Inslee tightens rules for restaurants, bars and gyms, and extends eviction moratorium
Gov. Jay Inslee announced new restrictions under the state’s Safe Start plan Thursday that affect restaurants, bars, gyms, weddings and funerals, movie theaters and other services.
He also announced an extension of the statewide eviction moratorium, and said he expects to further extend the pause on counties advancing phases under the Safe Start plan.
Also Thursday, Secretary of Health John Wiesman announced an expansion of the statewide mask mandate to include common spaces beyond those in public.
“At the moment, the only effective tool against this pandemic is to change some of our practices, and we need to do that,” Inslee said at a virtual press conference. “Unfortunately we know this, the rate of transmission has been increasing around the state. Our suppression of this virus is not at the level it needs to be to continue to allow us to continue to allow more activity.”
He said nearly 1,500 Washingtonians have died due to complications of COVID-19, more than 50,000 people in the state have tested positive for the disease, and more than 5,000 have been hospitalized.
“Fewer, shorter, and safer interactions are absolutely crucial in this fight,” he said.
If going out is necessary, he said it’s important to keep it quick, at a social distance, and use face coverings.
The changes to the Safe Start plan that affect businesses take effect July 30. Those that affect weddings and funerals take effect Aug. 6.
Indoor service at bars will be closed, he said. Taverns, breweries, wineries and distilleries are defined as bars, even if they serve food.
Restaurants will not be able to serve alcohol after 10 p.m. Indoor dining will be restricted to members of the same household. To dine with someone outside your household, you’ll need to sit outside. Game areas of restaurants, such as pool tables, darts and video games, will be closed until Phase 4. The size of tables in Phase 3 will be limited to five people and the occupancy will be limited to 50 percent inside.
Ceremonies for weddings and funerals will be allowed, but receptions will be prohibited, the governor said. The maximum capacity for those indoor events will be 20 percent or 30 people, he said, whichever is smaller. That’s as long as social distancing of 6 feet can be maintained between members of different households.
Weddings and funerals scheduled to happen in the next two weeks will be allowed to go forward under the previous guidance, he said.
In Phase 2, five people are allowed at a time for indoor fitness services, not including staff. That counts for gyms, fitness studios, indoor pools, ice rinks, volleyball courts and tennis facilities. Those services are limited to private training or small group instruction. Fitness centers in Phase 3 counties will be limited to 25 percent occupancy, and group classes will be limited to 10 people, not including an instructor.
Entertainment and recreation facilities such as mini golf, bowling alleys and arcades are prohibited from opening until Phase 4, Inslee said. That applies to indoor facilities, he said. It doesn’t apply to outdoor batting cages, for example.
Indoor card rooms are prohibited from opening until Phase 4.
Movie theaters will be limited to 25 percent occupancy in Phase 3.
Evictions and other topics
The statewide eviction moratorium will be extended through Oct. 15, Inslee said.
“We expect landlords and tenants to remain in communication,” he said. “... If you can pay rent, we obviously need you to pay rent.”
The proclamation does not allow landlords to harass or intimidate tenants, the governor said.
Secretary of Health John Wiesman joined Inslee on the call.
He said as of Saturday the statewide mask order will apply to any common spaces, not just publicly accessible ones. That means masks must be worn in places such as elevators, hallways and shared spaces in apartments and condo buildings. That includes university housing, hotels, and congregate settings such as assisted living facilities and adult family homes.
Masks are already required in public indoor places, and outdoors when 6 feet of social distancing is not possible.
“We’re losing the momentum we had during the early months of the response,” Wiesman said. “... We must dig back in to regain control.”
Asked by a reporter about reports that the Trump administration had sent a customs and border patrol tactical unit to Seattle as they did in Portland, Inslee said: “The best information I can give you is I had my staff call directly to the Department of Homeland Security and we’re advised as recently as about 15 minutes ago that there are not, repeat, not security forces deployed to the Seattle region.”
The governor also said the mayor of Seattle was told by Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf “there had not been a surge of officers sent to Seattle, and that before that would happen he would be in communication with the mayor’s office,” Inslee said.
Later Thursday Inslee posted on Twitter: “Now we are hearing a different story where they have a limited number of agents who are in the area on standby, if needed. I am concerned that anything could aggravate the situation, and in their rush they are not listening to,” Seattle’s mayor and police chief. “It is critical that the administration only provide what is needed by state and local officials, and do not engage unless asked.”
Asked by another reporter at the press conference about whether he planned to extend the pause on counties advancing phases under the Safe Start plan, which was set end to end July 28, the governor said: “Yes, I see no way that that would be changed given the infection rate that we’re experiencing.”
This story was originally published July 23, 2020 at 2:45 PM with the headline "Inslee tightens rules for restaurants, bars and gyms, and extends eviction moratorium."
