Businesses can reopen May 4

Any business that wants to reopen may due so on May 4.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson announced on Monday his plan to reopen Missouri, emphasizing the process will be more like the turning of a dial and not the flipping of a switch.

Dining

While restaurants, bars, barbers, salons, gyms, etc., will be allowed to reopen their doors to the public starting next Monday, there will be restrictions and guidelines to follow, namely social distancing and continued safety procedures.

“We’re going to look at tables being 6-feet apart within the dining room, no more than eight customers at a table to help with that social distancing. We are going to encourage all our workers to wear masks,” Butler County Health Department Director Emily Goodin said, adding social distancing guidelines will also apply to open-air businesses such as Hydro Adventures, Poplar Bluff Motorsports Park or The Camp at Lake Wappapello. “So for the race track, if you can come up with a way to have six feet in between people and between families, we will work with you on that and allow you to be open, and the same with the waterpark and the camp.”

She continued to say that restaurants with drive-through and take-out options are encouraged to continue those services.

All businesses will be restricted to 50% capacity. So if the fire code allows for 100 people, the business is allowed 50 people based under the current restrictions, which run from now until May 31.

Poplar Bluff Police Chief Danny Whiteley said should businesses not comply, the police may come by with a letter from the Butler County Health Department, but the department can not currently issue citations for non-compliance and would need an order from a judge to do so.

Goodin added the health department is prepared to close a restaurant for three days after a second warning for non-compliance and for a week after a third warning.

Workers should wear masks, Goodin said, as well as the rest of the community, and any buffet areas should be manned by employees so customers do not handle any equipment.

Buy local

Small businesses such as hair salons should allow one customer inside at a time, then wipe down and disinfect the area between customers. Nail salons should make sure customers are six feet apart.

Greater Poplar Bluff Area Chamber of Commerce President Steve Halter emphasized the need to shop local as businesses reopen.

“We think we are going to bounce back pretty good, but it really depends on people getting out and spending their money locally,” Halter said. “If you just stay at home and shop online, you are not shopping avenues that support our local businesses and it is going to be a slower recovery.”

Worship, schools

Places of worship will be allowed to open in time for Mother’s Day, and Goodin, as well as Butler County Emergency Management Director Robbie Myers, said they are communicating with those places about what they may do to keep their parishioners safe.

While the school year has been cancelled, the Poplar Bluff School District doesn’t officially end its calendar year on May 21, shortly before the current restrictions expire.

Superintendent Scott Dill emphasized that after this date, the school district will continue to find ways to feed its kids as it pivots into summer food service, though the locations and dynamics of that may look different.

“Somehow, someway, we’ll find a way to get meals to our kids,” Dill said.

He added the district is currently holding off plans for any kind of a graduation ceremony for seniors in the hope that larger gatherings may be allowed later in the summer, and he plans to discuss how summer school might look and exist under the current social distancing restrictions.

“There are considerations that we have to take into account,” Dill said. “How do we get kids to school? What does it look like on a bathroom break at the lower elementaries? What does the cafeteria look like? What does passing period look like? What does recess look like?”

Parks, sports

The health department is also working with the Parks and Recreation Department on reopening the parks and holding any potential sporting events or seasons under the current restrictions.

“Maybe a limit to how many people can come and see those events, maybe one or two people per family to watch their player,” Goodin said.

As of 2 p.m. Monday, there have been 7,171 cases of COVID-19 in Missouri and 288 deaths with more than 71,000 tests. Butler County had two additional positive cases during the weekend, bringing its total to 26 cases with no deaths.

Next phase

Parsons said he plans to reevaluate the current restrictions later in May, before the May 31 expiration.

Parson’s plan, in part, seeks to rapidly expand testing capacity and volume in the state, expand reserves of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), continue to monitor and, if necessary, expand hospital and health care system capacity, and improve the ability to predict potential outbreaks.

Businesses, outlined at showmestrong.org, must adhere to the following practices as they reopen:

• Prepare to implement basic infection prevention measures informed by industry best practices.

• Modify physical workspaces to maximize social distancing.

• Minimize business travel.

• Develop an infectious disease preparedness and response plan, including policies and procedures for workforce contact tracing when an employee tests positive for COVID-19.

• Monitor workforce for indicative symptoms. Do not allow symptomatic people to physically return to work until cleared by a medical provider.

• Develop, implement, and communicate about workplace flexibilities and protections.

“We must all practice social distancing. Opening these businesses is going to look very different for a while. But I am confident Missourians will abide by the guidance as we move forward,” Parson said in a Monday press conference. “Missouri took early, aggressive and smart actions to contain and slow the spread of COVID-19. Thanks to these efforts and the incredible sacrifices of Missourians who stay at home and practice social distancing, we are successfully flattening the curve. With the help of all Missourians, our plan is working. The health care system is not overwhelmed, and we are winning the battle.”