With in-person classes set to start in less than a month, the AMS has begun to gradually reopen its facilities and services.
The reopening, outlined in the AMS Restart Plan, includes the relaxing of some restrictions in building use, access, operations and services while continuing to maintain COVID-19 safety protocol. The plan is based on conversations the AMS has had with the provincial government and Public Health Office.
“Student safety is our top priority and all decisions are centered on keeping our community healthy,” the plan reads.
Much of the AMS’s Restart Plan aligns with the province’s reopening strategy. Social distancing and seating capacity, including for organized gatherings, in the Nest have been relaxed with the start of phase three, similar to the eased restrictions for businesses throughout BC. Restaurants in the building have also started to increase capacity, although plexiglass barriers remain in place.
Starting in phase four on September 7, building, seating and room capacities will return to pre-pandemic levels.
For clubs, leaders have been able to access office spaces since last month, and have been able to make room bookings for events. Other events, such as Firstweek or the Welcome Back BBQ have also been scheduled to be in-person starting in phase four.
“This [upcoming] year we’ve put a focus on events that are outdoors, allow for spacing when indoors, and events that students can participate in both in-person and online,” AMS President Cole Evans wrote in a statement to The Ubyssey.
Evans added that events would continue to adhere to the Public Health Office’s guidelines, and will be adapted if necessary.
The AMS has diverged from the BC Restart Plan in one area, however: masks. While public health guidelines simply recommend masks indoors, the AMS will make them mandatory in the Nest until at least phase four.
“The AMS has decided to keep our mask requirement due to our believe [sic] that we must continue to take action to keep our fellow students safe until we are completely out of this pandemic,” Evans wrote in his statement.
“We’ll continue to evaluate our facial coverings policy on an ongoing basis and lift it when we believe it is safe to do so.”
The AMS has previously made their stance on mask — and vaccine — mandates clear in its two letters to UBC demanding stricter protective COVID-19 measures on campus. UBC President Santa Ono has affirmed his support for these policies, but has yet to implement them.
“The AMS has made sure that our Restart Plan is not only compatible with government guidelines, but goes even further to ensure we are fostering a comfortable return-to-campus environment for all students,” Evans wrote.
— with files from Maheep Chawla