Health

New Worcester Red Sox stadium may have fans for opening day on April 13

WORCESTER — The new Worcester Red Sox stadium may now have fans for its opening day on April 13.

Gov. Charlie Baker announced on Thursday that stadiums, ball parks and arena’s will be allowed to reopen with a 12% capacity limit on March 22nd.

On Friday, WooSox fans said they were excited to be able to watch in person.

“Once things settle down and open up more, we’ll probably go to quite a few,” Barb McManus of Auburn told Boston 25 News.

Restaurant owners in the city’s Canal District also expressed interest in the potential boost for business.

“It’s definitely going to hopefully bring a lot of life back into the neighborhood after this pandemic,” said Avra Hoffman, co-owner of Birch Tree Bread Company.

Hoffman said she and her husband were discussing extending hours and possibly adding more staff.

“Hopefully it will bring in some new faces, hopefully some new regulars,” Hoffman said.

According to the Director of Ball Park Planning Bart Harvey, Polar Park can hold 9,508 fans at full capacity.

Under the new 12% restrictions, 1,140 fans would be able to attend.

Harvey said that one of the biggest challenges will be figuring out spacing.

“We hope we can get up to the full 12%, but we’ve got to make sure that we’ve got the physical space to do so,” he said. “It’s really not that easy. We’ve really got to look at seating sections, and (like I mentioned) the space factor. Making sure there are no groups larger than 6, 6-feet apart, how do we utilize our club space, how to we utilize our suite, so it’s those types of questions.”

Harvey added that the organization is still looking into how to safely distance fans at the concession stands.

Another factor will be enforcing safety protocols that are already in place in Massachusetts.

“One of the bigger things for us is really the proper mask wearing and how do we police that with our fans,” Harvey said.

According to Harvey, the WooSox will be looking to the Red Sox organization for guidance on safely inviting fans back.

“There’s no one like the big brother, the Boston Red Sox,” he said. “We also expect to maybe get a little more guidance from the state, in a certain timeline here.”

As for the facility’s construction timeline, Harvey said the park is still on track to be completed by the time the season starts.

“There’s no reason that we won’t be able to host a baseball game on April 13,” he said.


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