A.G. Gancarski
Gov. Ron DeSantis is readying most of the state to enter Phase Two reopening.
The Governor, addressing reporters in Doral Thursday, said that a “good announcement” was coming Friday that would apply to most of the state.
In Phase Two, people from vulnerable populations would still be asked to self-isolate, groups of up to 50 would be permitted, albeit with social distancing still in play.
Phase Two would also allow increased restaurant capacity, as well as the reopening of gyms, schools, and bars with social distancing and diminished occupancy.
The Governor stressed these are modest changes.
“Phase Two really isn’t that different from what Florida’s done already … basically about opening up bars and some of those things.”
The Governor expressed enthusiasm for gyms reopening.
“Sanitation” is one key, as well as gym users being ‘in shape,’ the Governor said, citing the importance of “access to gyms” and “exercise.”
DeSantis lauded his decision not to crack down on golfing during the coronavirus-driven economic shutdowns of the last two months.
“Outdoors is our friend,” the Governor said. “The Villages had a record amount of tee sheets and zero people from the Villages are in that UF hospital right now.”
“Daycares,” DeSantis noted, have been “open the whole time.”
Though South Florida may still be on a slower path, the Governor notes that Florida is a “diverse state,” and he won’t “(roll) back the entire state if there’s an outbreak in Hialeah.”
“Outside prisons and nursing homes,” the Governor noted, there are “very few cases.”
“There are millions and millions of Floridians who may never know anyone who’s been affected by coronavirus, but they’ve sure been affected by these mitigation efforts,” DeSantis said, citing students missing out on their high school graduations as examples.
A Jacksonville announcement would be fitting, as the Governor has cobranded with the city throughout the crisis, which has seen DeSantis and Mayor Lenny Curry message in tandem.
Earlier this week, Curry described a “restless” Jacksonville ready to move to Phase Two.
He also asserted that DeSantis is “as anxious as anyone to get these things open,” Curry said, referring to shuttered businesses.
One issue of particular interest in Northeast Florida is the vacation rental industry, shuttered since March.
Curry’s team expected movement on that weeks ago, and it didn’t happen. Could Friday in Jacksonville bring change, however?
72 comments
Frankie M.
May 14, 2020 at 2:30 pm
The Governor disclaimed any advance announcement in response to reporters’ questions, claiming to “march to the beat of [his] own drummer.”
Come on Ronnie we all know that’s not true. You march to the beat of a guy whose name rhymes with drumpf.
Sherry Davis
May 17, 2020 at 2:22 pm
Please please please do not enter phase 2. We shouldn’t have entered even phase 1. The economy will not flourish it will die. Businesses will still close because people are still dying and getting sick and will sue the companies! Opening things up at 50 percent or at all is NOT social distancing!!!just because our children are bored we are thinking about opening schools where they can get sick or die?!!people hug when they meet up etc, this is not social distancing.
Jeri
May 18, 2020 at 10:36 am
You are a moron
Craig
May 18, 2020 at 7:33 pm
YEP! I agree.. Ditto on that one..
Marilyn
May 20, 2020 at 6:46 pm
It is despicable how La. people are being treated! Not ALL of La. has been bad!!!!!!
Susan
May 28, 2020 at 7:32 pm
It takes one to know one!!!!
morstar
May 19, 2020 at 10:37 am
Sherry, relax. The things we have found out about this virus is that it affects young people differently than it does older people. If we had the information that we have now we may not have closed our schools. If this virus affects the elderly and the medically vulnerable then a better process would have been to isolate those populations and get us to a safer place while not attempting to kill our economy. The sky is not falling. This is not the apocalypse. It is the a bad virus that the media is using to panic people into the doomsday scenario. It’s the Media Hurricane Effect! They are selling more ad time and not reporting the actual facts. Welcome back to the real world.
Rebecca Elam
May 22, 2020 at 12:54 pm
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/children/mis-c.html
Susan
May 28, 2020 at 7:37 pm
Great job, morster!!!
Couldn’t have said it better
DEBRA YOUNG
May 20, 2020 at 5:56 pm
Are you going to pay us all to stay at home. Should we all stay at home or only when it doesnt affect you. Do you want all the health care workers to stay at home or the food packing industry or the grocery stores or the drug stores or the home improvement stores. It is ok that they are up and running?
Susan
May 28, 2020 at 7:31 pm
You people need to read, The numbers are so lop sided.Oh so its OK for me to lose my job, my car, my house!!! Its doing more damage than good!!!!
Craig
May 18, 2020 at 7:31 pm
Praise the Lord! God is always in control <3
Sandra
May 19, 2020 at 1:42 pm
Oh really grow up. De Santis is being cautious and taking his cue from federal authorities and a diverse field of experts.
Susan
May 28, 2020 at 7:28 pm
YES!!! Thank God he does!!!!
Dana
May 14, 2020 at 3:17 pm
Say goodbye to the economy. How stupid can you get? Opening up schools, bars & gyms is by no means – social distancing. We need tracing & testing. Florida is underreporting it’s death tolls, as directed by DeSantis, so we won’t know what’s really going on. He can paint any picture he wants, just like his buddy Trump, but when the death toll, continues to escalate, Floridians will react.
The country now has 1,441,055 people infected & 86,098 dead.
In Florida what we do KNOW is: 43,502 people are infected & 1,876 dead.
We need to slow down and stop the spread of this virus. So far, it continues to spread and kill EVERY day in every state. We need to continue to SOCIAL DISTANCE. People are still scared to leave their homes, go to restaurants, stores etc. Good luck with continuing to open up.
James Maney
May 14, 2020 at 5:53 pm
You are totally wrong. We can’t destroy our economy sending millions into despair to save a few thousand the vast majority already on death’s door from something else. When the government handouts come to an end there will be millions going bankrupt and homeless. Children will suffer. Why intentionally do that when a return to work would avoid all this. By the way no one is forcing you to do anything. You can stay home as long as you want.
It’s wrong to force someone to stay home lose their job, life savings, and children’s future.
Wake up jackass
Dana
May 14, 2020 at 7:20 pm
I’m glad you think 1,876 is nothing. Florida is the state that holds the most elders of all, so it makes sense. However, we have 43,502 people infected, that we know about. STOP believing the crap they are SPINNING. This virus effects EVERYONE. Any of these old people can spread this virus to you. I was at the supermarket yesterday, 2 elders were in line – not wearing masks, my friend asked them why – their answer was “I’m going to die anyway.” We answered “You can spread it to us.” It’s common decency to wear masks. People aren’t even doing that here. Young people are dying, people in their 50’s in Miami-Dade, etc., they are all over. It’s not about today, it’s about tomorrow and the next. If it doesn’t happen now, it can happen later – if we are not smart about how we are opening up the state NOW. We all want to get back to NORMAL and make $ again. That’s the idea. No one wants to isolate & be home. But we want to be safe and not spread the virus, get others sick and die. No one is forcing anyone to do anything. Just saying that if we don’t do this right, we will fail, as will the economy and we will be back at square one – come now or in the Fall. By the way, NEVER CALL ANY ONE A JACK ASS!!! I COULD CALL YOU NAMES, BUT I WON’T STOOP TO YOUR LEVEL, IT’S BENEATH ME.
Eddie
May 14, 2020 at 9:24 pm
1,876 out of a population of 22 million equates to .00008% of the population of the state. Statistically speaking, .00008% basically is nothing.
Also you said we need to “stop the spread of the virus” but if you go and read literally all of the medical literature, stay at home was never meant to stop the spread of the virus but instead to flatten the cure so that everyone got the virus over time instead of everyone getting it at once and overloading the hospitals.
Just like your example of the elderly people in line in front of you, it should be clear by now that large numbers of people are not concerned about getting the virus. You may not like that, you may not agree with them and you may even think they are selfish but you will not change their behavior. The sooner everyone comes to terms with the fact that we can not control other peoples behavior, the better off everyone will be. Attempting to force behavior compliance will not work and only cause more resistance.
If you are worried about getting covid from the elderly people in the store not wearing masks then stay at home, order your groceries online and have them delivered to your house. Modify your behavior instead of attempting to modify the behavior of others.
Dana
May 14, 2020 at 10:33 pm
What I said what that ALL people get infected by this virus, not just the elderly. This is a global epidemic. What is so hard to understand?
The countries that beat this virus are:
Taiwan, – daily temperature checks, symptom checks,
physical distancing & quarantine , social distancing
South Korea – contact tracing, quarantine & social distancing
Canada – testing, PPE, social distancing,
Georgia – test, tracing, quarantine, social distancing
Iceland – test, tracing, quarantine, social distancing
(Iceland will test people who travel to the country, moving forward).
This is what we need to do. They had to suffer economically, in order to achieve getting rid of this monster. The reason is because they KNEW the virus was coming & they took action, listened to the scientists & invested $ in PPE and testing.
Where was our GOVERNMENT? Enough said.
Go out with out your mask, don’t social distance, go shopping, go to a restaurant, go to a crowded restaurant, go to your crowded office, do whatever you want. Your choice, your life.
GOOD LUCK!!!
Eddie
May 14, 2020 at 11:34 pm
1,876 out of a population of 22 million equates to .00008% of the population of the state. Statistically speaking, .00008% basically is nothing. Since you skipped right over that figure I thought I would give you a second chance to respond.
Daryl
May 19, 2020 at 10:11 am
Just a correction. The percentage is actually .0085. You need to always multiply your result by 100 to get a percentage. It’s still a small percent but huge difference from what you presented.
morstar
May 19, 2020 at 11:00 am
Sometimes it’s hard Eddie to get people to stop being led by untruths. I made the same point before I read your stat. Those willing to actually read and listen can find the truth. Part of that truth is that we are not getting the full story.
Joe
May 15, 2020 at 5:21 pm
I disagree. The proof is in the pudding. I live in the most populated county per capita and I do not know anyone personally who is sick. The states that still have their residents on lock down are doing this for political reasons. The media has scared everyone into thinking this is bigger then it is. Look at the steps that lead up to the demise of the Jews in Nati Germany. Small steps, over a long time and before you know it, you are on a box car to a concentration camp. Not saying that will happen tomorrow or to this extreme, but people are giving up there rights over fear, not using logic and common sense.
Look at New York State for example, 19.5 mil people, 325,000 Covid cases, 26K deaths. Florida, 22 mil people, 40,000 cases, 1670 deaths.
The Illinois Governor admitted that people who died over other causes, but also had covid where all labeled as covid deaths. This will inflate the numbers.
Ask yourself this..why are we allowed to cram into a Publix or Walmart or Homedepot or even a Pinch a Penny, but all the small business are shut down and we are not allowed to assemble at church? Can we not social distance at church, just like any other place? Its a clear violation of our Constitution rights.
There are many police officers online speaking up on how what is being done now is a slippery slope and illegal, just search the internet. Also, personal friends of mine, nurses, have no work, some are furloughed.
Think for yourselves people.
You are doing the right thing Governor.
Curt Coulter
May 15, 2020 at 5:55 pm
Dana, have you been tested?
Scott Christ
May 15, 2020 at 10:01 am
The same amount of people will die if you open slow or fast. Kind of like ripping off a band aide (with worse consequences) Protect the vulnerable and everyone else move on. The virus won’t be eradicated by staying at home. But businesses will be, as well as those committing suicide due to stay at home orders. Who should die the emotionally weak or the physically weak. In Florida 80,000 plus people a year are hospitalized for heart disease and 20% of the deaths in Florida are from that same disease. Are they closing burger king or greasy spoons, taking bacon off the shelves. NO Lets move on this is just another disease in our world.
Jake Labrador
May 15, 2020 at 3:33 pm
Well, exactly are people going to eat if this lockdown continues? There is not a money tree growing in Washington. The latest proposed stimulus bill is 3 Trillion dollars, which is $8,550.00 for every man, woman and child in the US. The money will have to paid back by future generations.
No one is forcing you to leave the shelter of your home.
Mike
May 15, 2020 at 3:34 pm
Yawn. Drama city here
Frank J Falcone
May 24, 2020 at 2:37 am
I just want to know how it started and who is responsible for this and if we do know why is nothing happening to them for this or are we waiting to see
Bmed
May 15, 2020 at 8:52 pm
For someone on the front line testing nursing homes all over the state and working in healthcare (multiple Hosp).. And who is well versed in virology (worked in a bio lab) I’m going to call you out as a liar!
Bryan
May 18, 2020 at 8:48 pm
If you truly worked in healthcare you’d know the surge never came and the hospitals are asking nurses and care managers to take unpaid leave. Never have there been more empty beds than now.
morstar
May 19, 2020 at 10:56 am
Using your numbers Dana, that’s 43,502 people infected in a state of nearly 22,000,000 people. The death toll is not very high as a percentage of the population. Yes, it is a bad virus! That doesn’t mean that we need to kill our economy. If the health community had good information upon the beginning of the outbreak we could have saved more lives. And if Governor Cuomo did not make a decision to close nursing homes and force them to keep infected patients within those facilities, the death toll would be significantly lower.
I am not putting blame on Gov. Cuomo, it’s just a process that the health community did not understand completely at the time of the outbreak. China is to blame for that. But if I say these things then you assume there is a political agenda, just as many of the responses here.
Here’s something to consider. Do you think it is coincidence that a generic drug that costs about $12 per prescription is being considered ineffective even though many doctors have anecdotal evidence of its success while a new drug with new patents and rushed through performance evaluations is considered safe even though its costs will be hundreds of dollars per dose?
Let’s not even get into the “race for a vaccine.” Look at the pharmaceutical stocks. That’s real data.
Dana
May 19, 2020 at 5:09 pm
The number of infected people is now at 46,944 (that is what we know of, because we aren’t testing enough). DeSantis decided Florida had enough testing but, of course, healthcare experts disagree. In Florida, we now have 2,052 dead. Remember, DeSantis has stopped reporting numbers. The number of deaths across the country keeps escalating, it’s early in the day, at the moment it’s: 93,169. The point is, the virus is going to keep spreading. Nobody said we have to kill the economy, but we have to be smart about how we open, we don’t want to be in the same place as where we were at the start of this. Every life matters. Before the end of this week we will reach 1MM people dead.
Jim
May 14, 2020 at 4:10 pm
Please lift the rental ban or give us an explanation of why hotels, resorts, and timeshares are ok, but rentals aren’t. I’ve heard ZERO justification for this. Thanks.
Kathy
May 14, 2020 at 4:20 pm
Why can’t we open our rental property??? Hotels are open . We have the same cleaning company that clean the Hotels on our beach ! We are losing money due to cancellations. We have to turn people down who want to stay in our condo. We are paying mortgages, taxes, association fees and utilities. We NEED our rental income!!!!
Melissa
May 14, 2020 at 4:29 pm
Daycares have been open this whole time!?! That’s a lie! Maybe home daycares that have a 6:1 ratio stayed open but not city and community child care centers. Those centers in Pinellas County have said they will not open for summer camp until the 10:1 ratio is lifted because they don’t have the staff for that ratio and/or they don’t have the space. We are two weeks away from official summer and I have no idea if my child will have a place to go. You can’t open up everything else and have employers expecting parents back at work but have no viable options!
Valerie Sprieser
May 14, 2020 at 4:58 pm
Way too soon…especially for bars and gyms! This will just add fire to the corono virus spread! Keep wearing those masks, social distancing, washing hands and sanitizers. We are in the first inning but Desantis is acting we won the game! God help us!😱
Rich obrien
May 14, 2020 at 11:03 pm
If you are scared, stay home. Let the rest of us live our lives.
Lily Sanders
May 15, 2020 at 6:34 am
Exactly this. People who wish to live their lives and face the virus ought to be able to make that choice. If you have an immunodeficiency or are elderly you can stay home if you’d like. There is no need to force this upon the healthy who need to work and support their family. I am out every single day doing deliveries for groceries and social distancing is a total sham. No one is doing it. The elderly who I deliver to in Sun City aren’t doing it. They’re on their golf carts and having group parties. We need to reopen Florida and get back to business.
Denise
May 14, 2020 at 4:59 pm
Why are you not opening Vacation Rentals? Did the hotel lobbyists pay you extra? There is no good reason that you would open hotels, motels and resorts and leave us little guys bleed a slow death of not being able to afford keeping them.
Davida
May 14, 2020 at 6:21 pm
Just curious, has the governors mansion opened up again? If not, why?
Dana
May 14, 2020 at 7:38 pm
Sure enough, DeSantis will open Phase three sooner than it should be. This phase which will call on domestic and international travelers to flock to Florida. Beaches and other tourism spots should have little restrictions.
Phase four, the final stage (will happen much too quickly) in the task force’s plan to re-open the state and something akin to what the state looked like two months ago, will keep Florida the top travel destination for tourists.
Prioritizing industries where social distancing is impossible is dangerous, but DeSantis says Florida can’t afford to wait weeks and months to resume activity. It will also concentrate on promoting Florida’s food industry.
The economy is screwed anyway you slice it. However, if people keep getting infected & dying, things will continue to get worse and business will never be the same.
The key is to test and trace. The answer, of course is a vaccine. We may get a reprieve, but this is sure to happen again.
This sucks.
.
Rich obrien
May 14, 2020 at 11:07 pm
If you are scared, stay home. Let the rest of us live our lives.
If you respected the constitution and bill of rights, you would agree.
But your past comments showed that you want to control other people.
Dana
May 14, 2020 at 11:34 pm
Obviously, my notes went over your head.
You can’t or won’t understand the depth of this global pandemic & it’s your problem.
This is not a matter of the constitution & the bill of rights. Politics needs to be put aside.
This is about lives, not about control.
God bless and be well.
This conversation is over.
Eddie
May 14, 2020 at 11:51 pm
When you said “This is not a matter of the Constitution & the Bill of Rights” you said all you needed to say in order to understand your position. You think the Constitution and the Bill of Rights only exist in good times and can be ignored when it suits your needs or when you are afraid. This is not about lives, it is all about control. People like you are the problem. You are just to blinded by your own ignorance that you are unable to see it. But unlike you, I respect your right to believe, speak and live your life how you wish to live it. I will not have the police come to your door and arrest you if you refuse to leave your house and go to work. If only the paranoid control freaks such as yourself would show the rest of us the same respect.
Twice you have said that opening “will keep Florida the top travel destination for tourists” so if everyone feels like you do then there will be very few tourists right? If Florida does stay a top destination, that means that a lot of people are ok with resuming their lives right? But hey, for a control freak like you I am sure that will induce a sever bout of cognitive dissonance.
Stomp your feet and throw your temper tantrum as you walk away and declare this conversation is over. It fits your personality so well.
morstar
May 19, 2020 at 11:16 am
Dana, it is a matter of the Constitution. We are free people. The government gave us direction. Apparently, most of us did a good job of following instructions. It now comes down to oppression, the government forcing us to do things that violate our freedoms. Take the churches for example. Most of them have been responsible in how they have dealt with the crisis. But now it is time for us to get back to church. We can do it in a responsible manner. We are not little lambs that need the government to enter houses of worship and force us to be compliant to means that are not the least restrictive means. Those words are used in Constitutional cases where the government is taking away guaranteed rights. it is a balancing test that most states would fail due to the over burdensome restrictions.
MikeL
May 16, 2020 at 9:24 pm
Dana…If if if if Do you make these stories up as you go or what? Hydroxychloroquine and antibiotics is the cure but the problem is that you are getting fed the vaccine solution. They dont want to admit that hydroxychloroquine works because its cheap and they want to get rich off of this. You want to wear a mask and isolate, have at it. Its your right. Here is a prediction. We are all going to die and there is nothing you can do to stop that. You can lengthen your stay but the end result is the same no matter what you do. I am 64. What I look at is quality of life. If I want to hug people, shake hands, hang out with big parties of people, or stay home enjoying a quiet night. Its my choice. That is what makes my quality of life worth being here. People have lost everything they had over this. Figures of deaths from covid are a farce. The test results are bogus and dont differentiate from any strain of covid. You will test positive if you have EVER had a covid virus. H1N1 was accurate. I dont trust Fauci and Gates any farther than I can throw them. And last but not least….I will not let this government ram the thought of this being the new norm down my throat!
Dana
May 16, 2020 at 10:34 pm
Good for you!
https://twitter.com/IAmJohnAles/status/1259317497867587591
TampaDude
May 21, 2020 at 8:13 pm
https://twitter.com/ninoboxer/status/1259584130171322370
B Wise
May 14, 2020 at 9:13 pm
Please open up the short term Vacation Rentals up! Nobody can give an answer to why Hotels are open and not a private home. Makes no sense!
Julie
May 14, 2020 at 10:01 pm
This is wonderful news. Great job Ron DeSantis and all you’ve done! Anyone in this feed who is fearful – Please for all our sakes, stay home & study the truth about this virus. There’s a TON you can do to improve your immune system & decrease your risk. Fear is irrational once you understand it & all you can do about it.
Chris W
May 14, 2020 at 11:55 pm
Great job Governor DeSantis. You’re right when the news media is so often wrong and breeds on fear. I think you are doing a great job and am thankful for your leadership. We could be living in a nightmare like Illinois, Michigan or Pennsylvania. Also, we are so lucky that you became our Governor. Can you imagine if the other guy had won? Keep on doing your best, don’t let the naysayers ruin working peoples lives.
David smith
May 15, 2020 at 8:16 am
Wow when we say a small percentage do you not realize that not enough people have been tested and how many have never been reporting…..this is all being unreported so we can open the economy not one life is worth any amount of money not one life….this will hit us hard this fall and we will not be ready again…..one person is stopping this I want say his name cause he is disgusting and when we can’t get out and vote in November……we will have this one person smiling because this is his plan….YOU PEOPLE BETTER WAKE UP
Bryan
May 18, 2020 at 8:53 pm
If more tests were actually done the % if infections would fall even faster. This is nothing more than a political virus and it’s now being called for what it is.
Megan Porter
May 15, 2020 at 8:37 am
Please keep the short term rentals closed. They kill neighborhoods, affordable housing and do not belong in residential neighborhoods. They usually boast of how many bodies can be crammed into a 2-3 bedroom house. If the Governor manages to kill these things off, I will vote for him for any office for the rest of his career.
morstar
May 19, 2020 at 11:23 am
Megan, I’m with you on the short term rental industry. They are not vacations homes they are hotels in residential neighborhoods. We need a realistic solution to this issue. So far people like Rep. Jamie Grant and others have just sold out to the industry. They don’t care about neighborhoods.
Gvillemom
May 15, 2020 at 9:23 am
Meanwhile, in Gainesville Florida, at Possum Creek skatepark, the city dumped truck loads of mulch all over the skate park! There was never huge crowds there, maybe 5-10 kids at most, skating on skateboards away from each other. Now, they dumped mulch that is going to ruin the concrete and clog the drain in the skate pool. Talks of filling with sand today as the kids and residents removed the mulch for fear of the impending damage it is going to cause! Imagine that, kids, outside in the sunshine…..The Mayor and City Commissioner’s should be ashamed of theirselves. Why not just close the park back down and put the barricade back up?
Kae
May 15, 2020 at 11:01 am
Governor Desantis, please EXTEND the SAFER-AT-HOME order until there is adequate testing, supplies, and staff available to handle another COVID-19 surge!
How is it that companies are allowed to use their OWN easing into Phase 1 practices, when the two weeks of no new COVID-19 cases and other criteria as outlined by Health officials and CDC, have NOT been met. Allowing the re-opening of some businesses, knowing there is going to be more outbreaks, and more deaths during this National pandemic, is Genocide. Please don’t allow the pressures of the community interfere in making the best decisions possible, just like you would for your own Family.
Companies are now demanding staff’s return to the office (although telework has been previously in place), causing extreme fear and anxiety over our health and safety. Working in an office setting full of people, is NOT practicing social distancing.
Government assistance is needed to help the US citizens, so that decisions as to LIVELIHOOD and LIFE should NOT have to be made!! One percent of a Life lost is too many!
Chris
May 15, 2020 at 11:43 am
WHAT TIME IS THE ANNOUCEMENT GOING TO BE?
Liz Frohling
May 15, 2020 at 12:05 pm
I am anxiously awaiting the approval to open Condos and vacation rentals as I sit at my desk turning business away left and right while hotels, motels and inns can reap the rewards. I run a condominium hotel, each unit has it’s own private entrance, there are no common areas and no elevator. Each unit has everything you need to live without having to leave for anything, yet I am not allowed to open. Hotels, Inns Bed and Breakfasts which have guests mingling are at full capacity where I live and work (for now). The DBPR who has the authority to strip me of our rental license but yet not one single person in that office knows what is going on. They just read me the executive order that was written back in March? I am so angry and confused and shortly I, along with my employees will no longer have a job to come back too. Shame on whomever is making these ridiculous decisions.
morstar
May 19, 2020 at 11:29 am
Liz where is your business?
michael
May 15, 2020 at 1:32 pm
yep, not true. way to spread false info
Cliff
May 15, 2020 at 1:56 pm
The states decisions were supposed to be data driven. Now the data shows rising cases again. There was never any date driven response only political pressure
Rob
May 15, 2020 at 3:21 pm
When is Massage Therapy going to be reopened?
Dawn
May 15, 2020 at 4:01 pm
Where do indoor recreational facilities fall in the re-opening phases? Facilities such as dance studios, bowling alley’s, putt-putt, arcades, etc. Not asking or hoping that they open sooner or later, just don’t know where these businesses fall. If they serve food, are they considered restaurants? Are dance studio classes considered gyms?
Nassor
May 15, 2020 at 7:25 pm
It’s a catch 22…on one hand the movement of the dollar chain is vital to stimulating the economy-for example a person goes to a restaurant and pays their bill, then leaves a tip for the waitress, the waitress uses the tip money to catch an Uber home, the Uber driver uses the money to fill up his/her gas tank. The buck keeps moving. With a person at home cooking every day the buck stops circulating. We now have meat shortages too which is a cause for concern due wholly to the COVID-19 too on the restaurant level of the equation, so prices will be higher due to supply and demand. Many restaurants and businesses especially small ones won’t be able to reopen as it is. From a health standpoint I do believe that it should be up to the person and families to be aware and use caution socially and not be confined to their homes. My main concern is the upcoming depression and the implications it will have on already overwhelmed unemployment offices, and the inability of citizens to afford rent or mortgages, etc. The worst is yet to come…
Marilyn
May 16, 2020 at 11:54 am
Has anyone heard yet if he is allowing condos, etc. to be rented yet? I heard him say mayors, etc. need to send in what would be done to keep people safe if rentals allowed, and then he would let them know if ok! He said since the panhandle had not had many covid cases, seemed would be able to open soon! We have a place rented last week in May! Hope it won’t be cancelled!
Lisa
May 16, 2020 at 6:10 pm
Thank you for keeping the rentals that are in residential neighborhoods closed down. Our stores are still experiencing shortages and can’t keep up with local demand. In addition, our vulnerable elderly neighbors need to be protected. Opening up party-house rentals puts the high-risk locals in danger just getting their mail or taking out their trash.
Hotels are in commercially zoned areas. Please keep our residential neighborhoods protected during these times while we figure out how to best protect our neighbors.
jeff
May 17, 2020 at 6:21 pm
“In danger by checking mail and putting out the trash?”
Seriously?
How?
All the peeps in the “party house” will be watching for peeps headed to the curbs and run over and breathe all over ‘em?
Get real
Jeri
May 18, 2020 at 10:39 am
We
Jay D
May 19, 2020 at 10:06 pm
Well that virus was out way before time the media will fill your head with alot that doesn’t make sense just gotta be safe socialism is whats trying to be passed stay woke ppl the government has something up there sleeve
Brian
May 20, 2020 at 8:02 am
Ok. Let’s get this straight. We can go to the supermarket and touch something that many people have touched and left on the shelf. We can go to a restaurant that is now allowed up to 50% occupancy and sit at the same table and eat with the same utensils as thousands of others. You can go to the gas station and touch the same gas nozzle as thousands of others. You can now go to the gym and touch the same equip as thousands of other sweaty people. This list goes on and on. If you’re supposedly safe doing all this, why not let the other businesses open up with restrictions too. They can’t survive staying closed forever. These business loans and stimulus checks aren’t coming forever. Collecting unemployment right now is like pulling teeth. If all you folks who think it’s to soon to reopen, than stay home. No one is forcing you to go out. Don’t go to the grocery store either. You will get sick. Don’t go get gas, you will get sick. By the way, how many hands touched that money you are handling or touched those buttons on credit card scans?
Joe
May 26, 2020 at 4:53 pm
You can hide in your closet with your Lysol and toilet paper until Christmas, but we need to kick start our economy now. Don’t hold millions hostage because a small portion of the population buys into the gloom and doom mainstream media. Governor DeSantis and President Trump are balancing need for public safety without pushing us into the next great depression.
This is a plot to get Joe Biden in the White House and more Democrats elected in my opinion. If Biden gets in office and declares victory against covid, he will open economy and take credit for saving economy and protecting us from those evil heartless Republicans and greedy business owners who want to kill your grandparents.
In this crazy time, the meaning of a hero has gone from a brave person who sacrifices their life for others to simply showing up for work and not collecting stimulus checks. Democrats are buying votes with these handouts, which are actually expensive loans that won’t be paid back for 100 years by future generations.
Heck, let’s borrow another 12 trillion to make the lock down last until the election!
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