Arenas to open; cue the fans
Fenway, TD Garden will have limited capacity off the bat
Cheering is returning to the Hub.
Concert halls and theaters reopen — with limited capacity — on Monday as Gov. Charlie Baker pulls the trigger on a broader reopening that next month welcomes sports fans back into stadiums in limited numbers for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic hit Boston last year.
“As long as public health data continues to get better, it will make it possible for several large venues and many of the businesses that have been closed since the beginning of the pandemic to begin to plan to reopen, with strict safety measures,”
Baker said, speaking at The Ledger restaurant in Salem on Thursday.
Fenway Park, Gillette Stadium, TD Garden and other sports venues, arenas and stadiums can invite fans back starting March 22, Baker said.
Under the capacity caps, Fenway will be able to host about 5,000 fans. TD Garden will host 2,350 and Gillette will be allowed 7,900.
His decision comes as the state has seen declines in coronavirus case numbers in recent weeks. Hospitalizations have dropped by 65% since their peak in early January.
But many businesses will begin to enjoy more flexibility even sooner as the state resumes Phase 3, Step 2, of its four-phase reopening on Monday. The move peels back restrictions for most businesses, upping capacity limits to 50%.
Concert halls and theaters as well as close-contact indoor sports like laser tag, trampoline parks and roller skating rinks can reopen.
Restaurants will be able to bring in live music and will no longer be bound by capacity limits. They will still adhere to 6-foot distances between parties. Tables will be limited to six people with 90-minute limits.
Bleacher Bar manager Jeff Wiedmayer said the changes are “going to be a really big deal for us and the whole Lansdowne Street industry.”
“Having fans back in the stadium is one of our biggest
drivers for business,” Wiedmayer said, calling the 12% capacity limits a “great starting point.”
“Food and beverage sales around parks and stadiums — that’s a big piece of business for us so, getting fans back into stands is important,” said Massachusetts Restaurant Association President Bob Luz.
Luz said the announcement is a “big win” for an industry struggling for survival after nearly a year of pandemic-era business restrictions.
An MRA survey last fall found nearly a quarter of the state’s restaurants — about 3,400 businesses had closed, likely for good.
But Boston University
infectious diseases specialist Dr. Davidson Hamer said he worries Baker’s “aggressive reopening” could cause a “reversal.”
“I am really quite worried about some of the new strains — if they are more transmissible,” Hamer added. “It could exacerbate things despite wider spread vaccination.”