SALT LAKE CITY — Businesses in Davis, Weber and Morgan counties will be allowed to open May 1, after health officials said the risk of coronavirus transmission there is “moderate.”
“Over the last six weeks, we have done what we set out to accomplish and that is to curb the COVID outbreak here, locally,” said Brian Hatch, executive director of the Davis County Health Department. “Because of the residents and our businesses, really everybody adhering to the recommendations we put out, the guidelines and, in some cases, the orders we’ve put out, we have been effective.”
Davis, Weber and Morgan counties have 379 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and have reported four related deaths, according to data from the Utah Department of Health.
“I’m excited, but cautious,” Hatch said, likening what officials are calling a “soft opening of businesses” to a dimmer switch. “We can begin turning up the light.”
“We’re not at the place where we can go back to normal,” he said, with some hesitation. “All of the success we’ve had could go away overnight.”
The three northern Utah counties issued public health orders on March 18 and extended those on April 1. They will be the first in the state to announce loosening restrictions on businesses, but officials there are still asking the public to wear masks and to maintain social distancing while out and about, and especially as they patronize businesses.
“The data is looking good if we continue to be responsible,” said Lorene Kamalu, chairwoman of the Davis County Commission. “It’s going to be important for all of us not to do these things because we’re fearful, but to do these things because we’re responsible.”
She said most businesses didn’t even need to close, but amid some confusion might have shuttered their doors, or perhaps they closed because they could not maintain social distancing or were part of a national chain that opted to shut down.
The decision to reopen businesses that can maintain a healthy environment, Kamalu said, is based on the promising data and the fact that residents have obeyed the rules.
“Our county, just like the rest of the state is fighting two major battles ... COVID-19, which is a health concern ... and the other battle, that I feel is just as important, is our small-business economy,” said Weber County Commissioner Gage Froerer.
“We have a responsibility to get these businesses back in business and in a timely manner,” he said.
The current statewide “stay safe, stay home” directive expires May 1 and while the new guidelines aren’t in effect until then, Froerer said he wants to give business owners time to get organized to open on May 1.
“This is not a sprint, it’s a marathon,” he said.
Froerer emphasized that the current directives, guidelines and restrictions will be in effect until May 1 for everyone to maintain the ground the county officials feel they have gained in the past weeks.