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On behalf of the Board, I wanted to communicate an update regarding the pool.
The Board met several times to discuss requirements and have again consulted with the Association’s attorney, insurance agent, and pool management company. As of now, there has been no change from last year regarding requirements for pools to open. There also has been no change in that there is no insurance coverage for any issues that could arise due to COVID-19. This means, that should a lawsuit be brought against the Association due to a COVID issue, there is no defense and a special assessment will have to be passed to pay for any fees resulting from a lawsuit. There is proposed legislation that, if passed and signed into law by Governor Murphy, would partially mitigate the liability exposure.
Management participated in a zoom call with Senator O’Scanlon on April 28th to discuss the pending legislation. Discussions centered on the liability and lack of insurance coverage related to potential COVID-19 lawsuits. There were also discussions on the complexity of the requirements set forth by the state in order to open amenities such as pools. In some cases the CDC guidance and NJ State guidance are contradictory, making the requirements unclear.
Senator O’Scanlon encouraged members to write to our elected officials to urge them to support the proposed legislation and to support revisiting the NJ Department of Health guidelines regarding operating and maintaining public pools. The pool at the Mews falls under those guidelines. The Board will be reaching out to the legislators in our district. We encourage every resident to do the same. We will be drafting a sample letter that each of you can use to contact them. More information to come soon.
It is the Board’s hope that being all NJ residents 16 and above are eligible for vaccination and IF numbers of cases go down, and IF legislation passes regarding liability, that the pool will be open in some capacity this summer. IF it is possible to open the pool, it will not open before the Fourth of July weekend.
In the meantime, the Board has approved the contract with the pool management company to prepare the pool so it will be ready if the pool can open. The Board is also in the process of negotiating the terms of a contract for a social distance ambassador, a requirement for opening the pool this season.
There are still many questions that need answers before making a final decision regarding the pool opening. We do not know if guests will be allowed, or if it will be residents only. We do not know if bathrooms will be open. We do not know what days the pool will be open or what the pool hours would be. We will continue to work towards coming to a resolution. We will continue to keep you updated.
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