Cities and nonprofit agencies are juggling shifting rules to make summer camps a reality.

Summer camp is a rite of passage for kids and a necessity for working parents but, like every aspect of life since Covid-19, its existence this year is in jeopardy. Ever-changing government regulations and the uncertainty of when it’s safe to gather again have left city recreation leaders and camp directors trying to salvage what they can of summer programs. There will be camp, but it won’t look like camps of the past.

“It’s not exactly the same summer camp we’re used to, but then what is?” says Scott Tebo of Central Coast YMCA.

During the initial phases of shelter in place, the YMCA followed U.S. Centers for Disease Control guidelines in providing childcare for essential workers: No more than 10 children in a group, one adult leader for every nine children and no mixing of groups, face coverings and gloves for staff and frequent disinfecting of areas. The Y was planning to continue organizing camps around the guidelines for as long as they were in place, which would probably mean a scaled-down version of past camps.

In announcing the newest shelter-in-place order that took effect May 4 and lasts until May 31, Monterey County Health Officer Edward Moreno said he was adding summer camps to the list of essential services. The order allows groups of 12 or less, with campers and their leaders remaining separate from other groups.

Monterey recreation staff met on May 4 to discuss what camps might look like, and whether the city could afford to run the many summer programs they have in the past. The restrictions, combined with parents hesitant of letting their kids mingle with others, might translate into fewer registrations and less revenue, reasons Shannon Leon, Monterey’s interim recreation and community services manager.

“It’s still up in the air,” Leon says. Last year, Monterey had 80 kids a week in day camps and 80 kids at residential Camp Quien Sabe at Toro Park. The Sports Center hosted around 2,000 children in its camps. The playground program had 400 registrations, but that program may not even be an option this summer since high-touch equipment will probably be one of the last things to come out from under restrictions.

Despite the uncertainty, camp planning continues and Leon says whatever happens, “we’ll do everything we can to make camp as memorable as we can.”

MEarth, located on Carmel Unified School District property adjacent to Carmel Middle School, made the decision to cancel its June camps when the school district shut down the campus through the end of that month, says Executive Director Benjamin Eichorn. The organization is exploring whether they can have some adapted form of camp before the next round of regularly scheduled programs beginning July 13. Registrations for those camps are running low, but Eichorn thinks that will change. “I anticipate that once people feel safe, the demand will be quite high,” he says.

The YMCA is already seeing increased interest and Tebo believes kids will show up. “We have been getting more and more calls, absolutely,” Tebo says. “If you’ve been stuck with your kids for two months, summer camp sounds like a good idea.”