Montgomery Mall Officially Reopens With Green Phase Friday

MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP, PA — After months of closure, Montgomery Mall officially reopened its doors on Friday as Montgomery County moves into the green phase of coronavirus mitigation, the most lax phase of the state's reopening plan. Numerous health measures will be in place that will make the mall experience a bit different than it was before the outbreak.

Simon, the owner of the mall, said that they would follow a general mitigation protocol. The mall has been shuttered since March 14, shortly after the outbreak of the virus in the local area. Their doors will open up again for the limited hours of 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

Businesses with public-facing entrances at malls have been permitted to reopen in Montgomery County in the yellow phase, which began June 6. Now, all mall department stores and interior businesses are permitted to open, and most stores at Montgomery have done so.

Montgomery Mall employees around 2,200 local residents, Simon said.

Simon's protocol states that mall employees and business operators are required to wear masks, but they only state that masks are "encouraged" for customers. A spokesperson for Simon declined to clarify their policy for either King of Prussia or Montgomery malls.

"The health, safety and well-being of the community we serve will always be our highest priority, and we have developed a thorough and detailed set of protocols highlighting the exceptional measures we’ve implemented for shoppers, retailers and employees as we reopen,” Gwen Karpf, General Manager at Montgomery Mall, said in a statement.

Free masks and sanitizing wipe packets will be available to all customers at designated entrances to the mall, and the mall office, according to the mitigation protocols.

"As the coronavirus continues to remain in our community, each of us must be personally responsible for our actions and work together to minimize the spread of COVID-19 in Montgomery County," Commissioner Val Arkoosh said Wednesday.

Simon will be monitoring the occupancy of the mall, and plans to limit each area to a maximum density of 50 square feet per-person. The mall did not specify how many shoppers this would be, as it will vary based on the section of the property. If this maximum occupancy is reached, customers will be asked to wait in their cars or in lines outside.

Additionally, hand sanitizer stations will be set up throughout the common areas of the mall.

Frequent touch points will be disinfected regularly, Simon said. That includes doorknobs and door handles, counters, transaction registers and computer touchscreens, railings, and more.

For the full list of what's open and closed at Montgomery, see here.