TD Garden ready to spring back to life
TD Garden welcomes back fans
Boston arena ready to start accepting fans to pro games.
Bruins and Celtics fans will finally be able to return to the stands in TD Garden today after being barred from games for over a year, but they should expect a slightly different in-game experience to keep them safe from possible coronavirus spread.
“We’re thrilled to have them back,” said TD Garden president Amy Latimer. “We’re excited. I know the players are excited. I know the fans can’t wait to come back, and this neighborhood? We really need to get some energy back on Causeway Street.”
The Garden will operate at 12% capacity, allowing about 2,200 fans in seats for today’s Bruins game against the New York Islanders. The last time fans were in the building for a game was March 8, 2020, when the Oklahoma City Thunder played the Celtics. Three days later, the NBA shut down after Utah Jazz player Rudy Gobert tested positive for coronavirus.
Both the Celtics and Bruins have been playing in TD Garden during their 2020-2021 seasons, but without any fans in attendance.
The Herald got a tour of the Garden from officials before its opening today. The floors throughout the building are marked with now-standard social distancing stickers, and signage and sanitizer line the concourses. Fans should expect to enter and stay in one area of the building, called their “neighborhood.”
Once in the stands, they will be socially distanced in groups of two or four, at least 6 feet apart. The first several rows of seats behind players’ benches are blocked off
Hungry attendees will be able to purchase food and drinks from vendors in the building, packed and served individually. Depending on the vendor, fans can order at the counter or through a mobile app.
Eating and drinking are the only times fans will be allowed to pull down their masks. That means they can cheer (and boo), but through their face coverings. Latimer said staff will gently enforce the safety measure.
“We expect that everybody’s going to play by the rules,” she said. “We are going to hold people accountable.”
TD Garden has a busy schedule coming up: the Bruins host five games through the end of March, and the Celtics will host three games next week.
Latimer said she and the rest of the staff at TD Garden are working with Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration to determine when it will be safe to increase capacity.