Imagine strolling down Jersey Street with the wind blowing on your bare face as you get ready to enter a sold-out Fenway Park. Wow, what freedom.
This summer, it looks like that’s finally going to be possible again.
Gov. Charlie Baker announced Tuesday new COVID-19 reopening guidelines, raising sports venues from 12 percent capacity to 25 percent capacity on May 10. But the big date is Aug 1. That’s when capacity is lifted for all businesses, sports venues and arenas.
Patriots Place will be rocking this fall — or filled with the disenchanted masses, depending on whether Cam Newton is still quarterback.
Earlier this month, Patriots president Jonathan Kraft made the case for Gillette Stadium to be at full capacity for Week 1. “Once vaccines have been available in a community for a long enough period of time where anyone who’s wanted one could’ve gotten it and reached two weeks past their second shot, just to take the outlying point, then I don’t know why you shouldn’t be at full capacity,” he said, via the Boston Globe.
Last season, the Patriots were one of multiple teams that couldn’t host fans at all, due to COVID-19 restrictions.
With vaccination rates rising — 54 percent of Massachusetts residents have received their first dose — new cases are down 35 percent over the last 14 days. On average, 12 people per day are dying from COVID-19 daily. That’s the lowest total since Baker declared his state of emergency last March.
The Baker administration also announced it will relax some outdoor mask mandates on Friday. The CDC added its own updated guidelines as well.
Mercifully, we’re getting towards the end. Hallelujah!