Durham keeps restrictions until June 1. Parks and Rec outdoor pools closed for summer
Editor’s note: This story was updated May 22 after the Durham order was formally announced and also to clarify which pools will be closed this summer.
Restaurant dining rooms, barber shops and hair salons in Durham County can reopen June 1, say local elected leaders.
But outdoor pools run by the Durham Parks and Recreation department will be closed all summer, the department announced Thursday.
Elsewhere across the state, Gov. Roy Cooper’s reopening plan allows those businesses and pools to reopen at half of their capacity after 5 p.m. Friday.
Durham officials said the DPR pool closings affect the Hillside, Forest Hills and Long Meadow outdoor pools.
“The safety of our participants and staff is our number one priority,” the department stated. “In addition, we are dedicated to providing services that are equitable for everyone. The logistical challenges of being able to provide these services safely would severely limit the number of our residents who would be able to access these services.”
“While this was a difficult decision, we have determined that the challenges described above outweigh the benefit to the few that we would be able to safely serve,” it said.
Masks still required in Durham County
Mayor Steve Schewel and Wendy Jacobs, the chair of the Durham County Board of Commissioners, amended their stay-at-home order Friday, delaying many local reopenings because of the coronavirus.
“Durham cases now are growing at twice the rate of the state’s cases,” Schewel said.
The county also has three times the number of cases per 1,000 people as Wake County has.
“We are not where we want to be,” Schewel said.
The amended order maintains Durham County’s face-covering requirement when people go out and can’t socially distance, Schewel said.
It also allow groups of up to 10 people outside with six feet of physical distance required between people who are not from the same household, Schewel said. The statewide outdoor allows up to 25 people.
Realtors may now accompany potential buyers and inspectors into vacant or occupied properties with the same sanitation guidance previously required, according to a news release announcing the revised order.
Officials also want to help businesses open safely, the mayor said. There will be a voluntary self-certification program for businesses to meet sanitation, social distancing and other relevant practices, he said.
Cooper’s order lets local governments enact stricter regulations than the state’s, except for retail businesses. Durham’s combined stay-at-home order for the city and county was last revised and extended indefinitely last week.
City Council member Mark-Anthony Middleton said some small-business owners had reached out to him and requested a public forum. Schewel said they would plan on doing that.
For more information go to durhamnc.gov/4019/Stay-at-Home-Order-FAQs.
Staff reporter Drew Jackson contributed to this report.
This story was originally published May 21, 2020 at 11:14 AM with the headline "Durham keeps restrictions until June 1. Parks and Rec outdoor pools closed for summer."
