New Canaan’s highest elected official said Tuesday that the town should plan for a “normal” Family Fourth at Waveny this summer.
The town-appointed committee that organizes the hugely popular July 4 picnic and fireworks at Waveny is holding a public meeting this week and “there may be some decisions about some restrictions,” according to First Selectman Kevin Moynihan.
“It’s unclear yet whether or not we’re going have to do that,” Moynihan said during a regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen, held via videoconference.
The comments came during a discussion of general matters before the town, and on the eve of sweeping changes to COVID-19 pandemic-related restrictions that Connecticut has been living under for more than one year.
Gov. Ned Lamont this month announced plans to eliminate most of the restrictions as of May 19. Masks will not be required outdoors as of that day, state officials have said. It’s unclear whether there will be other guidance vis-a-vis gathering such as New Canaan’s Family Fourth. The Connecticut Department of Public Health is expected to issue recommendations Wednesday for large outdoor events.
The New Canaan Family Fourth Committee met in early March and agreed to plan for the community-wide event, pending restrictions from the state. The volunteer committee discussed different possible scenarios in the pandemic. When Recreation Director Steve Benko raised the prospective difficulty of keeping blankets six feet apart, committee member Suzanne Jonker said, “I think we need scientific evidence on six feet. I mean, I don’t want to start a debate but they better come up with that. They just kind of arbitrarily came up with six feet.” Then, at the suggestion made lightly of spray-painting 10-foot circles at Waveny, she said, “Get [President] Joe Biden’s team to do that. They’re good at that sort of thing.”
Last year’s event was canceled due to COVID-19 virus. July 4 falls on a Sunday this year.
I do wish Ms. Jonker did not show her partisan attitude during meetings of a local Town board. The 6 foot recommendations for social distancing is not “arbitrary” in the sense that it was picked without scientific backing. It is an attempt to reduce the risk of infection due to droplets emitted from the mouth and nose of an infected person while talking, singing, sneezing, etc.
It would be even less risky if the separation distance were 10 feet, but officials knew that would be difficult for people to accept. In addition, it is now accepted that the Corona virus is transmitted by minute particles carried long distances in the air (which is how people in an enclosed space without good ventilation become infected without ever coming into contact with an infected person). That is why the masking and distancing recommendations are still in place for some indoor spaces.
And yes, the Biden administration is much better at dealing with the pandemic than the previous administration.
You must not have read the new CDC guidelines. Your information is no longer accurate ( if it ever was) for the fully vaccinated. In the words of the CDC: “You can resume activities without wearing a mask or staying 6 feet apart”. The answer for the Family 4th is very simple: if you are still concerned or do not trust the science don’t attend.
Rich, I would just note here that it’s still unclear whether or in just what way the town will hold its traditional Family Fourth at Waveny, the first selectman’s comments notwithstanding. As you can imagine, the volunteer committee that runs the event normally has many months to bring together all the logistics for the Family Fourth. Now they have mere weeks. To your point, even if the picnic/fireworks does happen, it’s unclear whether organizers would call for attendees to wear masks. The Connecticut Department of Public Health is now saying event operators should consider requiring attendees to wear masks “at large outdoor events open to the public and/or where large crowds are expected and unvaccinated people (including children younger than 12 years) are likely to be in attendance.”
Thank you Michael. Hopefully the 4th of July decisions of both town and state are informed by science and not by emotions.
Re the relaxation of mask rules outdoors: Does downtown New Canaan still require masks?
So the outdoor mask “requirement” is gone, Barbara, for vaccinated and unvaccinated people. What I cited above is the state’s advice to the organizers of a specific type of outdoor event. You could argue that the Memorial Day Parade is a similar outdoor event. Our NCHS senior intern interviewed the town’s health director today on the new “rules,” and that article will be in the Friday morning newsletter.
Thanks.