, is also preparing to hold camp this season. He listens to the mayor and governor’s daily briefings hoping for clarity. "Guidance has been an issue,” Grustbard said.
He doesn't see the camp operating without a financial loss this year. "The major issue is that most camps have to spend a huge amount of money in the event they can open," he said.
A video about the JCC Brooklyn summer camp featured Dr. Emily Byne, identified as a JCC Brooklyn parent and child development specialist. She said the camp had 177 acres to use in Fort Hamilton.
“This is a tremendous advantage in terms of social distancing, and particularly in Brooklyn where this type of space is generally impossible to find. This allows us to place campers in groups of no more than ten,” Byne said. “And these campers will be rotating every hour, between indoor and outdoor activities. By separating campers into these separate groups and separate zones, it will help us ensure limited contact between campers and help us effectively contain any potential spread of the virus.”
The main challenge is preventing the spread of the coronavirus in a camp setting, Dr. David Cennimo, an infectious disease expert with Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, told the New York Times.
“I think if I ran a camp, I probably wouldn’t want to open,” he said. “But if you think that you could control the spread if your defenses were breached, and you have a plan to do that, you may be willing to try. You are asking people to trust that you have that plan.”
The YMCA of New York and the Fresh Air Fund have both canceled sleepaway camps this summer, though the YMCA is still awaiting guidance on day camps. The Boy Scouts of America Greater New York Councils said on its website in April that it has “every intention of running summer camp this season and are continuing our summer planning and preparations.”
Meantime, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced his state’s day camps can open on July 6th. Connecticut’s state officials decided to allow day camps to start operating on June 22nd though overnight camps are canceled.
Tagged
COVID-19
Summer Camp
coronavirus
Sophia Chang
Sophia Chang is a former WNYC and Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Annie Todd
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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