2 December 2021
Introduction of the Government’s ‘traffic light’ COVID-19 protection system on Friday (3 December) will see Vaccine Passes required for anyone aged 12 years and over at swimming pools and all libraries, except Masterton District Library.
All attendees at council, community board, and committee meetings will also require Vaccine Passes.
At South Wairarapa and Carterton pools, all children under 8 are required to be accompanied by an adult aged 16 or over with a Vaccine Pass. For Masterton’s Trust House Recreation Centre, this applies to all children under 12.
If you plan to visit Carterton or South Wairarapa districts’ libraries, swimming pools, the Martinborough Waihinga Centre, the Carterton Event Centre and Community Courthouse or the Trust House Recreation Centre in Masterton and all sites within them (iSite, café, libraries, Rangatahi hub, etc), then you must show a paper copy, or scan in, a valid Vaccine Pass. Purple vaccination cards are not valid.
Staff will be onsite checking Vaccine Passes at these areas upon entry.
Please note we will be checking your Vaccine Pass each time you enter any of the three councils’ Vaccine Pass areas. This is because we may have different staff rostered on to check Vaccine Passes, and because the passes have an expiry date on them.
We know this will be frustrating for our many regulars, but we need to ensure we’re following the Government regulations so we can continue to operate under the traffic light system.
Masterton District Council Chief Executive David Hopman said as a standalone library, with no movement of staff, Masterton Library would not require vaccine passes.
Because of the link between Carterton and Martinborough libraries with other council events facilities, and therefore potentially greater numbers of people, passes are required to access these spaces.
Staff also move between Martinborough and libraries in Greytown and Featherston, making passes a requirement in these libraries.
All library users must continue to wear masks and observe social distance protocols.
Passes will not be required to access the public areas of council offices, but mask use and social distancing rules continue to apply.
Vaccine Passes are not required at transfer stations, parks, cemeteries, or recreation trails, but requirements for mask use and social distancing remain in place.
In South Wairarapa, Council meetings through to Christmas will continue to be via Zoom.
These guidelines will be reviewed to reflect any changes with the Government’s COVID-19 Protection Framework.
