RICHMOND, Va. - Most of Virginia will enter Phase Two on Friday, June 5.
Based on data, Gov. Northam said he feels comfortable allowing most of Virginia to move into Phase Two but northern Virginia and Richmond will remain in Phase One since that was delayed for those areas.
Accomack County was also delayed and thanks to testing Northam thinks the outbreak there is under control. Accomack County will be entering Phase Two June 5 as well.
Along with business guidelines below, Phase Two also allows for gatherings of up to 50 people with social distancing and requires a face mask in public places for people ages 10 and up unless exercising, eating, drinking or for medical reasons.
Click here for the entire document of Virginia regulations.
Here's a look at what is allowed in Phase Two for businesses:
Food and beverage:
Restaurants, Dining Establishments, Food Courts, Breweries, Microbreweries, Distilleries, Wineries and Tasting Rooms may operate delivery, take-out, and indoor and outdoor dining and beverage services, provided such businesses comply with the Guidelines for All Business Sectors.
- Occupancy may not exceed the 50% of the lowest occupancy load on the certificate of occupancy, if applicable.
- All parties, whether seated together or across multiple tables, must be limited to 50 patrons or less.
- Tables at which dining parties are seated must be positioned six feet apart from other tables. If tables are not movable, parties must be seated at least six feet apart.
- No self-service of food (except beverages), including condiments. Condiments should be removed from tables and dispensed by employees upon the request of a customer. Buffets must be staffed by servers. For self-service beverage areas, use beverage equipment designed to dispense by a contamination-free method.
- Bar seats and congregating areas of restaurants must be closed to patrons except for through-traffic. Non-bar seating in a bar area may be used for customer seating as long as a minimum of six feet is provided between parties at tables.
- Employees working in customer-facing areas must wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
- A thorough cleaning and disinfection of frequently-contacted surfaces must be conducted every 60 minutes during operation. Tabletops, chairs, and credit card/bill folders must be cleaned in between patrons.
- If any such business cannot adhere to these requirements, it must close.
Farmers markets
Farmers markets may continue to operate, provided such businesses comply with the Guidelines for All Business Sectors and the sector-specific guidelines for farmers markets.
- On-site shopping is allowed, as long as physical distancing guidelines are followed. Configure operations to avoid congestion or congregation points.
- Employees and vendors in customer-facing areas must wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
- Vendors must supply hand sanitizer stations or hand washing stations for patrons and employees.
- A thorough cleaning and disinfection of frequently-contacted surfaces must be conducted.
- If any such business cannot adhere to these requirements, it must close
Non- essential retail
Any brick and mortar retail business not listed as essential previously may continue to operate, provided such business complies with the Guidelines for All Business Sectors and the sector-specific guidance for brick and mortar retail.
- Occupancy must be limited to no more than 50% of the lowest occupancy load on the certificate of occupancy.
- Employees working in customer-facing areas must wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
- If any such business cannot adhere to these requirements, it must close
Fitness and Exercise Facilities
Fitness centers, gymnasiums, recreation centers, sports facilities, and exercise facilities may reopen for indoor and outdoor activities, provided such businesses comply with the Guidelines for All Business Sectors and the sector-specific guidelines.
- Patrons, members, and guests must remain at least ten feet apart during all activities
- Instructors and all participants of group exercise and fitness classes must maintain at least ten feet of physical distancing between each other at all times.
- The total number of attendees (including both participants and instructors) in all group exercise and fitness classes cannot exceed the lesser of 30% of the minimum occupancy load on the certificate of occupancy or 50 patrons, members, and guests.
- Hot tubs, spas, splash pads, spray pools, and interactive play features must be closed.
- Outdoor and indoor swimming pools may be open for lap swimming, diving, exercise, and instruction only and must be limited to no more than three persons per lane with ten feet of physical distance per swimmer.
- Employees working in customer-facing areas are required to wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
- Employers must ensure cleaning and disinfection of shared equipment after each use.
- Facilities shall prohibit the use of any equipment that cannot be thoroughly disinfected between uses (e.g., climbing rope, exercise bands, etc.).
- Businesses must supply hand sanitizer stations or hand washing stations for patrons, members, and guests.
- If any such business cannot adhere to these requirements, it must close.
Personal Care and Personal Grooming Services
Beauty salons, barbershops, spas, massage centers, tanning salons, tattoo shops, and any other location where personal care or personal grooming services are performed may continue to operate, provided such businesses comply with the Guidelines for All Business Sectors and the sector-specific guidelines for personal care and personal grooming services.
- Occupancy may not exceed 50% of the lowest occupancy load on the certificate of occupancy with at least six feet of physical distancing between work stations and no more than two appointments per service provider at a time.
- Service providers and employees working in customer-facing areas must wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
- Provide face coverings for clients or ask that clients bring a face covering with them, which they must wear during the service. Limit services to only those that can be completed without clients removing their face covering.
- A thorough cleaning and disinfection of frequently-contacted surfaces must be conducted every 60 minutes in operations, while cleaning and disinfecting all personal care and personal grooming tools after each use. If that is not possible, such items must be discarded.
- If any such business cannot adhere to these requirements, it must close.
Campgrounds
Privately-owned campgrounds as defined in § 35.1-1 of the Code of Virginia may continue to operate, provided they comply with the Guidelines for All Business Sectors and the sector-specific guidelines for campgrounds.
- A minimum of 20 feet must be maintained between units for all lots rented for short-term stays of less than 14 nights (and not owned by individuals).
- Employees working in public-facing areas are required to wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
- It is recommended that campgrounds must strongly encourage customers to wear face coverings over their nose and mouth.
- The provision of hand washing in bath houses and sanitizing stations for guests and employees.
- If any such business cannot adhere to these requirements, it must close
Indoor Shooting Ranges
Indoor shooting ranges may operate, provided they comply with the following requirements.
- Occupancy must be limited to 50% of the lowest occupancy load on the certificate of occupancy with at least six feet of physical distancing between individuals at all times. Use every other lane to achieve six feet of physical distancing.
- Employees working in customer-facing areas are required to wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
- Perform thorough cleaning and disinfection of frequently-contacted surfaces every 60 minutes in operation, while disinfecting all equipment between each customer use and prohibiting the use of equipment that cannot be thoroughly disinfected.
- Either thoroughly clean shared or borrowed equipment in between uses, or only allow the use of personal equipment at the range.
- If any such indoor shooting range cannot adhere to these requirements, it must close.
Public Beaches
All public beaches as defined in § 10.1-705 of the Code of Virginia may remain open to individual and family recreational activity, in addition to exercise and fishing. All such public beaches, with the exception of the beaches in the City of Virginia Beach, must comply with the requirements below.
- Require beachgoers to practice physical distancing of at least six feet between each person unless they are with members of the same household.
- Prohibit gatherings of more than 50 people.
- Prohibit group sports, alcohol, tents, groupings of umbrellas, and other activities and items that attract gatherings.
- Prohibit entertainment and programming that generate gatherings.
- All common areas that encourage gatherings, such as pavilions, gazebos, playsets, and picnic areas must remain closed. This does not apply to fishing piers.
- Implement a cleaning schedule for all high-touch surfaces made of plastic or metal such as benches and railings that includes cleaning at least every two hours between the hours of 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.
- Establish, train, and deploy a team to educate and promote compliance with beach rules and refer cases of noncompliance to public safety personnel, if appropriate.
- Establish procedures for temporary beach closure or access limitations in the event of overcrowding.
- Ensure adequate personal protective equipment for all lifeguards.
- Perform a disinfectant-level cleaning of all public restrooms every two hours with an EPA-approved disinfectant by staff or volunteers trained to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance on cleaning and disinfecting.
- For chair and umbrella rental companies, require vendors to set up chairs and umbrellas for customers, maintaining at least six feet of distance between groups, and to clean equipment between rentals following Environmental Protection Agency and CDC guidelines on cleaning and disinfecting.
- Post signage at all public access points to the beaches and other “cluster prone” areas providing health reminders regarding physical distancing, gathering prohibitions, options for high risk individuals, and staying home if sick. Messaging must be specific to location.
- Locality shall provide daily metrics to its local health department to include beach closures, complaint incidents, police reports of violence related to enforcement, and number of reports of noncompliance to be submitted each Monday.
- All employees and contract workers must wear a cloth face covering when not able to practice physical distancing following CDC Use of Face Cloth Coverings guidance.
- Employees and contract workers must have access to soap and water or hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol, and locality should provide best hygiene practices to employees on a regular basis, including washing hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and practicing respiratory etiquette protocols.
- Locality shall require all employees and contract workers to take their temperature before reporting to work and direct such employees not to report to work if they have a fever of over 100.4 degrees, have experienced chills, or have been feverish in the last 72 hours.
Follow enhanced workplace safety best practices outlined in the Guidelines for All Business Sectors. Public beaches in the City of Virginia Beach may continue to operate provided activities on the public beaches are conducted in compliance with the requirements linked here and here.
Racetracks
Outdoor racetracks may remain open for racing events, provided such businesses comply with the Guidelines for All Business Sectors and the sector-specific guidelines for racetracks.
- The event must be held at locations with the ability to restrict access (i.e. barriers and gating that would preclude the general public from accessing the event).
- No tailgating and camping is allowed during these events, including staff or race participants.
- Entrances and exits must be staffed.
- No spectators or members of the public are permitted to attend the event. This includes owners, family (unless the guardian of a minor child), as well as outside vendors. Only individuals essential to the operation of the event are permitted to attend.
- All individuals must maintain at least six feet of physical distancing between themselves and other participants.
- Prior to each race event, participants must self-monitor their symptoms by taking their temperature to check for fever.
- No public-facing amenities will be provided, including concessions, food sales, merchandise sales, hospitality, or loitering on the property, or fan experiences
Click here for business guidelines on best practices in Phase Two.
