**Please note this blog was written on April 6, 2020.

These are extraordinarily challenging times, and we want to thank you for your support of The Greystone Inn. The safety and well-being of our loyal guests, team members, and community is paramount. In an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus and in accordance with national and state guidelines, we have temporarily closed areas of our business and adapted others to provide for the changing needs of our community.

We are closely monitoring the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization statements regarding the coronavirus. Our industry is regulated by strict local, state and federal guidelines. In addition to these guidelines, we have put the following steps in place in an effort to best take care of our team and our guests health and well-being. We will continue to adjust our behavior and operation as the situation evolves.

FRONT OF HOUSE TEAM

We have a limited number of employees at this time.

In response to the challenges presented by COVID- 19 ServSafe has developed additional training courses – ServSafe Food Handler and SerSafe Takeout and Delivery: COVID-19 Precautions. All staff and delivery helpers are certified.

We are taking the temperature of our employees prior to work to ensure they don’t have a fever and we are insisting employees with cold or flu like symptoms not come to work.

We have trained our staff on cough etiquette and proper handwashing procedures and require they wash and moisturize their hands every hour to keep their hands clean and healthy.

There is no physical contact between our staff and guests. We have enforced a strict social distancing policy.

We reinforce training and the steps we are taking to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at daily meetings and on our communication boards which are prominently displayed in each department.

KITCHEN TEAM
All kitchen staff wear masks when working in the kitchen. They do not take the masks on and off but keep them on throughout their work.

Our Chef is ServSafe certified as are all the managers in the kitchen, in the areas of food safety and restaurant sanitation. Our Chef ensures his team maintains rigorous ServSafe operational practices, which include proper hand-washing and safe practices for wearing gloves.

Sanitizer buckets have been set up at each food preparation station and are being changed multiple times during shifts according to recommended guidelines.

We work with some of the best food suppliers in the country, who are proactively following CDC guidelines and aligning themselves with current best practices some of which include having drivers wear gloves that are changed with each delivery and doing health checks on drivers before deliveries.

MARKETPLACE
MarketPlace orders and payment are taken over the phone. Guest can choose from curbside pick-up, non-contact curbside pick-up or non-contact delivery

Curbside Pickup – If there is no one in the front seat, the order is placed through the guest window on the seat. If there is a passenger in the front seat, the order is placed in the back seat through the window. We will also put the order in a guest’s trunk if preferred. This service allows distance and does not require our staff to touch the car. Face shields or masks are worn by our staff and hands are sanitized before and after each transaction

Non-Contact Curbside Pickup – There’s a table on the front porch outside the entrance to the Mansion. Guests call to let us know they have arrived. We then place the guest’s food on the table with their receipt for pick up. Our staff wears face shields or masks to deliver the meal onto the sanitized table. Guests pick up their food, return to their car and our staff sanitizes the table and wash their hands again.

Non-Contact Deliveries – We will call as we’re pulling up and put the delivery outside the front door and wait in the car until we see the guest has retrieved their food. Masks or face shields are worn by our staff, and hands are sanitized between each transaction. Once driver returns to hotel, their car door handles and interior touchpoints are sanitized.

ACCOMMODATIONS
Accommodations are available for medical professionals and people needing to self-isolate for 15 days or longer.

Contact-less check-in and check-out procedures.

Contact-less meal service can be delivered daily

Dishes, drinking glasses, cups and eating utensils are washed in a commercial dishwasher

All common areas are closed to the public. This includes the Mansion, Lakeside Dining Room and Spa.

Fresh linens and amenities are available upon request and will be placed outside the door. Used linens and trash are to be put in sealed bags and placed outside the door.

Housekeeping carts are disinfected several times throughout the day

Our housekeepers wear masks and a clean pair of gloves for each guest room they clean and are using safe practices to change their gloves after each room.

Our housekeepers are performing touchpoint sanitizations with the cleaning of guest rooms that include but are not limited to – door handles, desk, table, chairs and lamp, light switches and thermostats, drapery pull handles, mini-bar, room collateral, telephone and keypad, remote control keypad and alarm clock, television, safety hatch and peephole, trash receptacle touch points, iron handle, hangers and luggage rack, towel rails, makeup mirror and switch, faucet and toilet handles

Rooms are cleaned with products approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use against emerging viral pathogens. Disinfectants are applied during routine cleaning of guest rooms.
Disinfectants are left to sit on surfaces for several minutes in order to work.

Everything on the bed is carefully removed, washed and cleaned between guests including bed skirts, blankets and duvets. All linens are disinfected when washed.

Note: there’s a difference between cleaning and disinfecting. Disinfecting must be done to remove pathogens.

Cleaning refers to the removal of dirt and impurities, including germs, from surfaces. Cleaning alone does not kill germs. But by removing the germs, it decreases their number and therefore any risk of spreading infection.

Disinfecting works by using chemicals, for example EPA-registered disinfectants, to kill germs on surfaces. This process does not necessarily clean dirty surfaces or remove germs. But killing germs remaining on a surface after cleaning further reduces any risk of spreading infection.

PROCEDURES FOR HANDLING PACKAGES
Staff wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds after signing for a package or use disinfectant wipes or spray when using stylus pens.

Boxes are opened very carefully. Contents are wiped down and placed on a sanitized surface.
Packaging is carefully disposed of immediately, surfaces sanitized and hands are washed again.