D.C. Re-Opening Process To Begin Friday
Dear WANADA Members,
This morning, District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser issued an executive order that begins the city's gradual re-opening process, starting on Friday. Under "phase one" of the ReOpen DC plan, non-essential businesses will be able to resume curbside sales and delivery, while restaurants may offer outdoor dining under limited capacity requirements.
You can view the mayor's executive order in the paragraph above, or by visiting coronavirus.dc.gov. You may also view the mayor's presentation from this morning's press conference at this link.
Please note that indoor non-essential retail outlets largely remain closed, with the exception of barber shops and hair salons, which may now offer limited services on a by-appointment basis. Medical centers may now offer non-essential outpatient and surgical services when they have the capacity to perform them without interfering with COVID-19 mitigation efforts.
The mayor also stressed that the city's current status on telework remains in effect; private office complexes are to remain mostly empty for the time being, with the exception of businesses that need to use their space to conduct or provide essential operations.
This order will also re-open city-run parks, tennis courts, tracks, and golf courses, while contact sports including basketball and soccer remain prohibited. Public gatherings of more than 10 people remain prohibited, as well.
As far as DMV services are concerned, the department has previously said on their website that in-person branches will be closed "through the duration of the public health emergency." Mayor Bowser's order today extends the public health emergency until July 24, and the DMV just sent out a tweet reaffirming the current operating status.
We are working to gather information on whether at least some in-person services will be offered sooner than that, and will let you know as soon as we hear more details. The city had previously said they were hopeful that some in-person DMV services could resume on June 9; we are hopeful that they will ultimate choose to stick to that statement.
As we mentioned earlier this month, D.C. has
instituted a broad mask requirement for patrons and employees at indoor businesses. This remains in effect, and we anticipate that it will stay active for months to come. The city has also flatly said it will not be issuing any special events permits until at least July 24; it is unclear what impact this will have on Fourth of July activities that happen on land managed by the National Park Service.
Please let me or Joe Koch (
jk@wanada.org
) know if you have any questions. We will be sure to provide additional details on the re-opening plans across the region as they are announced.
John O'Donnell
WANADA President and CEO
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