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Limited Summer Activities Available As City Of Pittsburgh Enforces Social Distancing Guidelines

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- As we approach summer, many staples of the season will not happen this year.

City and Allegheny County pools will be closed and many events are postponed or canceled.

Summer may be a little different this year. The city announced Friday that many activities will not be happening. No city-sponsored concerts, races like the Great Race, or summer camps this year.

"Even the 4th of July fireworks, so it's pretty sad," Cody Smith of Oakmont said.

"We had a lot of plans this summer, so we're just finding stuff to do at this point," Brennan Coleman from Oakland said.

This is all to enforce social distancing. In addition, city and Allegheny County pools and spray parks will be closed too.

According to city leaders, pool waiting rooms, locker rooms, and lounging areas are "too cramped to allow for appropriate distancing under the guidelines."

"We do try and go to somethings outside but there's not really anything go on now," P.J. Taylor from Oakland said.

Several activities that keep people socially distant will still be available.

Open areas like park fields, tennis courts along with frisbee golf will all be allowed.

County leaders said the North Park and South Park Golf Courses remain open in addition to the nine county parks.

"We are fortunate in the Pittsburgh area and throughout this region to have thousands of acres of city, county, and state parks. Our restaurants are open and still operating for takeout services," Visit Pittsburgh CEO Jerad Bachar said.

Bachar said the outdoors will be a cornerstone of summer fun. He said as the season goes along, there may be opportunities for things to open. The hope is by fall we will have more options than what we do now.

"We're hoping that we're living in a much better situation as things unfold," Bachar told KDKA.

Until then, people enjoying this summer-like weather say they're going to try and make what they can of their summers.

"We still get to enjoy the outdoors. We're going to make the most of this," Smith said while playing done at the Point.

"Probably going for our bike rides. This is our third day in a row of doing it so I guess we'll probably continue doing this," Taylor said after his bike ride.

City leaders said decisions may be revisited as circumstances change.

For more on what will be closed and opened around the area, click here.

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