NORWICH — The beloved annual summer musical festival is nearly here. The 28th Annual Chenango Blues Fest is scheduled for August 20 and 21, and will be held at the Chenango County Fairgrounds.

With the event fast approaching, Chenango Blues Association Event Organizer Eric Larsen met with the Chenango County Health Department to go over current COVID-19 guidelines.

"We consult with the Chenango County Department of Health, I just spoke with them at length yesterday. And after speaking with them that’s when we updated our guidelines and we are deploying things that are actually above and beyond what the guidelines call for right now," said Larsen.

The guidelines are largely the same as what Blues Fest officials have announced in the past. Larsen said they just wanted to make visitors "aware [of] some of the safety measures that we're putting in place."

One of those safety measures is increasing their cleaning efforts, according to Larsen. He said the cleaning and sanitizing will focus on three sections: bathrooms, "common area" high-touch surfaces, and the VIP area.

"One would be the bathroom building, which we have always had people clean throughout the day. But we are going to expand the amount and frequency of the cleaning there," said Larsen. "One that will go around and clean any high-touch surfaces in the, I guess what we'll call the common area grounds. So Porta-John handles and anything that we think will have the opportunity to be a high touch surface. And then the third will focus on the VIP area, doing the same thing, cleaning high touch surfaces."

Larsen said there will also be signage recommending attendees wear masks and social distance, and that they have also reduced ticket sales by 30 percent and changed the layout of the event to allow for social distancing.

"We’ve altered our layout so that there's more room than we’ve had in the past for attendees. So between limiting the ticket sales and expanding the space that people will have to use, there should be plenty of room," he said.

While these are the current guidelines in place by the Chenango County Health Department and the Chenango Blues Association, Larsen said they are always "subject to change."

"If the Health Department or the CDC come out with revisions then we will follow along with those revisions and make changes as necessary. And what we’ve told people is, we’ll adjust our plan up to and including the day, when we wake up in the morning to run the festival. So we’re gonna stay current," Larsen explained.

Overall, Larsen said he is hoping people attend to the festival, and use "common sense" in regard to COVID guidelines to ensure a safe and enjoyable day.

"Observing what’s happened to the Summer Concert Series, people are using their common sense and taking advantage of the opportunity to give each other a little space. So that’s exactly the kind of common sense thing we’re all looking for," he said. "Just hoping that we'll encourage people to come and enjoy themselves, and to use their common sense and keep each other safe, and we'll have a good, fun event."

For more information on the Chenango Blues Fest, check out their website at chenangobluesfest.org, or their Facebook page, Chenango Blues Association.