Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced Monday that his state is ready to implement the first phase of the Trump Administration’s plan to gradually end the coronavirus lockdown, and that movie theaters and restaurants will be allowed to reopen starting on April 27.
“Subject to the specific social distancing and sanitation mandates, theaters, private social clubs and restaurant dine-in services will be allowed to reopen” Kemp said. “By taking this measured action, we will get Georgians back to work safely, without undermining the progress we all have made in this battle against COVID-19.”
Kemp’s announcement comes less than a week after President Trump unveiled a three-phase plan to reopen businesses and loosen lockdown restrictions. The first phase advises vulnerable populations, such as the elderly and immunocompromised, to continue to shelter in place while general populations should continue social distancing practices and minimize non-essential travel. However, the plan also says that “sit-down dining, movie theaters, sporting venues, places of worship” can operate under “strict physical distancing protocols.” Elective surgeries can resume and gyms can open if they adhere to “strict physical distancing and sanitation protocols”
Gyms and hair & nail salons will also be allowed to reopen starting on April 24, while live performance venues, sporting events, bars and nightclubs will remain closed. Residents will have the shelter-in-place order lifted on April 30, though social distancing is still strongly advised.
Georgia has had nearly 19,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with 733 deaths, but Gov. Kemp claims that cases appear to be declining.
“I will say that, when we have more people moving around we probably will see our cases continue to go up, but we’re a lot better prepared for that than we were a month ago,” he said.
It is not immediately clear how many movie theaters in Georgia will take this opportunity to reopen. Those that do will not have any new, theatrically exclusive films to screen for at least the next three months as Hollywood studios have postponed the release of all major blockbusters through early July. In addition, cinemas are not expected to return to business as usual, as movie theater owners have told TheWrap that cinemas will have to reduce the number of tickets sold for each screening to allow for distance between moviegoers and that all auditoriums and public areas will have to undergo deep cleaning after each screening.
(Excerpt) Read more in: The Wrap