Officials relax gathering rules
Boulder County Public Health urges continued caution
Boulder County Public Health is relaxing some restrictions on 18to 22-year-olds and allowing gatherings of up to six people, with public health officials citing fewer new coronavirus cases and lower test positivity rates.
The new gathering rules went into effect at noon Tuesday, offering an incremental return to normalcy for students. Young people have been prohibited from gathering in groups larger than two since late September, when a surge in new cases prompted a Boulder County Public Health order.
But the progress could easily be lost if members of the age group flaunt safety measures that prevent the disease from spreading, University of Colorado Boulder and Boulder County Public Health leaders said Tuesday.
A party at a house associated with Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity drew between 150 and 200 people on Saturday, according to campus and fraternity officials. Five students already have been temporarily suspended from campus as a result, said Chief Operating Officer Patrick O’rourke. There could be additional students sanctioned as the university continues investigating, said Dean of Students JB Banks.
Three people were ticketed early Sunday morning at the fraternity-associated house, 1059 14th St., for hosting a nuisance party and not adhering to emergency orders, said Boulder city spokesperson Sarah Huntley. Police also ticketed one person at 1037 12th St. for a nuisance party and not adhering to emergency orders.
Campus and public health officials offered praise and caution about the state of coronavirus in Boulder.
“We can’t be in a place where we are celebrating our successes too much,” O’rourke said during CU Boulder’s weekly community coronavirus briefing Tuesday. “I’m really proud we’re in a place where we’ve been able to bend the curve down, but we haven’t won the battle. COVID still exists in our community.”
O’rourke said Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s weekend party, which
violated state and local public health orders, was “not fair” to CU Boulder students who have followed coronavirus orders and guidelines.
The large parties were “very disappointing,” said Boulder County Public Health Executive Director Jeff Zayach, and put the community and economy at risk.
“None of us want to continue with (public health) orders,” Zayach continued. “I don’t want to do it; the university doesn’t want to do it; the students certainly don’t want to do it. But we can’t have those kinds of things happening as we move forward.”
Sigma Alpha Epsilon will go through a disciplinary hearing later this week, said Interfraternity Council on the Hill Greek Advocate Marc Stine. The fraternity is not affiliated with CU Boulder.
“I was disappointed and angry that one of our larger and better performing fraternities would let anything so dumb happen on their property,” Stine said.
If a violation occurred and the chapter is found responsible, Sigma Alpha Epsilon will be sanctioned, Stine said.
Stine declined to disclose how many violations Sigma Alpha Epsilon has had so far this semester. The fraternity was already fined once by IFC on the Hill for a gathering in late August that drew more than 120 people. A third violation would mean the chapter can’t recruit new members this year.
Stine stressed that the actions of one chapter is not indicative of every fraternity.
“We are quite pleased and proud of the way these guys are following a set of rules which are contrary to their innate behaviors and fraternity experience. Most of them are doing a very good job,” he said.
Boulder County has seen a significant drop in new cases even in the past week, Zayach said.
The 14-day average of new cases per 100,000 people for 18- to 22year-olds decreased from more than 1,500 last week to 470.5 Monday, and the case positivity rate is now at 6.2%.
“This is exactly the direction we want to head,” he said. “We can’t give up on this.”
If case rates continue to drop, Boulder County could remove gathering restrictions so that 18to 22-year-olds are under the same rules as everybody else, Zayach said. Current public health rules limit gatherings to 10 people. CU Boulder is working with public health, campus leaders and students to develop campus-sponsored events, said spokesperson Joshua Lindenstein, which could include football games.
There has also been progress on a Boulder County Public Health order for collegiate group homes, which include Greek houses.
Fifteen properties have been released from stay-at-home orders after Boulder County Public Health approved their plans for managing coronavirus, said spokesperson Chana Goussetis.
Nineteen of 33 group houses have submitted plans required to be released from stay-at-home orders, and four houses are currently revising their plans.