Will summer camps open this year?

Summer camps are big on Long Island, and many are wondering if they will open this year.

News 12 Staff

Apr 30, 2020, 6:07 PM

Updated 1,548 days ago

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Summer camps are big on Long Island, and many are wondering if they will open this year.
Industry insiders say it will highly depend on how far the state is in the process of reopening the economy.
Mark Transport, the co-owner of Crestwood Country Day Camp in Melville and president of the Long Island Camps and Private Schools Association, says he's confident that his camp will be open this year. He did say that the start of the summer might be delayed.
He also said the camp experience will be a little different — with lots of new safety measures in place.
"We're going to be very aware of wiping down surfaces, distancing kids...we're going to make sure there's less mixing of kids so the groups stay similar, and very likely what we hear is that the staff might have to wear masks," he says.
And if the summer season is cut short, or if it's canceled altogether, the co-owner at Crestwood says parents would either pay a pro-rated fee or receive a refund.
Meanwhile, Jeffrey Klein, the owner of the camp supply store Denny's, says his business is down by about 85% this year.
"With everyone being out of work and times what they are today, a lot of people are holding back right now. They want to hear from the camp that camp is officially opening," he says.
State officials said on Thursday that summer camps will be coordinated with the overall reopening of the economy.

News 12 asked our viewers on social media if they would send their kids to camp this summer.
Around 2,000 people have responded on Facebook as of Thursday afternoon. Three-quarters of them said no, and one-quarter said yes.
Click on the Facebook icon below to vote:
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