Restaurants, racing can resume, but new rules abound
NEW ORLEANS — Restaurants can reopen in New Orleans, a city famous for its cuisine, but they must take reservations and limit the number of diners. Auto and horse racing tracks in New York can resume competitions but without spectators.
Officials cautiously eased more restrictions Saturday on eateries, shops and outdoor venues as they tried to restart economies without triggering a surge in new coronavirus infections. But the reopenings came with new rules designed to curb the spread of the disease — another indication that the familiar ways of dining out or watching sporting events are gone for now.
Public health experts warn that the pandemic could pick up again if precautions are not taken or officials move too quickly to get people back to work.
In California, more parks and hiking trails welcomed visitors again in a second phase of reopening in which businesses deemed lower risk are allowed to operate with retailers offering curbside pickup.
Similar steps took place around the world as infections declined in many cities and countries.
Australians went out to eat for the first time in weeks Saturday, but the reopening of restaurants, pubs and cafes came with distancing and capacity rules and a warning: Don’t overdo it.
In New Zealand, even Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her fiancé, Clarke Gayford, were initially turned away for brunch by a restaurant in the capital, Wellington, because it was too full under coronavirus guidelines.
There was a happy ending: A spot freed up, and staff chased down the street to call the couple back.
Italy’s tourism industry is focused firmly on June 3, when both regional and international borders reopen, allowing the first prospect of tourists since Europe’s first lockdown went into place in early March. In tourist-reliant Venice, occupancy of the city’s 50,000 hotel beds has hovered around zero ever since.
“Venice lives on tourism, period,” said Claudio Scarpa, head of the city’s hotel association. “All the economic structures that operate in the city, including the port, are tied to tourism.”
France was also cautious, calling for a coordinated European effort on opening. At the same time, officials could make decisions “that protect the French” regarding countries “where the virus is still active,” Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said Saturday.
In Milan, Italy’s financial capital, 3,400 restaurants planned to open Monday, along with 4,800 bars, 2,900 hairdressers, 2,200 clothing stores and 700 shoe shops.
“After a long period at home, we will all want to go out and have a good coffee in a bar, eat a pizza in a pizzeria, buy a pair of jeans or go to the hairdressers,” Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said Saturday in a Facebook video.
Many restaurant owners complained that the rules for reopening were unclear and that the entire sector — including suppliers and food producers — was suffering. Dozens protested outside Milan’s main train station and called for an abolition of taxes and more help.
In England, officials and tourism boards discouraged people from visiting popular spots such as beaches or parks on the first weekend since the lockdown was eased. Stricter rules remain place in other parts of the U.K., and English daytrippers have been warned against crossing into Scotland or Wales.
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, said he would ask Parliament for what he hopes will be the last extension of a state of emergency to battle the pandemic, until around late June.
The country is slowly scaling back confinement measures, but tourism, which accounts for 12 percent of GDP, looks set to lose its critical summer season.
“Spain needs tourism,” Sanchez said. “But tourism needs security. It needs health guarantees.”