Museums, libraries, arcades, bowling alleys, aquariums and shooting ranges are some of the latest businesses that will be allowed to reopen starting July 2, Gov. Phil Murphy said, with fitness centers on an extremely limited capacity.
That comes as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to slow down, at least in New Jersey, prompting a slew of other reopenings ahead of the July 4 weekend – like indoor dining and casinos – in addition to those announced by Murphy on Wednesday.
Amusement parks, including rides on the Jersey Shore boardwalk, can reopen at 50 percent capacity on July 2. But, Murphy added Wednesday that patrons hoping to return to indoor entertainment centers will have to wait. Movie theaters, performing arts centers, concert venues and nightclubs must remain closed.
Adventure Aquarium in Camden. – AARON HOUSTON
Gyms and fitness centers have to stay closed, except for individual or family-unit, appointment-only training sessions, the governor added.
“As with other indoor activities, we must remain extra vigilant about this virus when we are indoors,” Murphy said Wednesday at his daily COVID-19 press briefing in Trenton. “We know that it is easier to contract the coronavirus in an indoor environment.”
New Jersey Transit will resume full weekday service for its trains and light rail beginning on July 6—a step taken “before ridership returns to higher levels for businesses and offices” that “come back online.” The move would provide the transit agency with “the runway that it needs to properly communicate the social distancing protocols among its commuters.”
New guidance will be released in the coming days, Murphy said, as to the restrictions to the new reopenings. But they will, at a minimum, require face coverings for staff and customers, frequent sanitization, and 6-foot social distancing.
Earlier this month, the governor rolled back restrictions on outdoor dining, barbershops, and hair and nail salons, also on a limited basis. He also lifted the state’s stay-at-home order, and has gradually expanded the cap on how many people can be at an outdoor gathering.
