After posts circulated on social media about basketball games being played in Hellertown’s Water Street Park Friday, the borough announced in an email Saturday that the courts are closed, along with all other recreational courts and pavilions in parks.
Closing the courts will help to promote social distancing, which can help slow the spread of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus).
A Saucon Source reader said in a Facebook message that as she drove past Water Street Park Friday she observed that “kids were playing basketball and young children were playing on the equipment with their parents looking on.”
“I thought playgrounds off limits during this #stayathome,” the reader said, referring to the stay-at-home order for Northampton County issued by Gov. Tom Wolf last week. Wolf frequently reminds residents to “Stay calm, stay safe, stay home” in his updates about the pandemic’s impact on Pennsylvania.
Playgrounds in the borough were closed earlier last weekend, and in the email Saturday officials reminded residents that the closures will be enforced by Hellertown Police.
Local playgrounds are off limits until further notice, due to the fact there is a potential for COVID-19 to spread on them. Studies have shown that the coronavirus can survive on hard surfaces such as plastic and metal for up to three days.
Lower Saucon Township playgrounds are also closed due to social distancing requirements and the fact that the playgrounds aren’t being sanitized or cleaned.
Borough and township parks and trails remain open for passive recreation however visitors should comply with the recommendation to maintain a distance of at least six feet between themselves and others.
In other COVID-19 related news from around Saucon Valley:
- The Saucon Valley Compost Center will not open as scheduled in early April. It is closed until further notice.
- The Monday, April 6 meeting of Hellertown Borough Council will be conducted via Webex. The call-in and meeting numbers will be listed on the agenda, which will be posted to the borough website Friday. The public is invited to call/webex into the meeting. If a member of the public would like to submit a question or comment in writing to be read into the record, they should email them to webmaster@hellertownborough.
org by 6:15 p.m. on Monday, April 6. - The Wednesday, April 1 meeting (7 p.m.) of Lower Saucon Township Council will be conducted via a Zoom teleconferencing link. Information about how to join the meeting will be provided on the township’s website Monday. The meeting agenda can be viewed here.
The pandemic is affecting many people emotionally, economically and socially, and the Borough of Hellertown is doing its part to try and help community members in need.
In its emails, the borough has told residents that if they or their family needs assistance they can email webmaster@hellertownborough.
Anyone willing to participate or belong to a charitable group assisting local people should also email webmaster@hellertownborough.
“We ask that you please pass this information on to a neighbor who may not have internet access, especially our elderly residents,” the email said. “You can drop a copy off in their door or give them a call. While you’re doing that, please ask if they need anything and perhaps you can assist them.”
Do you have an important community announcement related to the pandemic? Email it to
jo**@sa**********.com
.