Check the Salem Halloween Crowds Before Heading Downtown

SALEM, MA — Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll said in a meeting with business leaders this week that the city knows the crowds are coming to Salem this month despite the cancellation of major events and reduced marketing of Halloween's unofficial hometown.

Now the city is giving residents and visitors a way to track the crowds before they head downtown.

The Downtown Crowd Gauge is updated several times a day on Fridays through Sundays and rates the crowds on a level of 1-6 with "Red" Level 6 being extreme crowds and that travel to downtown is discouraged.

The crowd level as of late Saturday morning was "Green" Level 2.

The City of #SalemMA is piloting a downtown crowd monitoring tool that is available online at https://t.co/kbUY8PLVLT. pic.twitter.com/hJ3Dciju7R
— City of Salem MA (@CityofSalemMA) October 3, 2020

"If you are planning to visit downtown Salem this October on a weekend, it is strongly recommended that you plan ahead," the city said. "Most restaurants, stores, and attractions require advance tickets or reservations, and long lines are not permitted outside businesses."

Driscoll has said the city is trying to balance public health and economic health this Halloween season with strict enforcement of rules regarding public gatherings and overcrowding. The Board of Health on Tuesday decided to delay moving to step two of phase 3 in the state's reopening — keeping the maximum amount of people allowed to a table at restaurants at six and keeping public gathering limits at 25 people both indoors and outdoors.

Street performers and bruskers, as well as outside vendors coming to the city, are not allowed — though the city is exploring the possibility of having an "artist" area in one of the common areas downtown — and lines getting in to restaurants, museums and attractions will be limited to five groups spaced 6 feet apart.

Salem police will have discretion to close streets and the pedestrian way to both vehicle and walking traffic if they get too crowded.

"If we have tens of thousands of people coming into the city that is something we physically can't handle this year (and maintain social distancing)," Salem Acting Police Chief Dennis King said during the meeting with business owners. "It's not going to look the same."

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