Related
MIAMI (WSVN) - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Re-Open Task Force has released their final recommended guidelines for the state to reopen.
Phase one of the plan will be going into effect on Monday for all areas of the state except for Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, but the details of phase two and three were released on Thursday night.
The recommendations that have been made are expected to be followed if phase one is successfully executed in Florida.
Phase two includes recommendations to avoid gatherings or meetings of 50 people or more, to allow employees to return to work in phases, for bars, clubs and sports attractions to operate at 50% capacity and for restaurants, gyms and retail stores to operate at 75% capacity.
In the phase two recommendations, non-essential travel will also resume.
If the number of COVID-19 cases in the state continues to decrease while in phase two, the Re-Open Florida Task Force recommends DeSantis to then move on to phase three.
Phase three recommends minimized time spent in crowded areas, those who are 65 and older can resume public interaction and all businesses can operate at full capacity.
The final phases of employees can return to work as well in phase three, and theme parks, state parks and beaches can reopen.
On Friday morning, DeSantis added the phase three recommendation of opening state parks to phase one’s unveiling on Monday.
“Today I am announcing as part of phase one that — beginning Monday, May 4 — Florida’s world-renowned state park system will be opening,” he said during a media conference. “Opening the parks is consistent with my safe-smart-step-by-step plan to reopen Florida. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 emergency, we’ve made decisions based on data, facts and science. I think we’ve seen enough about COVID-19, I think the science backs it up, that outdoor transmission is less likely than transmission in enclosed environment.”
The decision to follow the recommended guidelines remains up to DeSantis.
In Miami-Dade County, City of Miami Beach leaders met on a Zoom call to discuss future plans on moving forward.
“Well, I understand what’s happening elsewhere, but here in Dade County, here in Miami Beach, we can’t open at the same speed,” said Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber. “We have to be prepared to manage the virus — really manage it — when we open up, and we’re not quite there yet.”
To read the complete plan recommended by the Re-Open Florida Task Force, click here.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.