Fire Truck Park reopens in Southside Place after COVID-19 caused closure

Ever since Southside Place’s Fire Truck Park closed down in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, reopening the playground and park has come up at every city council meeting. The city council and mayor, Pat Patterson, approved the reopening of the playground during their October meeting. It reopened on Oct. 14 for the first time since March. Bellaire propositions : 1 proposition passes, 2 fail in Bellaire’s highly contested sidewalk election Southside’s Park and Recreation Director Andrew Deavers explained that the two biggest factors in the decision were guidelines from the Texas Department of State Health Services as part of Governor Greg Abbott’s executive order to open Texas that had just been released and updated information from the Centers for Disease Control about the risk of surface transmission of COVID-19. “The primary and most important mode of transmission for COVID-19 is through close contact from person-to-person,” explained a May media release from the CDC. “It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly eyes, but this isn’t thought to be the main way the virus spreads.” Following guidelines In accordance with the guidelines from the Texas Department of State Health Services, individuals cannot be in a group larger than 10 people and should maintain 6 feet of distance from other people when possible. Individuals 10 and older are required to wear a face covering when not possible to maintain 6 feet of distance from people not in the same household. The City of Southside Place’s website points out that “playground equipment, gates, and furniture are not routinely disinfected; use of playground equipment will be at your own risk.” However, two benches at Fire Truck Park are closed to help promote social distancing. Beyond that, Deavers is asking people to follow the orders from the state and the county, to wear a mask when social distancing isn’t possible, to practice proper hygiene and to avoid going out into public when sick. “The park is a perfect opportunity to allow kids to have some time to relax from school, get out, exercise,” stated Deavers. “It’s really important for kids in their development and their motor functions, as well as gaining confidence by tackling new obstacles on the playground. It’s important for their physical and mental well-being.” A new look: Fire Truck Park re-opens with all-new playground, more Coming back For Melissa Byers, a Southside resident and mother of four children aged 5-14, the Fire Truck Park has been a special place close by where her kids can be outside, run around, have fun and get exercise. “I think all Southside residents really missed our usual summer activities. Not just the playground but swim team and summer camp and a lot of the things that are really special to the community,” she said. “We’re happy that the park is open again now so that our family can have a little bit more normalcy and make it easier to be outside. I think we definitely missed it over the summer, and, now that the weather’s nice, I think it’s great that it’s open.” Deavers said the attendance since the playground reopened has been about the same as it was at that time the previous year. He said that about 40 people come in and out of the park on a daily basis now, with higher numbers on the weekends and on days with particularly nice weather. Byers and her children have been back to the playground several times in the couple weeks that it has been back open, and she said she does not have hesitation about them playing there. Renew Houston: Get the latest wellness news delivered to your inbox “Even if the park had been open at the beginning of the pandemic, we would not have gone, but, now, I feel comfortable,” she explained. “They wear their masks if they’re around any other folks and use hand sanitizer and wash their hands and are responsible in that way. So I feel comfortable now. Who knows what’s around the corner, so, as the situation evolves, that could always change, but I’m not concerned about them touching the playground equipment as long as people are keeping their distance.” elliott.lapin@hearst.com

Fire Truck Park reopens in Southside Place after COVID-19 caused closure

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