Commercial  -  August 28, 2020

Yankee Stadium achieves health certification for safe reopening

Yankee Stadium announced Aug. 26 that they became the first sports and entertainment venue in the world to achieve the WELL Health-Safety Rating for Facility Operations and Management.

The designation was confirmed by Green Business Certification Inc., which verified that the home of the New York Yankees are using best practices to open back up to the public while mitigating the spread of Covid-19. The WELL Health-Safety Rating was created by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) back in June following guidance from the World Health Organization (WHO), U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (DCD) and other international agencies and research institutions.

“Working with IWBI to achieve the WELL Health-Safety Rating allowed us to focus and implement the most effective and efficient methods known to help mitigate the risk of COVID-19 transmission in both a workplace setting and a place where the general public will eventually gather again,” Doug Behar, Yankees Senior Vice President of Stadium Operations, said in a statement. “Given that the WELL criteria have been informed by renowned experts and standard-making bodies in this field gives us confidence that we are taking appropriate preventative measures to support the health and safety of our players, field staff, employees — and eventually fans. Reaching this level and receiving third-party verification from GBCI was a long and uncompromising road, but one that is clearly in the best interests of everyone who steps foot into Yankee Stadium.”

The WELL Health-Safety Rating is based on operational protocols, maintenance protocols, emergency plans and stakeholder engagement strategies for maintaining spaces post-Covid-19. The key areas that the stadium was rated on included air and water quality management, cleaning and sanitation procedures, emergency preparedness programs, health service resources and stakeholder engagement.