— from the Office of Governor Jay Inslee —
Gov. Jay Inslee released a statement tonight that further expands protections against COVID-19.
Given the explosion of COVID-19 in our state and globally, I will sign a statewide emergency proclamation tomorrow to temporarily shut down restaurants, bar, and entertainment and recreational facilities.
Restaurants will be allowed to provide take-out and delivery services but no in-person dining will be permitted.
The ban will not apply to grocery stores and pharmacies. Other retail outlets will have reduced occupancy.
Additionally, all gatherings with over 50 participants are prohibited and all gatherings under 50 participants are prohibited unless previously announced criteria for public health and social distancing are met.
These are very difficult decisions, but hours count here and very strong measures are necessary to slow the spread of the virus. I know there will be significant economic impacts to all our communities and we are looking at steps to help address those challenges.
Tonight, after consultations with me and with the Department of Health, King County announced that they will be taking these actions immediately. King County has been the hotbed of this outbreak and has the largest population center in the state. I have spoken to Executive Dow Constantine and I applaud their decision to act quickly. We will do a joint media announcement with more details tomorrow morning.
**If you are reading theOrcasonian for free, thank your fellow islanders. If you would like to support theOrcasonian CLICK HERE to set your modestly-priced, voluntary subscription. Otherwise, no worries; we’re happy to share with you.**
Seems typically incomplete governmental action, to me.
If you close down the restaurants, how will they pay their rent?
To continue the action, there has to be a decree to landlords, to provide a rent holiday that lasts as long as the restaurant closure does.
And to complete the action, there has to be a property-tax holiday of equal length, so as not to beggar the landlords.
And then, I suppose, there also has to be similar rent and mortgage-payment holidays for people who have been laid-off from work, and temporary relief for their landlords too.
See, Mr. Governor, it ain’t quite as easy as you thought it was.
A few weeks to a month of wisdom might save years of sorrow. seems a small price to pay, even though economically, this will hurt the poor and middle class the most. i’m sure the Fed can be willing to just print more money, like it did for big banks still raking in trillions in profit; right? Or people with more will help those with less, right? Or we will all pitch in to help each other, right? It’s happening – so many are stepping up now in communities everywhere. Thank you, Orcas community.
the landlords who can absolutely afford to, can show their generosity by reducing or forgiving rent for a month or two -or offering FAIR and non-exploitave work trade, like we used to do in “the old days” before 1989. I think Gov. Inslee did the right thing, given what he had to work with – which was too little too late by the feds. He declared a state of emergency on Feb. 29.
Like it or not, we’re at “mitigation” – meaning federal action was not swift enough, which means the virus is harder to monitor or contain. So, let’s just all do and be our best! I am heartened when i come on here and read how much people and organizations are doing for each other here. Thank you, Orcas community.