Country Music Hall of Fame to re-open in September

Country Music Hall of FameThe Country Music Hall of Fame is readying to open its doors to the public next month. 

The Nashville-based institution has announced that its galleries will be open to the public beginning on September 10 at 9 a.m. CT. 

Additional activities such as tours of the Hatch Show Print design shop and the historic RCA Studio B will also resume operation, but at limited capacity. In-person programming will remain on hiatus. Museum members will have access to the galleries one day earlier, on September 9.

The CMHOF is working in accordance with Nashville Mayor John Cooper's guidelines for re-opening, in addition to consulting the Metro Health Department’s Policy Department to establish safety protocols.  They include requiring museum staff and guests over the age of two to wear a mask and practice social distancing, as well as temperature checks when entering the building. 

The museum will also utilize enhanced cleaning of frequently-touched surfaces including elevator buttons, touchscreens and handrails, in addition to offering timed ticketing and touchless transactions. 

The museum closed on March 13, with CMHOF CEO Kyle Young saying that they've been preparing for re-opening ever since, stating that the "steady improvement in the number of COVID-19 cases" led them to re-open. 

"The museum experience will be slightly different -- visitors will wear masks, practice social distancing, tour in smaller groups and enter the museum according to a pre-arranged, staggered schedule, and there will be no in-person programming," he explains. "But our commitment to sharing the country music story has not changed."

By Cillea Houghton
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