Seattle Aquarium makes safety changes in preparation of reopening

SEATTLE — The Seattle Aquarium plans to reopen its doors as soon as King County hits phase two of the state’s Safe Start plan.

It’s been shut down since March 12, but staff members have been preparing to welcome back guests. If you want to visit, the process will begin before you even step inside.

“We’re encouraging everyone to buy tickets online. And they’re timed ticketing, so you’ll buy them for a day and a 30-minute block of time when you can enter the aquarium,” said Brad Rutherford, CEO of the Seattle Aquarium.

Signs on the floor will guide you down the one-way path. It will also help to ensure physical distancing as you take in the surrounding exhibits and marine life.

Rutherford said, for now, there won’t be any interactive exhibits. The traditional touch tanks will be filled, but no touching will be allowed.

There will also be a big change to their shows.

“We’re going to be changing our programming. So where it used to come in and you might have a 20- to 25-minute dive show with literally hundreds of people watching, we’re going to have much smaller, shorter mini programming so people will have these little wonderful moments of discovery along the path,” Rutherford said.

Like other businesses, the Seattle Aquarium has taken a big financial hit. Rutherford estimates $6 million in lost revenue if it remains closed through June. That's out of a $21 million budget.

While the animals and staff are excited to welcome back guests, Rutherford said the aquarium is being even more cautious than the county’s recommendations. Under the second phase, the aquarium is allowed up to 25% of capacity. The aquarium, however, will start by capping its guests at 15%. That means no more than 300 guests at a time.

“We’ll be able to adjust that on a very quick basis if we see No. 1, we can safely handle more people and No. 2, that there’s demand,” Rutherford said. “One of the values of the Seattle Aquarium is to be science-based, and we applied that to our reopening plan.”

Masks will also be required for everyone unless you’re younger than 2 or have a medical condition. The Seattle Aquarium will give you one if you need it.

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