YMCA reopens several North Texas locations on Monday

DALLAS - Several YMCA locations around North Texas reopened their doors Monday.

The YMCA closed all of its locations in the Metroplex in March because of the coronavirus pandemic. That affected members and many others who rely on the Y for child care.

The seven locations that reopened Monday have new procedures in place to keep members, children and employees safe. They include four locations in Dallas and one in Rockwall, Plano and Frisco.

Members must sign a waiver acknowledging they understand the risks associated with COVID-19 when they return. They are not required to wear masks but they’re encouraged to.

Children are required to have their temperature checked when they come in and staff members will take their temperatures before each shift. The option is also available for others if they choose.

“Significantly different on the cleanliness standpoint and factor in social distancing. But we wanted to keep is that feel of the Y. We wanted to make sure that when people come to the Y... people come to the Y because they see their friends. It’s a place where they can go and exercise and more importantly socialize. We tried to balance that out. And we’ll find out if we’ve done a good job after this week,” said Curt Hazelbaker, the CEO of the Dallas Metro YMCA.

All of the exercise equipment is spaced 6 feet apart and members are asked to wipe the equipment down before and after they use it.

The YMCA said there will be plenty of extra hand sanitizer and wipes around to do that. Staff members will be continually cleaning.

For now, locker rooms will remain closed except for the bathrooms.

Five other Y locations will reopen in the second phase of openings. Summer camps are also returning in phases beginning this week.

For more information, visit www.ymcadallas.org/reopening.