PARTNERSHIP SETS STRICT SAFETY STANDARDS FOR UPCOMING EVENT

 The 2020 State of the Community, organized by the Greater Topeka Partnership, will occur with new health and safety procedures to decrease the spread of COVID-19, says the organization’s events team. New procedures include temporal temperature checks, assigned/sectioned seating and social distancing and mask enforcement. This event is scheduled to take place on Thursday, August 27 at 3 p.m. at the Stormont Vail Events Center’s Landon Arena.

“The County’s public safety guidelines were at the forefront of our minds when planning the State of the Community,” said Stephanie Wilhelm, director of events, Greater Topeka Partnership. “While COVID-19 has affected all of our events at the Partnership, we have decided to step up to make sure we’re taking every precaution to keep our staff and attendees safe.”

The events team also confirmed that anyone with a temperature of 99.7 degrees or higher, or those who refuse to wear a mask, will not be admitted to the event.

Wilhelm continues, “We are asking the public to please wear their masks to the State of the Community. If you do not have a mask, the events team will be able to provide you with one.”

“I greatly appreciate working with the Partnership and I am impressed with the dedication in balancing public safety and finding ways to keep Topeka and Shawnee County moving forward,” said Dusty Nichols, incident commander, Shawnee County COVID-19 Response Team. “In working with the Events Team at the Partnership, I can tell you firsthand that the health and safety of their attendees is their first priority when planning events.”

“The State of the Community is one of Topeka & Shawnee County’s signature events that, while bridging the gap between elected leaders and the people whom they serve, provides perspective on what we’ve encountered and accomplished as well as what we have to look forward to as a community,” said Matt Pivarnik, CEO of the Greater Topeka Partnership. “We at the Partnership are thrilled to be able to offer this vital event in a safe way.”

Livestreaming options will be available for this event; details, while forthcoming, will be made available to ticketholders and sponsors as soon as possible.

Tickets are limited. To register for the 2020 State of the community, visit https://www.topekapartnership.com/events/state-of-the-community/.