As some states continue phased reopening of their economies and social spaces, and others are forced to backtrack as coronavirus cases spread, the question on every board member and property manager’s mind these days is how their own community should navigate the maze of health guidelines, cleaning supply shortages, and best practices for reopening (or not) their amenities and common areas, as well as business operations. 

To help with this daunting array of challenges, the Community Associations Institute (CAI) has released a new guide for boards and managers titled “Status Check: A Reopening Guide for Community Associations,” the goal of which is, according to the organization, “to aid and support communities navigating the closure and reopening of pools, gyms, playgrounds, and other common areas, amenities, and business operations.”

According to CAI, the new Guide organizes common areas, amenities, and operations by risk level or reopening phase, which are unique to each state, county, or city. In general, the ‘high’ risk category would apply to the Shutdown and Stay-at-Home phase, ‘moderate’ risk to reopening Phase 1, ‘low’ risk to Phase 2, and ‘normal’ to Phase 3.

What's Inside?

 The new guide is a timely resource available for homeowners, community managers, and business partners online as part of CAI’s interactive Coronavirus Resource Page and offers each individual community the opportunity to modify templates that fit the needs specific to that community. Other resources include:

• A sample letter template to update residents about common areas and amenities

“This is the best, most comprehensive guide for community associations today,” says CAI CEO Thomas M. Skiba. “We believe it’s essential to develop solutions that directly help our members and community association stakeholders challenged by COVID-19...We know our communities need answers to these questions and others that will likely continue as the pandemic surges in communities throughout the U.S.” 

Click here to view or download a copy of “Status Check: A Reopening Guide for Community Associations”. For more information about the impact of COVID-19 and community associations, visit CAI’s Coronavirus Resources page. To view or download a copy of “Healthy Communities,” COVID-19 & Community Associations Summary of Relevant Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Guidelines, click the link above.