revised 2/17/23
Evaluating and documenting maximum capacity
The American Bookbinders Museum (ABM) is a small, open-plan museum open to the public Tuesday – Saturday from 10am – 4pm. The public area is all on the ground floor: a primary exhibit area of roughly 2500 square feet with 20’ ceilings; there is an additional gallery space of roughly 250 square feet with 10’ ceilings. Private administration area on the mezzanine above the gallery includes the office, which is open to the exhibit floor below, and an enclosed, environmentally controlled collection storage room. There are four individual restrooms (two are wheelchair accessible). The normal capacity is 110 persons including staff. As of this writing (February 17, 2023) the San Francisco Department of Public Health has removed capacity limits, and masking inside the museum is optional. Pre-Pandemic our typical visitorship was between 10-20 persons a day, with an average visit duration of 1 1/2 hours in the course of a 6-hour business day.
Aside from restrooms, the one “enclosed” space in the public area is the gallery, which has two large doorways. We keep the two doors open to increase airflow throughout the room.
Upstairs, the office is open to the museum floor. There is a collection storage room which is climate-controlled with its own HVAC for the protection of the materials stored there.
Signage Requirements
Signage reflecting the current COVID-19 is posted on the door at the Clementina Street entrance and Folsom Street exit. These posters are multi-lingual (English, Spanish, Chinese, and Filipino).
Masking Inside the Museum
In line with current San Francisco and California DPH guidelines, masks are not currently required. In the event of a surge in COVID infections, or direction from the DPH, ABM reserves the right to require masking.
Ticketing booths and payment systems
We offer and encourage the purchase of tickets online. We also sell tickets at the admissions desk upon arrival.
Any guest who is unable to visit the museum due to COVID symptoms can choose to reschedule their visit or to receive a refund.
We have a Plexiglass barrier between the staff member at the admissions desk and the guests. We accept credit cards—the swiping mechanism is on the guest-side of the barrier, so that staff does not have to touch the card. Unfortunately, the ticketing software we work with is not currently compatible with contactless hardware. We also accept cash.
Hand sanitizer is available at the entrance to the museum, on the guests’ side of the admissions desk barrier, in the gift shop, and on the staff side of the admissions desk.
Personnel safety precautions
Staff have received a copy of the Health and Safety Plan, which they reviewed and signed.
Masking is optional for fully vaccinated staff, interns, and volunteers.
All museum staff has been vaccinated and received boosters.
HVAC Systems
The museum’s HVAC utilizes (4) split AC systems (Heat Pumps & Fan Coils); each supplying 1,600 CFM of air and with 300 CFM of outside air (18.75%), as well as MERV 13 filtration in all air handling units in the building. The four restrooms vent directly to the outside.
Additionally, the collection storage room has its own climate-controlled system which maintains the temperature and humidity at a level to preserve the collection items stored there.
Because of our small size and relatively modest means, we are not currently planning upgrades to our HVAC system. The system receives quarterly maintenance.
Retail
Hand sanitizer is available.
Sanitation for Restrooms
The ABM has four individual restrooms (two wheelchair accessible) with ventilation through the roof.
Touchless lights and soap dispensers have been installed. Staff inspects each restroom to clean and restock based on museum attendance (ie., if we have no guests that day, restrooms are cleaned as needed).
Tours and audio self-tour equipment
The ABM offers self-guided tours, which work two ways:
- Audio tours are accessed via the guest’s own smart phone and earphones; guests are reminded when purchasing tickets that they will need these to access the tour. If a guest does not have earphones the ABM will provide a pair of disposable earphones for their use. If the guest does not have a smart phone the ABM will loan them a tablet and disposable earphones. After use the earphones are thrown away; the tablet is disinfected.
- We also offer a self-guided tour brochure, which the guest may take home or throw away after use.
ABM Floor Plan
