News Flash

Sept. 29, 2020 - The Centers for Disease Control has labeled traditional door-to-door trick-or-treating a high risk activity and recommends that families consider lower-risk options. Trunk-or-treat parties are also considered high risk, and will not be held on any city property this year.

Also, the CDC cautioned that a costume mask is not a replacement for a cloth mask, and children shouldn't wear one over the other. Instead, experts recommend using a Halloween-themed or -painted cloth mask.

Avoid these higher risk activities to help prevent the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19:

• Participating in traditional trick-or-treating where treats are handed to children who go door to door
• Attending crowded costume parties held indoors
• Going to an indoor haunted house where people may be crowded together and screaming
• Going on hayrides or tractor rides with people who are not in your household

These are considered moderate-risk substitutes:

• Having treats in individually wrapped goodie bags lined up for families to grab and go while continuing to social distance. (If you are preparing goodie bags, wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 second before and after preparing the bags.)
• Having a small group, outdoor, open-air costume parade or party where people are distanced more than 6 feet apart.

Finally, these activities can be safe alternatives, says the CDC:

• Carving or decorating pumpkins with members of your household
• Decorating your house, apartment, or living space
• Doing a Halloween scavenger hunt where children are given lists of Halloween-themed things to look for while they walk outdoors from house to house admiring Halloween decorations at a distance

For those who decide to trick-or-treat, or just visit homes at a distance, allowable hours are from dusk (around 6 p.m.) until 8 p.m., and for children under 12.