There will be plenty of interest in Thursday morning’s Greenfield Board of Health meeting.
The three-member panel has several topics on their agenda, but perhaps most notably, they will revisit plans for youth sports after voting on June 11 that contact sports in the city were not ready to begin play in Phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan, citing safety concerns for the youths involved.
The decision ultimately led to Greenfield Minor League Baseball and the Greenfield Girls Softball League canceling their 2020 seasons.
“We reviewed the state’s guidelines as a board and really felt it was not going to be practical, feasible and safe to allow contact sports of any kind to happen, at least in Phase 2,” Greenfield Board of Health Chair Kelly Dixon said last month.
The agenda is expected to include a discussion about youth hockey with Franklin County Hockey Association President Sean Lavoine, while youth baseball and softball leagues were asked to submit information for evaluation.
Thursday’s meeting comes just prior to Phase 3 of the state’s reopening plan, which can’t begin sooner than July 6. The board said at last month’s meeting that it would reevaluate prior to Phase 3, which is expected to allow the return of outdoor camps as well as indoor amateur sports and athletic facilities.
Some teams based in Greenfield have taken their practice show on the road, receiving approval from neighboring towns like Montague, Whately and Sunderland to use their fields. While the American Legion baseball season was canceled due to COVID-19, teams in that league are working toward holding an unofficial season without the Legion banner. Greenfield’s entry is waiting for board approval before proceeding with practices and games on city fields, though the team has already begun practicing elsewhere.
Northfield Board of Health Chair Bob McEwen said his town’s small population has allowed for a case-by-case analysis of programs and plans.
“We look at individual circumstances,” McEwen said. “Understand we aren’t Greenfield. We’re tiny and that really helps with figuring out things one by one.”