Only 1 Modesto museum plans reopening; large art galleries already welcome patrons
While museums now are allowed to reopen in Modesto, only one has plans at this time to do so. Meanwhile, two of the region’s biggest art galleries have reopened.
Such venues got the go-ahead to open to 25 percent of capacity earlier this month when the county moved to the red tier under the state’s reopening guidelines for the coronavirus pandemic.
The Great Valley Museum is planning for a Saturday, Nov. 7, reopening, according to Arnold Chavez, its director.
“We are finalizing those details and getting ready,” Chavez said. The museum only will have Saturday hours for now, but the plan is to add more days in the future.
Staffing is an issue for expanding those hours, partly because many volunteers are elderly and more susceptible to the coronavirus, he said.
Chavez said Nov. 7 will “be kind of a test” as to how to handle restrictions and the number of people inside the museum. Masks will be require and social distancing guidelines in place, along with extra sanitizing.
“I just want to be a little cautious, not taking too much of a bite at one time,” he said.
The plan sets two-hour slots with the capacity of up to 75 people inside the museum from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
To reserve a slot, tickets will be sold in advance on the website, www.mjc.edu/instruction/sme/gvm. The $5 tickets are not yet on sale. The museum is on the Modesto Junior College West Campus, 2201 Blue Gum Ave.
Before the pandemic, Saturdays were the museum’s busiest days, with up to two dozen people touring inside at any given time, Chavez said.
The planetarium will not reopen at this time.
The museum features exhibits on the natural history and habitats of the Central Valley, as well as small live animals. There’s also a Science on a Sphere with data projected, including real-time world events “such as earthquakes, hurricanes and other phenomenon,” according to its website.
The museum’s Discovery Room will be open to view its live animals, but there won’t be any of the pre-pandemic hands-on activities, Chavez said.
Chavez said the museum is a great place to go for all ages. “I think people are waiting to get out and get some kind of normalcy back into their lives,” he said.
McHenry Mansion, Museum on hold
While the Great Valley Museum is getting ready to go, as of now neither Modesto’s McHenry Mansion nor McHenry Museum is open, and when they will be is not clear.
Both facilities are owned and operated by the city, according to City of Modesto Community and Media Relations Officer Thomas Reeves.
The city only has one staff member devoted to both at this point, Reeves said in an email. “Reopening will require quite a bit of work, even to the 25% capacity allowed under the red tier order, and we’re simply not at a place to announce when that will be.”
But the McHenry Mansion’s gift shop, which is run separately by its foundation, has reopened, according to a press release.
The gift shop is open 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays at 924 15 St., Modesto, just down the block from the mansion. Customers also can request to be the only shopper in the store by calling 209-549-0428 during open hours to schedule a visit, the release said.
Masks and social distancing are required in the store, and hand sanitizer is available, the release said.
All store proceeds support the nonprofit mansion. See www.mcssl.com/store/mchenrymansion/gift-shop-items.
Carnegie, Mistlin galleries open
The Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock has reopened at 25 percent capacity, according to a press release. Two exhibits are showing: “Cut Up/Cut Out” and “In This Time.”
“We want everyone to feel safe and confident coming to the Carnegie Arts Center,” the release said. Even with the 25 percent capacity limit, the large arts center can have as many as 50 visitors at a time.
“We do require face coverings and expect all of our patrons to maintain a six-foot distance between you/your family group and others in the gallery, lobby and gift shop,” the release said. There is a hand sanitizing station at the entrance and the gallery asks patrons to pay for admission or gift shop purchases with credit or debit cards, if possible.
The Carnegie’s gift shop has been open for several months as a retail space under pandemic guidelines.
The Carnegie is at 250 N. Broadway in Turlock. For more see www.carnegieartsturlock.org.
Mistlin Gallery in downtown Modesto also has reopened Thursdays through Saturdays, with the exhibit “Women in America: A Celebration.” It had opened earlier this month as a retail space.
Gallery Manager Linda Knoll said Mistlin will maintain limited hours of 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursdays-Fridays and noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays.
Knoll said earlier this month that moving to the red tier probably would not mean more hours for the gallery because most of their volunteers are older and more vulnerable to coronavirus.
The gallery could welcome up to 50 people at a time under the 25 percent capacity, she said.
Mistlin Gallery is at 1015 J St., Modesto. For more, see ccaagallery.org.
