Wisely or unwisely, many of the public facilities that closed back in March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic are beginning to re-open. These re-openings, however, are not without limits and conditions. In my opinion, the Worthington Community Center has done all the right things as far as making its services available to its members, while still taking all the proper steps to halt the spread of the dangerous virus.  When the center re-opened about six weeks ago, members had to make an appointment for a 75-minute block of time. If they arrived early, they were asked to wait in their cars until the hour their appointment began. Appointments are no longer necessary to take advantage of the center’s services and equipment, but precautions are still being taken to safeguard members’ health. During a recent visit to the center, I took careful note of these different precautions from the moment I entered the building to the moment I left.

There appear to be two underlying objectives guiding the different safety measures being taken by Community Center staff: (1) Keep people apart and (2) Keep things sanitized. Upon arriving at the community center, members can only go in through the glass doors on the northeast side; the doors on the southeast side are for exiting. Just inside the doors, a bottle of hand sanitizer sits on a table. People are asked to squirt some of the gooey stuff on both hands before proceeding farther. Even before reaching this point, a sign “strongly recommends” they wear masks except when exercising. It all makes perfect sense.

With clean hands, members approach a make-shift check-in table that is about 25 feet away from the front counter where the staff conducted their business in pre-pandemic times. If two or more people are waiting to check-in, they are asked to stand 6 feet apart. Blue dots on the floor show them how far away to stand from the person ahead of them. When the members reach the table, a masked staff member, sitting behind a transparent plastic “window,” is usually there to greet them. They swipe their cards and proceed to the exercise equipment, some of which has been moved downstairs to the north gymnasium. Every exercise bike, elliptical, and treadmill stands 8-10 feet away from its nearest neighbor. As in pre-pandemic times, members are encouraged to “wipe down” their machines when they are finished. Sanitary-wipe dispensers are located at several spots to make this easier. Even so, the staff takes no chances. At any given time, at least one of them is scurrying around the exercise floor, wiping off handrails, counter tops, and exercise machines with a sanitizer-soaked cloth. The bathrooms receive a lot of attention, too, as underscored by signs on their doors proclaiming “THIS BATHROOM IS CLEANED AT LEAST EVERY TWO HOURS.”

There are some inconveniences that must be tolerated. For one thing, the drinking fountains are turned off and there is no place to store coats, towels, and other items a person might bring with him or her. (There is a water station where you can fill up a water bottle that you bring yourself.) If you use the indoor track either for running or walking, you must stay on the inside lane and avoid the middle lane.  The outside lane is to be used only for passing someone slower. When you are finished with your workout, you swipe your card to let the staff know you are leaving and then exit through the southeast doors. You may, if you wish, splash on some more hand sanitizer before departing.

The limited re-opening of the Community Center seems to be working well, but there is some way to go before we are — if ever — back to normal. Right now, the swimming pool, though filled with water, remains closed, and few if any children’s programs are being offered. The hours of operation are also reduced with the center closed all of Sunday, and after 12 p.m. on Friday, and 2 p.m. on Saturday. At least part of the time when the center is closed, staff are busy cleaning the place from top to bottom.

As far as I’m concerned, the people at the Worthington Community Center are doing the right thing as far as balancing member safety with recreational and fitness services.  Given the fact that the coronavirus seems to be gaining a second wind in Ohio and elsewhere, other community service providers may want to follow their example.