Nine Boys & Girls Club sites set to reopen on June 15

Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio, which was forced to close all of its locations in mid-March because of the coronavirus pandemic, will be reopening nine non-school sites on June 15.

The Clubs to be reopened include four sites in Lorain County, three in Cleveland and one each in Akron and Sandusky. A decision on reopening school-based Clubs will not be made until there is clarity on when and how students will return to the classroom, BGCNEO officials said.

Before the pandemic closed the Clubs, they served an average of about 2,000 kids a day.

Boys & Girls Clubs provide fun, safe places for kids ages 6-18 to go after school and during the summer. Club programming is structured around academic success, healthy lifestyles and character development.

BGCNEO President and CEO Jeff Scott said even though Gov. Mike DeWine approved the reopening of child care facilities on June 1, the organization decided to take additional time to thoroughly clean all the Club sites and to train employees on new safety and sanitation procedures.

“The safety of our kids is our number one priority, and we applaud Gov. DeWine and Dr. Acton for their decisive actions to protect children, their families and our staff members,” Scott said. “At the same time, we welcome the opportunity to safely reopen some of our Clubs.”

Chief Programs Officer Allen Smith said the Clubs will follow all the requirements established by the state and those recommended by Boys & Girls Clubs of America, including maintaining a 9-to-1 child-to-staff member ratio; requiring that all employees wear a mask; creating an isolation area away from others for those who become sick; cleaning and disinfecting program areas regularly and discouraging any gatherings within the Club building.

A complete rundown of rules and protocols for the reopened Clubs can be found here.

The Clubs that will be reopened are:

  • Lorain County (Hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays for all sites): Desich Family Campus, 4111 Pearly Ave., Lorain; Elyria, 1821 Middle Ave. Elyria; Southside Gardens, 3010 Vine Ave. Lorain; and Westview Terrace, 2218 W. 24th St., Lorain.
  • Cleveland: Broadway Club (hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays), 6114 Broadway Ave.; King Kennedy Club (hours noon to 4 p.m. weekdays), 2561 E. 59th Street; and Saint Luke’s Club (hours noon to 4 p.m. weekdays), 2705 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
  • Akron: Steve Wise Clubhouse (hours 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays),
    889 Jonathan Ave. Akron.
  • Sandusky: Location to be determined.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio was formed in 2019 by the merger of Clubs in Cleveland, Akron, Lorain County and Sandusky. When the pandemic hit, there were 39 sites in five counties.