Stringent guidelines shared for partial reopening
Restaurants to serve outdoors only at half capacity, protocols for hair salons particularly strict
When Connecticut restaurants, hair salons and offices begin to reopen on May 20, it won’t be business as usual.
Restaurants will be able to operate outdoors at only 50% of capacity. Food servers will be wearing masks and gloves and other employees’ movement will be limited to their “discrete work zones.” Bar areas will remain closed, though liquor service may be provided to tables that are spaced 6 feet apart and disinfected between every use. Hand sanitizer will be available at entrances. Customers will be required to wear masks while moving about the restaurant and will make their food selections from paper menus or digital chalkboards, and touchless payment is encouraged.
During Gov. Ned Lamont’s daily coronavirus news conference Friday, David Lehman, commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community
Development, outlined the protocols for the partial reopening of some businesses that have been shut down during the coronavirus pandemic. Lehman said the guidelines, with diagrams of how businesses should look, would be published at portal.ct.gov/coronavirus Friday evening or today. The policies will be enforced, with guidelines forthcoming.
The guidelines Lehman provided for hair salons were particularly stringent. Salons will be open by appointment only. Blow drying will not be allowed during hair appointments, and conversation should be limited so as to prevent the spread of droplets. Though Lamont previously had announced that nail salons could reopen May 20, he said that after further discussion, the Reopen Connecticut Advisory Committee decided it would be too expensive for those salons to implement safety procedures and is too soon.
Office places also will be able to reopen at 50% capacity, with the recommendation that staff report at staggered times and continue to work from home when possible. Meetings should be limited to five people and employees should be seated 6 feet apart, separated by physical partitions when possible, with visual social distancing markers and signs.
The state is taking what Lamont describes as “baby steps” now that it is, he hopes, on the other side of the pandemic. Should there be a flareup of cases, he said businesses could be closed down again.
As of Friday afternoon, the state had an additional 627 confirmed cases of COVID-19 within its borders, totaling 32,411, and an additional 77 related deaths, bringing the number of lives lost to 2,874.
Forty-nine fewer people were hospitalized, continuing what Lamont has said is a crucial trend. An additional 4,367 people were tested for the virus during the 24-hour period, a number that still represents only about half of the daily tests needed to meet the state’s goal of 42,000 tests a week.
New London County reported 755 confirmed COVID-19 cases Friday, an increase of 13 from the previous day, and one related death, bringing the county’s total to 50 deaths. As of Friday, Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London reported it was treating 22 patients with COVID-19, while Westerly Hospital had one. Backus Hospital in Norwich reported it had nine such patients.
The state is still advising those who are age 65 or over or at high risk of severe illness from COVID-19 to stay at home, and Lamont said he would issue guidelines for those at-risk employees who can’t return to work to continue collecting unemployment compensation.
Asked about the inconsistent policy of municipal beach closures in the state, Lamont said he would be issuing guidance. He also confirmed that hotels and inns will not be able to reopen to tourist business during the first phase of the state’s reopening plan.