Task Force Minutes
ASC Reopening Task Force – Notes from Meeting August 7, 2020
TO DO’s: posted at the top so they are visible
Karen & Leslie: create and place sign-in sheets at the church where people in the building can log when they enter and leave the building.
Karen: write up a summary of where we are, suitable for the Monday board meeting.
Next Meeting? To be scheduled when we are closer to completion of new bathroom.
Attendees: George Carvill, Peter Gibbons, Jamie Gibson, Leslie Kinney, Steve Squires, Karen Tyler, Rev. Telos Whitfield
Karen volunteered to learn more about how to post and update things on the church website, after a brief discussion of procedural issues on handling these minutes.
Although we have restrictions on the number of people in the building, we have not been keeping any records. Karen and Leslie will work on some sort of sign in / sign out sheet where people can record their names, telephone numbers, and date & time of entry and exit. Similar to what some restaurants are doing this on a per-table basis, for contact tracing.
Leslie shared that a contractor for the new bathroom has been found, and work may begin as early as this month. This led to several conclusions
1 – the contractors are in charge of their own Covid safety protocols
2 – ASC people should stay out of the building as much as practical during construction. Once we find out about the work schedule, we may post data about times when they will reliably NOT be there, such as when they finish for the day.
3 – Bathroom access has always been an issue regarding re-opening for indoor gatherings (increased hand-washing and desirability of airing-out time between visits). We felt it best to hold off on expanding indoor activities until the new bathroom is done.
In a rare case of real-time action, we discussed making the “Church Closed” popup on the web site home page more friendly, and it was done, immediately!
We clarified a few items:
People scheduling gatherings at the church, whether indoor or out, are responsible for checking that the time is not already booked, and for getting their event onto the church calendar. There is a link to fill out a request; most people cannot edit the web site directly.
As our new minister, it is important that Telos feel free to meet people in person on church property, within the current safety guidelines.
Inclusivity, especially at outdoor gatherings, continues to be a challenge. Karen pointed out that WiFi outside the building is nearly non-existent except for right outside the kitchen. But the task force is committed to inclusivity and accessibility; people will be wary of in-person gatherings for some time, and for very good reason. We continue to work on this, and encourage groups to be aware and responsible in arranging their gatherings.
Peter continues to update us on the science and recommended safety measures, and also points out that it is all about probabilities. Face masks are a necessity, especially indoors, even when maintaining 6 feet or more of distance. Masks are also important to reduce the viral load; exposure dosage is an important factor in the severity of the illness. Ventilation is good, but not always achievable.
We touched briefly on the possibility of somehow using the Main Hall in a Sunday service (some churches are pre-recording their entire service). There are a lot of technical issues, not least being the willingness of even a small service team and tech crew to be in the same room, however large, for long enough to do it.