On Wednesday, Gov. Tim Walz announced phase II of the Stay Safe Plan. Included in that were the ability to recreational campgrounds and other recreational activities, but no athletic games. Crookston Parks and Recreation Director Scott Riopelle said the City of Crookston would need more clarification on the guidelines before evaluating whether they could hold 
some activities. “We will wait for more clarification from the governor on the summer activities, what can be held and what can’t be held,” said Riopelle. “At this point in time, we do not have the personnel hired for those activities. So, that kind of puts us in a bind of trying to add at a later date. But, again, waiting until we get clarification and go from there.”
The State of Minnesota has updated it’s guidelines regarding on the Department of Employment and Economic Development’s (DEED) website for the opening of campgrounds (here). But as of the Thursday morning, the guidelines for youth sports and recreational activities hadn’t been released. (here).
If the City of Crookston were to reestablish the summer youth activities in some format, Riopelle said there would be some time needed to find and hire appropriate staff. “If indeed we would, we’re not saying that we would have programming at that point in time,” said Riopelle. “Again, we have to do it safely, and that would be in guidelines – can you do it safely. And we don’t know if we can have those activities. Most of those activities are athletic events, and those are definitely not able to partake at this point.”
