BOROUGH OF HADDONFIELD REGULATIONS FOR USE OF RECREATION FIELDS

TIMELINES FOR SPORT ACTIVITIES

As of June 22, 2020:

Inter-team games, scrimmages, and tournaments are permitted for low-risk sports, such as golf and individual running events (a more complete list is available below).

Contact sports, which are defined as any sports categorized as medium or high risk (a more complete list is available below), must limit activities exclusively to no-contact drills, practices, and simulations of game situations as of June 22.  By July 6, it is anticipated that traditional practices and competitions will be able to resume for medium-risk sports, such as baseball, softball, basketball, and soccer, and by July 20, it is anticipated that competitions will be able to resume for high-risk sports, such as football.

Sports program operators must abide by the following timeline: 

Risk Level

Examples

Important Dates

High Risk – Sports that involve close, sustained contact between participants

Rugby, boxing, judo, karate, taekwondo, wrestling, pair figure skating, football, group dance, group cheer

No-contact practices: June 22

Contact practices and competitions:  July 20

Medium Risk – Sports that involve some close, sustained contact, but with protective equipment in place between participants OR intermittent close contact OR group sports OR sports that use equipment that cannot be cleaned between participants.

Lacrosse, hockey, multi-person rowing, multi-person kayaking, multi-person canoeing, water polo, swimming relays, fencing, cycling in a group, running in a close group, group sailing, volleyball, soccer, basketball, baseball/softball, short track.

No-contact practices: June 22

 

Contact practices and competitions:
July 6

 

Low Risk – Sports that can be done individually, do not involve person-to-person contact and do not routinely entail individuals interacting within six feet of one another.

Archery, shooting/clay target, individual running events, individual cycling events, individual swimming, individual rowing, individual diving, equestrian jumping or dressage, golf, individual sailing, weightlifting, skiing, snowboarding, tennis, individual dance, pole vault, high jump, long jump, marathon, triathlon, cross country, track and field, disc golf, badminton.

Practices and competitions: June 22

 

BOROUGH OF HADDONFIELD REGULATIONS FOR USE OF RECREATION FIELDS

Due to the COVID-19 virus, and the need for social distancing in order to help prevent the spread, the following rules and regulations will be implemented for the use of all Borough recreation fields.  Youth sports summer camps must also follow all applicable summer camp guidance as per the NJ Dept of Health.

Any organization who fails to abide by these regulations will have their field use immediately revoked until the Borough Commissioners review the organization’s request for field use and failure to comply with regulations violation.

Rules/Regulations

  • No Organization may hold any type of opening day/beginning of season ceremonies. 
  • No Organization may open the snack stands or sell anything, including food, drinks etc. 
  • No Individual(s) may sell anything at the fields. 
  • No tailgate activities of any kind are permitted. 
  • Use of face coverings:

                        1.       All coaches must always wear a face covering.
                        2.       All referees/umpires must always wear a face covering.
                        3.       All players must always wear a face covering when not engaging in vigorous activity, such as when sitting
                                  on the bench, when interacting with an athletic trainer, etc.  Face coverings should not be worn by athletes
                                  when engaging in high intensity aerobic or anerobic workouts or where doing so would inhibit the
                                  individual’s health.
                        4.       All individuals watching the game must wear a face covering and practice social distancing.

  • Restrooms-the organization with permitted use of the facility that day will be required to monitor and clean the restrooms.
                       1.       Organization must open the restroom whenever the fields are in use and close the restroom when fields are
                                 not in use.
                       2.       Organization must continuously post an individual at the restroom anytime the restroom is open.  This
                                 person will be responsible for enforcing that only one person at a time is permitted in the restroom.
                       3.       Restroom supplies (toilet paper, disposal paper towels) must be supplied by the organization, and available
                                 at all times in the restroom.  Restroom must be closed immediately if any supplies are unavailable.
                       4.       Restroom must be cleaned at least once an hour or more frequently if needed by the Organization.  The
                                 cleaning must include toilets, sinks, floors & removal of trash.
                       5.       Organization must fill out cleaning log placed in each restroom each hour.  Log will list restroom, date & time
                                 of cleaning, name of individual who performed cleaning.

  •  Player Contact:
                       1.       Players and coaches should take measures to prevent all but the essential contact necessary to play the
                                 game.  Handshakes, high fives, fist/elbow bumps, chest bumps and group celebrations are not allowed.
                       2.       At the conclusion of the game, teams should line up at a minimum of six feet apart and tip their caps or
                                 heads to the opposing team as a sign of good sportsmanship.
                       3.       Players must stand stay in their team appointed area when not playing on the field.  No player is permitted
                                 to wander or visit family when not on the field of play.


Preparing a Sports Program for Practices

1.       Each sports program shall create a plan (“program preparation plan”) to ensure the following:
          a.       Identify adult staff members or volunteers to help remind coaches, players and staff of social distancing.  Use of
                    signs, tapes or physical barriers can be used to assist with guiding social distancing requirements.
          b.      Within the program, consider creating consistent groups of the same staff, volunteers, and athletes, and avoid mixing
                   between groups.
          c.      Individuals shall remain 6 feet apart from one another whenever possible.  This applies to athletes, coaching staff,
                   parents/guardians, and other spectators.
          d.      Create staggered schedules to limit contact between groups and/or players.
          e.      All staff should be educated on COVID-19 health and safety protocols prior to the resumption of athletic activities,
                  including:
                  i.       Revised practice rules and regulations in place during COVID-19;
                  ii.      The importance of staying home when experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or residing with someone
                           experiencing symptoms of COVID-19;
                  iii.     Social distancing and face coverings;
                  iv.     Proper hand hygiene;
                  v.      How to address situations in which social distancing or other necessary requirements are challenged by athletes
                           or parents/guardians/visitors.
          f.     Educate athletes and coaching staff about when they should stay home and when they can return to activity
                  i.      Actively encourage sick staff, families, and players to stay home.  Develop policies that encourage sick
                          employees to stay at home without fear of reprisal, and ensure employees are aware of these policies.
                  ii.     Individuals, including coaches, players, and families, should stay home if they have tested positive for or are
                          showing COVID-19 symptoms
                  iii.    Individuals, including coaches, players, and families, who have recently had a close contact with a person with
                          COVID-19 should also stay home and monitor their health.
                  iv.     Immediately separate coaches, staff, officials, and athletes with COVID-19 symptoms at any sports activity.
                           Individuals who have had close contact with a person who has symptoms should be separated and sent home
                           as well, and follow CDC guidance for community-related exposure.
                  v.      Establish procedures for safely transporting anyone who is sick to their home or to a healthcare facility.
         g.     All athletes, coaches, and staff should bring their own water and drinks to practice activities.  Team water coolers for
                 sharing through disposable cups should not be permitted.
          h.    Encourage athletes to use their own equipment to the extent possible.
          i.     Discourage sharing of equipment as much as possible.  If equipment is shared, coaching staff should be aware of the
                 sanitation procedures for team equipment (balls, bats, etc.) and sufficient disinfecting wipes or similar products should
                 be made available.  Consult CDC guidance for cleaning and disinfection.

2.      Communicate applicable details of the plan to parents/guardians and/or participants before commencing practices.
3.      Organizers should further consult and implement, as appropriate, recommendations listed in the CDC guidance regarding
         assessing risk, promoting healthy behaviors, and maintaining a healthy environment during youth sports.

Preparing a Facility for Sports Practices
1.      Each facility that will be used for practices should ensure:
         a.     Signage posted in highly visible locations with reminders regarding social distancing protocols, face covering
                 requirements, and good hygiene practices (e.g. hand hygiene, covering coughs);
         b.     Reduced crowding and proper social distancing around entrances, exits, and other high-traffic areas of the facility;
         c.     Routine and frequent sanitization and disinfecting; particularly of high-touch surfaces in accordance with CDC
                 recommendations;
         d.     Have hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, soap and water or other sanitizing materials readily available at entrances,
                 exits, benches, dugouts, and any other area prone to gathering or high traffic.
         e.     On any given field or space, there must be sufficient space between designated groups to prevent any interaction
                 between the groups.

Conducting Sports Practices

  1.  Coaches, staff, visitors and athletes will be required to abide by the gatherings limitations outlined in Executive Order No. 152 (2020), or the Order in effect at the time of competition.
  2. Screen athletes, coaches, staff and others participating in practice sessions, via temperature check and health questionnaire, at the beginning of each session.  Players, coaches, staff, and volunteers showing symptoms of COVID-19 shall not be permitted to participate.  If any individual develops symptoms of COVID-19 during the activity, they should promptly inform organizers and must be removed from the activity and instructed to return home.
  3. Limit practice activities to those that do not involve person-to-person contact between athletes and/or coaching staff.  For example, focus on individual skill-building activities.
  4. Adhere to precautions outlined in the program preparation plan.
  5. Ensure that athletes and coaches adhere to social distancing while not actively involved in practice activities (on the bench, in the dugout, etc.).  Consider assigning coaching staff to monitor sideline social distancing.
  6. If any equipment is provided by the operator, operators must minimize equipment sharing and clean and disinfect shared equipment at the end of a practice session using a product from the list of disinfectants meeting EPA criteria for use against the novel coronavirus.  Do not permit athletes to share food, beverages, water bottles, towels, pinnies, gloves, helmets or any other equipment or materials that is involved in direct bodily contact.
  7. Consider dividing larger teams into smaller groups and staggering practices at different times or across different days.
  8. Limit any nonessential visitors, spectators, staff, volunteers, vendors, members of the media, and activities involving external groups or organizations as much as possible.  Visitors and spectators should wear face coverings at all times, unless doing so would inhibit the individual’s health or the individual is under the age of two.
  9. Operators are encouraged to mark off spectator/chaperone viewing sites to allow for social distancing.  Visitors showing symptoms of COVID-19 shall not be permitted to attend.

Preparing for games and tournaments

Competitions, tournaments, and other activities or events that involve interaction between athletes from the same team or between teams carry significant risk that operators, towns, coaches, parents and others should carefully consider before proceeding.  If participating in or organizing a competition:

  1. Follow protocols listed above under “conducting sports practices.”
  2. When competitions are permitted, based on the dates outlined in the chart above, coaches, staff, visitors and athletes will be required to abide by the gatherings limitations outlined in Executive Order No. 152 (2020), or the Order in effect at the time of competition.  It is anticipated that the permissible number will increase to 250 on June 22 and 500 people on July 3 if the downward trends in the state’s COVID-19 outbreak continues.
  3. Consider social distancing requirements when scheduling contests and events.  Social distancing will need to be maintained on buses/vans.  Thus, multiple buses/vans and/or individual parent/guardian transportation will unlikely be required.  Games should be scheduled at intervals that allow for proper sanitation of facilities and equipment following each game.