Phase 2 rules to apply as more reopenings start June 17

Staying in a hotel, dining indoors at a restaurant, going to the gym, a museum, or a movie theater will be a little different under new rules in Phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan.

On Sunday, Gov. Ned Lamont released documents detailing specific rules that eligible businesses falling under Phase 2 must follow amid COVID-19 pandemic.

The second phase takes effect June 17.

Under rules published Sunday, restaurants will be allowed to serve patrons indoors but can only use half their total capacity — a restriction that applies to most of the businesses allowed to reopen in the second phase.

Restaurants will also be required to close any buffet or self-serve stations and space tables 6 feet from one another, or install Plexiglass or similar plastic barriers between dining booths. Menus will have to be either sterilized between uses or eateries will have to use board menus or disposables. Employees will be required to wear masks, and table servers will need to wear gloves. Customers will also be required to wear masks, except when eating.

“We appreciate that we had a seat at the table to help put these guidelines together,” said Scott Dolch, executive director of the Connecticut Restaurant Association.

Dolch said only around a quarter of the state’s roughly 8,500 eateries have been able to reopen with outdoor dining, and that more than half of the state’s restaurant workforce of 160,000 have been furloughed or laid off amid the COVID-19 pandemic. He said he hopes the new guidelines will help rebuild consumer confidence and get restaurants “back on a path to recovery.”

Sports and fitness facilities, including gyms and pools; and indoor recreation such as bowling alleys and movie theaters will also be allowed to reopen June 17.

Restrictions on gyms include disabling every other or every third locker to promote social distancing, requiring gym users to wipe down equipment after they use it, and adjusting equipment so athletes are 6 to 12 feet apart from one another.

Personal services, such as nail salons and tattoo parlors, will also be allowed to reopen June 17.

Those businesses will be required to install Plexiglass or similar partitions between customers and employees where possible. Chairs and workstations will need to be disinfected between uses. Nail salon tools such as cuticle pushers, nail clippers and callous removers will also need to be disinfected after each use, and single-use tattoo needles must be disposed of using a medical waste disposal service.

The remaining businesses that will be allowed to reopen June 17 include amusement parks; hotels; museums, zoos and aquariums; libraries and outdoor events.

Lamont said the decision to reopen during this phase rests with each individual business owner — they are not required to open if they do not choose, however, if they do they must follow the rules as prescribed.