Wichita-area YMCAs reopen May 18 with changes including shorter hours
All of the Greater Wichita YMCA branches are planning to reopen on May 18. But there will be some noticeable changes to start off.
President and CEO Ronn McMahon said Tuesday that the organization is still working through specifics of the plan, which will be announced in depth next week.
But he said members can expect to see shorter hours and some facility favorites, such as swimming pools, to be closed for a while after operation resumes.
“Not everything will open up right on the 18th. We’ll be phasing some of those things in,” McMahon said.
“We want to be open. We want to be serving the community. But I’m also concerned about safety because we don’t know everything about this virus.”
The Greater Wichita YMCAs are among health and fitness facilities that may be able to resume in-person operations as early as May 18 under Gov. Laura Kelly’s plan to reopen the state. The governor shuttered all businesses except those deemed essential on March 30 in an effort to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, which causes the COVID-19 respiratory disease.
The Wichita YMCA branches shut down over COVID-19 concerns two weeks earlier, on March 16, as a precaution.
News of the branches’ May 18 reopening came in an email to members Monday.
McMahon said when the Ys do open their doors to the public again, they’ll be operating with modified hours that are “slightly less to just give us time to keep facilities clean.”
He said the organization is still weighing whether to require guests and staff to wear face coverings and other protective items.
“Masks, gloves — those types of things we’re still working through.”
But people will definitely see the familiar safety protocols implemented at other businesses, including additional cleanings and spacing individuals six feet apart as social distancing guidelines suggest.
“How do we do that? That will affect our equipment. That will affect each of our room’s occupancy,” McMahon said, adding that “all of the safety things that will be happening in every other industry will be happening at the Y.”
Many details of the reopening were still fluid Tuesday. A plan with more specifics will be shared on May 11.
How and when the Greater Wichita YMCA will resume youth and adult sports, summer camps and other programs remains to be seen. Memberships are currently “on hold” and members will not be charged fees again without being notified in advance, the email announcing the reopening date says.
McMahon said several people who responded to a YMCA survey that yielded 6,000 responses in two days said they are eagerly awaiting the reopening.
“There are a lot that are excited and can’t wait to get back.”
Others said they “are still concerned about safety,” he said.
“We don’t know if people will flock back to the Y.” But, he said, “we want to let people know that we’re looking forward and trying to be open as responsibly and as safely as we possibly can.”
This story was originally published May 5, 2020 at 1:32 PM.
