Mecklenburg County loosens restrictions at greenways and parks, reopens parking lots
Mecklenburg County Park and Rec will loosen restrictions on park and greenway use, including reopening parking lots, opening some boat ramps and allowing tennis again.
The changes will take effect Thursday, according to a statement the county released Wednesday. Restrictions were made out of health and safety concerns over the novel coronavirus.
Parking
Parking lots, which had been locked or blocked off to discourage congregating in parks, greeways and nature preserves, will reopen to vehicles.
Boating
Ramps at Ramsey Creek, Blythe Landing and Copperhead Island will reopen.
Tennis
The tennis courts will reopen, but players will be expected to practice social-distancing guidelines of staying at least six feet apart. When that isn’t possible, players should wear a face mask.
Playgrounds
Playgrounds remain closed, as do restrooms and courts for sports with high contact, such as basketball and volleyball. Softball and baseball are not permitted.
Golf
Golf courses can remain open with social-distancing restrictions, including one player per cart. However, county driving ranges remain closed.
Indoor facilities
Indoor facilities for recreation, nature and aquatic activities remain closed.
County rescinds order
On Tuesday, Mecklenburg County announced it would lift its own stay-at-home order, defaulting instead to North Carolina’s order, which runs through at least May 8.
That loosens restrictions on some businesses, including Realtors and car dealerships, as well as changing rules regarding funerals. It also changes some restrictions on recreation. People congregating in groups of more than 10 is still prohibited.
Mecklenburg County Park and Rec Department added restrictions at its facilities over the past month, looking to enforce social-distancing and avoid congregating at the parks.
Initially, all playgrounds were shut down.
After warm spring weather in early March brought crowds to the parks, the county shut down sports that involved shared equipment: Tennis courts and volleyball courts were disabled and basketball goals were zip-locked to eliminate games.
When groups again gathered in parks the following weekend, the county took the additional step in early April of locking or blocking off parking lots serving the parks and greenways.
Shutting off parking raised questions about whether that was fair to residents who didn’t live within walking distance of a park.
A longtime county parks commissioner said there is no effective way to close the parks, since there are so many entry points for most of them. “From a practical standpoint, it would be unenforceable,” said at-large parks commissioner Brian Cox.
This story was originally published April 29, 2020 at 2:56 PM.
