By Katelyn Davis and Taylor Hobbs – (note: this story is from the COM 105 Newswriting class at Parkland College) Curtis Orchard is one of the most popular attractions in the Champaign-Urbana area. They typically open in full force in September, hosting people from all over east central Illinois who come for the pumpkin patch and apple-picking orchard. Children climb over playground equipment, ladders, and a giant chair. They pet the friendly cats wandering everywhere and they feed the goats. There’s a giant pillow to bounce on, air-filled slides, a rope maze, and a corn maze to get lost in. Parking is usually tight, requiring attendants to assist with finding spaces. The general store and café, during the peak fall and Christmas shopping season, are traditionally packed shoulder-to-shoulder. How does a popular, seasonal attraction survive during a pandemic?
Due to COVID-19, health regulations have been put in place to help keep this attraction as safe as possible for the public and its workers. According to their website, Curtis Orchard “[is] taking extra steps to frequently clean and sanitize [the] store and high-touch surfaces.” Curtis Orchard has also installed plexiglass shields at the registers, and workers are wearing protective equipment to maintain a healthy environment.
Curtis Orchard is also requesting that masks be available when indoors and outdoors, also when interacting with staff. Social distancing is required even when in the parking lot, pumpkin patch, and apple orchard. The usual outdoor activities remain open except for the Giant Slide, Obstacle Course, and Giant Jumping Jacks Pumpkin Pad. Group Tours are also closed for the year due to social distancing regulations. Wearing masks, sanitizing, and social distancing are all a part of Curtis Orchard’s plan to stay open and to keep it as safe and healthy as possible. Health regulations can only do so much, considering the popularity of Curtis Orchard seems to be too tempting for some who have been sequestered at home for the majority of the year.
A visitor to Curtis Orchard, Lesli Lyle, said, “It’s really crowded. I thought there would be a limit to the amount of people there since the breakout.” Curtis Orchard is one of the busiest attractions to visit on the weekends in the Champaign-Urbana area. The congested pedestrian traffic could be cause for concern since there is no limit to how many people can be there at once. “It is a little worrisome with all the people but out in the pumpkin area it isn’t so bad,” said Lyle. Curtis Orchard has a very open field for picking out pumpkins, so it has enough space for social distancing rules. The only problem areas for social distancing are inside the store and in the front portion of the business, those are the most heavily trafficked spots for this attraction. There isn’t enough room to social distance with the amount of people that show up. Keeping Curtis Orchard a healthy environment for the staff and it’s visitors could be a little tricky. A crowded area can make the sanitation of high-touch surfaces hard to keep up with.
When asked if they sanitize regularly, an anonymous staff member at Curtis Orchard said, “[I] try to. [I’m] really busy most of the time so whenever I get a chance to, I wipe down as best as I can.” Wiping down surfaces throughout the store can be a hard task because of the amount of people that are allowed in at once. Everything within the store can be touched and put back and sanitizing becomes a difficult task when there’s a lot of people walking around.
Curtis Orchard has set a requirement for masks to be worn at all times when outside and inside the store. Another anonymous staff member said, in regard to wearing masks, “I have to remind a few people to keep their masks on but there isn’t much of an issue with the masks.” Masks are proven to reduce the rate at which the virus can spread so wearing a mask in a crowded area, like Curtis Orchard, needs to be enforced upon everyone at the attraction in order to keep COVID-19 contained as much as possible. The popularity of Curtis Orchard is testing the boundaries of best health practices.
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) guidelines are not clear regarding the amount of customers that should or shouldn’t be allowed in a space like Curtis Orchard, which possesses small areas of indoor access, such as their general store and gift shop, as well as large, open outdoor spaces. Curtis Orchard certainly can limit the amount of foot traffic within specific areas in addition to the measures they are already implementing.
IDPH posted data on positive tests for Champaign up to Dec. 3, with 156 new positive tests that day, bringing the total amount of COVID-19 infections this year to 10,721 in Champaign County alone. There are currently 929 active cases. These cases are identified only through positive tests, and do not include asymptomatic or symptomatic persons who have not been tested.
