BY LUCIE KRISMAN
New Eudora businesses that hoped to open this spring and summer are also experiencing changes in their future.
Assisted living facility Homestead of Eudora delayed its grand opening to June 2 after originally planning to open in mid-April.
Executive Director Zachary Eaton said virtual tours and limited in-person tours have been possible during the stay-at-home order. Homestead of Eudora has not seen a decline in reservation numbers or wait list numbers due to COVID-19.
Eaton said there will be more information in the coming weeks on how the facility will operate due to current circumstances.
"It's just kind of up in the air as to whether we'll have the same policies," Eaton said.
Jay Musick of Barbwire Barbecue said the restaurant's anticipated reappearance before the City Commission has been put on hold with no target in mind. His original hope had been to open a restaurant in downtown Eudora in July. However, at this time, the building for the restaurant, at 840 Main St., is still under ownership of the city.
"We're just being cautious of what's going on and weighing our options, making sure what we're doing is sustainable," Musick said.
In the meantime, Barbwire Barbecue has continued to operate through its food truck during the stay-at-home order. This Saturday, the food truck will serve customers in the gravel parking lot across from the library on Main Street from 4 to 8 p.m., offering its full menu.
Musick said the weekends have been full of large orders, resulting in approximately 20 to 30 pounds of ribs, approximately 40 pounds of brisket and 50 to 60 pounds of pork each weekend.
"A lot of people have been calling in for big orders," Musick said. "It's been going really good."
At the city level, City Manager Barack Matite said city services and departments will continue to operate as they are right now until May 18.
"Given what the governor said yesterday and her reopening plan, we are going to proceed with operations as is," Matite said. "We'll work to update our website as well."
Following Gov. Laura Kelly's announcement Thursday regarding her plans for Kansas to reopen and Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health issuing its own guidance Friday, city staff and businesses are operating in two-week increments as they await next steps.
The Recreation Center and public parks will remain closed until at least May 17. However, resurfacing of the facility's swimming pool has continued and the paint coating of the pool should be completed by this weekend, Parks Director Sally Pennington said.
The department has been looking to local officials and the governor while planning for different scenarios for the future and has been working toward adjusting to a new normal in how it functions.
"We have been sanitizing and cleaning from the very beginning," Pennington said. "Whenever we can reopen, we will obviously still follow CDC guidelines."
Under the governor’s plan, swimming pools and community centers may be able to open by May 18, but Kelly also recommends mass gatherings of no more than 30 people. These restrictions would then ease in stages June 1 and June 15.
However, local officials are able to impose stricter regulations, as happened Friday when Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health pushed back the openings of libraries and dine-in restaurants for Douglas County through May 17.
Despite park and facility closures, Pennington said residents are encouraged to stay active on trails while following social distancing. The department's Facebook page has been updated with new ways for residents to stay active.
"Our main focus is getting people active, no matter what that looks like," Pennington said.
The Eudora Public Library released a phased plan similar to Kelly's regarding reopening its doors. The library plan has seven stages.
Library Director Carol Wohlford said both the library and state plans share a flexible nature.
"We began our plan several weeks ago," Wohlford said. "When I heard the governor's plan last night, I was very pleased with it."
The pre-phase of the library's reopening begins Monday. Between then and May 18, returned materials will undergo a sanitizing process and limited staff will be allowed in the building.
Wohlford said the library building's size makes social distancing difficult even with limited staff, and the library may find new ways to get materials to residents who want to check them out depending on future circumstances.
"We have a bit of an individualized challenge because the building is so small," Wohlford said. "We just keep looking at different alternatives."
The library's book drop will be uncovered Monday for the first alphabetical last name group, A-D, to return materials adhering to the library's returning system next week.
Going forward, Wohlford said safety of the library's staff and patrons is the biggest priority, and staff looks forward to interacting with the community again when they can.
"We just can't wait to be able to see people," Wohlford said. "Maybe it will have to be through windows for a while, but we're going to do everything we can do to hasten these stages and keep people safe."
Reach reporter Lucie Krisman at eudoratimes@gmail.com
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