Penguins petition Pa. Governor Tom Wolf for vaccinated and non-vaccinated seating sections at PPG Paints Arena

If things move forward the way it seems the Penguins would like them to, seating at PPG Paints Arena could soon be sorted by whether or not you’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19.

According to the Tribune-Review, the Penguins have sent an e-mail to season-ticket holders notifying them that they’ve petitioned Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf and the state’s Department of Health to organize seating in such a manner, allowing for more tickets to be sold to games.

“We are encouraged by the number of people in and around the region that have been vaccinated and feel that this would be a safe and effective way to allow more fans access to attend games,” wrote Penguins CEO and team President David Morehouse.

The Tribune-Review says that the Penguins initial inquiry involved allowing only vaccinated fans into the arena for games, but this current petition involves the two types of seating sections.

When asked about it at a press conference on Wednesday, Governor Wolf said “One of the things that was in the CDC guidelines is you’ve still got to be careful,even if you’ve been vaccinated, and even if you’re in the outdoors, if you’re at a crowded event. So the Penguins and everybody with sporting (events) indoors and outdoors are struggling with exactly that question: How do we do this? We’ve got … close to 50% of Pennsylvanians who have gotten the first dose. What can they do right now? And it’s a work in progress. We are trying to figure it out.”

Mask-wearing would still be required even if the proposed seating plan were to take effect.

It’s unclear when a decision on this might be made by Governor Wolf and the Department of Health.