After Madison Police Department (MPD) Chief Jack Drumm issued a stern warning to residents last week about repeated violations of social distancing practices at parks and beaches, the department is continuing to focus on educational initiatives before moving to sterner enforcement measures, according to MPD Captain Joe Race.

“Hopefully it’s coming off as an educational campaign rather than an enforcement campaign,” Race said.

Race said the department is trying to make people aware that fines can be imposed if social distancing rules are disregarded.

“We don’t want to go there, and that’s been [Drumm’s] message this whole time,” Race said.

Over the last week or so, Race said the MPD has put up four “huge” message boards and 30 smaller signs around town warning residents to maintain their social distancing and avoid congregating in groups larger than five people.

Drumm told a virtual meeting of the Board of Selectmen that since the signs went up and since his warning last week, people have “really stepped up” to do better in terms of maintaining these good practices.

Officers have also been approaching groups of people who are not following these guidelines to remind them of the importance of these practices, though Race said at this point, there are no immediate plans to go beyond reminders.

“Hopefully that will work. It’s going to become more challenging once the weather gets nicer,” Race said. “If this continues on through the end of the month or into the next month—once those temperatures start hitting 60, 65, I think it’s going to be more complicated. So we’re really trying to get that word out now,” Race said.

Though the MPD hasn’t been tracking how many times officers have had to warn people, Race said that in his qualitative experience, residents are beginning to heed the advice.

“I think the message is getting out there,” he said.

One of the potential issues is crowding, according to Race. Even when people are doing their best to follow the six-foot social distancing rule, he said there are at least occasional time periods and areas when Madison public areas simply don’t have the space to accommodate all those who are hoping to take a walk or get some fresh air.

“It seems to be pretty quiet most places. Middle Beach is pretty crowded with walkers...At some hours, there’s so many people down there, you can’t get six feet apart,” he said.

The town recently closed down Salt Meadow Park due to crowding concerns, and Hammonasset State Beach began limiting its available parking last week, in order to decrease the volume of visitors.

Downtown has had no issues with that sort of crowding, Race said, which he attributed to businesses “working very hard” to accommodate and follow all the statewide orders concerning closures and how they should be operating.

“I think there’s a lot of people coming together on this. I think we’re all going to get through it together. I think that’s the message,” Race said.

Race emphasized that any more stringent enforcement would likely be predicated on action by Governor Ned Lamont. Though there are currently enforceable orders in place as far as travel restrictions and public gatherings, according to Drumm and First Selectman Peggy Lyons, Race said that it would likely take further executive action—a travel ban, for instance—before the MPD began upping the level of enforcement action.

“If we do make contact with people, we do ask, ‘Hey, where are you going, where are you coming? You really should be home.’ We’re really just trying to hammer the education side of it and kind of waiting for the governor,” Race said.

Individual officers interacting with people—particularly with younger folks—is where the MPD hopes to most effectively channel that message, according to Race.

A couple of MPD officers with previously established strong relationships with the town’s teenage population have made efforts to interact in a positive way with younger people, he said, including the school resource officer, Steven Manware, who filmed a short PSA that was disseminated across social media.

Other officers know many of the town’s youth through coaching, or through their own children, Race said.

“It’s just to remind them,” Race said. “I think we do a good job as an organization of really humanizing that part, and trying to get in with the community and with the kids. Our officers are very good at just going up and just talking to people. I think we want them to do as much of that as they can- again, from a [six-foot] distance.”

If the MPD can do that, and convince people—especially younger people—that their commitment to social distancing and staying at home is vital both for their protection and the protection of their community, there will be no need to write tickets, enact curfews, or any other stronger enforcement measures.

“[E]education and just talking to people—it always works better than having to enforce,” Race said.