'Next Normal:' Broad Reopening Measures Outlined In Massachusetts

MASSACHUSETTS — The state will begin marching forward with a broader reopening beginning Monday, with a "next normal" that will include fans back at pro sporting events coming into clearer focus over the next several weeks.

The state will enter Phase 3, Step 2 of its reopening plan Monday, drastically easing restrictions on businesses that have felt the squeeze since the start of the pandemic. Capacity at most businesses, including offices and gyms, will increase to 50 percent, while other businesses will reopen altogether.

Restaurants will no longer have capacity limits, but tables still must be 6 feet apart or separated with partitions. The 90-minute and six-person-per-table limits remain.

"We are finally making progress on a lot of things that will dramatically, hopefully, improve people's choices as we go forward," Baker said.

Indoor performance venues, such as concert halls and theaters, will reopen at 50 percent capacity with a 500-person limit. Indoor recreational activities with the potential for greater contact, such as laser tag, roller skating, trampolines and obstacle courses, can reopen at 50 percent.

Indoor live music will be allowed with proper distancing at restaurants.

• Full List: What's changing in Massachusetts

And for the first time in more than a year, fans will be able to cheer on the Bruins, Celtics and Red Sox in person starting next month.

Baker said the state will adjust the coronavirus restrictions on attending live events at large venues by allowing a limited number of fans at TD Garden, Fenway Park and Gillette Stadium starting March 22.

The 12 percent capacity limit means roughly 2,500 fans initially for TD Garden, and 4,800 fans for Fenway Park in what the state is terming Phase 4, Step 1.

Capacity limits will increase to 100 indoors and 150 outdoors for event venues and public settings but will remain at 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors at private residences.

"These large venues employ a lot of people and many of them have been out of work for a very long time," Baker said. "We've been watching how these venues perform in other states and believe with the right safety measures in place they can operate responsibly and safely here as well."

Convention halls will reopen to events, dance floors will be allowed at weddings and overnight camps will be allowed this summer.

"Today's announcement is a good sign and a move in the right direction in getting back to that 'next normal' but we know businesses continue to hurt and we have to find ways to help them get through all this," Baker said.

Businesses that remain closed include night clubs, bars that do not serve food, dance clubs, indoor water parks and amusement parks.

"We will continue to work with these industries, and monitor health metrics, and hopefully be able to get them open at some point in the future," Baker said.

Baker said lower hospitalizations and increasing vaccinations are allowing for the eased restrictions.

Coronavirus rates have dropped dramatically in the state in recent weeks, with the positive test rate falling from a post-holiday surge of 8.6 percent in a seven-day rolling average early in January to 1.89 percent as of Wednesday.

Baker said hospitalizations are down 63 percent since early January, while intensive care patients are down 52 percent in that time. He said 65 percent of those over 75 years old, and 90 percent of nursing home residents, have been vaccinated in the state as of Thursday.

"As COVID cases go down, as vaccinations go up, you will find people more comfortable and more willing to go out and 'play' a little bit," said Baker, adding that the state is still "concerned" about private gatherings. "Part of the message (with improving numbers) is that it's OK to go back to doing some of the things you were doing before."

The first major sporting event in front of fans could be March 23, when the Bruins are scheduled to host the New York Islanders. The last major sporting event played in front of fans in Massachusetts was on March 8, 2020, when the Celtics hosted the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The NBA season was suspended on March 11, with the NHL pausing its season the next day, amid the onset of the health crisis.

The Red Sox season opener is April 1 vs. the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft has said he is hoping for a stadium full of fans when the Patriots return to the field in September. The team gave tickets to the home opener to the 65,878th person — the number of the stadium's game-day capacity — vaccinated at the Gillette mass supersite on Feb. 16.

Red Sox officials have said Fenway Park will continue to be used as a mass vaccination site at the start of the baseball season.

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)