City delays reopening of the Chavez Center as virus cases increase

As the number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus continue to rise, the city of Santa Fe has announced it will delay the scheduled reopening of the Genoveva Chavez Community Center.

Parts of the facility were set to open Monday. However, city officials said in a news release Tuesday they will wait until after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham updates the statewide public health order, which she is expected to do July 15.

The Chavez Center will not open until at least July 20, the city news release said. The opening will depend on whether the governor issues additional business restrictions next week to help prevent the spread of the virus.

Last week, Lujan Grisham said the state would postpone plans to further open the economy until at least July 15. She warned at the time the state could reimpose business restrictions that have been eased, rather than allow more operations to open, if the coronavirus’s spread increased.

The Chavez Center, along with other city fitness centers and pools, closed in March when cases of the virus emerged here.

John Muñoz, the parks and recreation director, said last week the city had no immediate plans to reopen the Fort Marcy or Salvador Perez recreation complexes or Bicentennial Pool. The Salvador Perez Recreation Complex is undergoing a major remodel that is nearing completion.

“While everyone is excited to reopen, we want to wait until after the Governor makes her announcement to see if there are any new or different guidelines or protocols we will need to take into account,” Muñoz said in a statement Tuesday. “With COVID cases continuing to increase, we want to ensure all necessary precautions to stay safe while keeping our community safe are taken.”