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Planning a wedding or large event during the pandemic? Here's how to do it safely

The Colorado Event Alliance worked with state officials to provide guidance for safely hosting weddings and parties.

COLORADO, USA — Those in the event industry say they are optimistic after new guidance provides clarity for those who have been planning, postponing and reorganizing weddings and other large events over the last year.

Many couples turned to wedding or event planners for help after having to either cancel or postpone in 2020. 

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In the beginning, planners didn't have much guidance either. Even when businesses began to reopen, people in the events industry said they didn't have a specific set of rules.

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"There’s no regulatory agency that was regulating events at all," said Lilli Black, the owner of a Colorado wedding planning company called Sweetly Paired. "You didn’t have anybody who said 'oh they're having an event, let me go make sure it’s safe.' "

In March 2020, a few members of the events industry in Colorado formed the Colorado Event Alliance (CEA). The nonprofit started as a way to financially help people who lost their source of income due to statewide shutdowns. 

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"Overnight all of these caterers, bartenders, live musicians no longer had an income, through no fault of their own, so we were really there to help them," said Brynn Swanson, a board member for the CEA. 

The group also began advocating for the safe reopening of venues by working with state officials to establish a specific set of guidelines. 

The state updated their guidance for indoor events on March 1. 

How many guests am I allowed to have at my event?

According to state guidelines, capacity limits depend on venue size accounting for usable square footage and appropriate limits in the current county dial level. 

Black: Just have a million backup plans. Have your guest list, like dream guest list if COVID didn’t exist. Then have your next guest list which is if our venue is only allowed to have 50% capacity, what does that look like? If we have to go super intimate, what does that look like?

Will masks be required?

Swanson: Mask rules follow state guidelines, outdoors if you can be 6-feet away, they aren’t required, indoors they are unless you are eating or drinking.

Black: Get comfortable with the idea that you’re probably gonna have masks at your event in 2021 and maybe even 2022.

Is dancing allowed?

Swanson: Previously they specifically said no dance floors are allowed, and now dance floors are allowed in groups of six people that are six feet apart from each other and then you will have to wear masks. Which is huge, because who wants to celebrate when they cant be on the dance floor.

You also have to be 12 feet away from performers. 

What other things should people keep in mind while planning their event?

Black: Come up with plans for all the things that come across the board during COVID. What are your plans for social distancing? What are your plan for your guest lists, say you’re allowed to have 50% capacity but your tables have to be a certain distance apart. Have three different floor plans.

Who qualifies for financial help from the Colorado Event Alliance? 

Swanson: There's an application process through our website. Anybody who is based in Colorado who has worked for a certain amount of period in the events industry can apply. 

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