HOULTON, Maine — Summer will soon be arriving in Houlton, and it certainly will not be like any that the town has seen in recent memory. Numerous events have already been canceled, children have been out of school and learning remotely for weeks and parents have had to stay confined at home with them.
Now that Aroostook County is beginning to open up, will those children be allowed to once again spend their summers on playgrounds and basketball courts?
Such a topic was debated at length at Monday’s town council meeting (which continued to be held over Zoom) as councilors were divided on whether Houlton’s playgrounds — wrapped in caution tape since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic — should be allowed to reopen.
“My personal opinion is open them up,” councilor Chris Robinson said. “We can’t just keep them pinned up and closed off. You’ve got to live life at some point.”
Other councilors showed much more reservation on the subject.
“We have to think about the future of this town,” councilor Eileen McLaughlin said “So to keep us safe now and really keep it in check, will make all the difference for the future.”
Marie Charmichael, the program director for the Parks and Recreation Department for the town of Houlton, also weighed in on the matter.
“I would hope that the next time that the governor speaks that she will address recreation,” Carmichael said. I know parents are out there waiting to hear what we are doing and what we are offering. So I’m hoping within the next two weeks that they will address it and we can go from there.”
Following that advice, the council will continue to follow Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommendation and not open the playgrounds, but that the issue would be brought up again at the next meeting to be held May 26.
Under direction of Gov. Janet Mills, retail stores in Aroostook County have been able to open since Monday with limited dine-in services to resume next week on May 18. Town Council meetings will continue to be held over Zoom into the near future.
But despite the beginning of reopening, several planned summer events have already been canceled, such as the July 1 Midnight Madness and the Houlton Agricultural Fair over the Fourth of July holiday.
It was also announced at the town council meeting that the McGill’s Community Band summer concert held at the Houlton Amphitheater will not be taking place.
“It is a sadness to not have McGill’s,” McLaughlin said. “I want to thank them for all they’ve done and I’m sorry that they’re not going to be here this summer.”
