(Sara D. David/Stringer)
(RALEIGH, NC) North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper announced eased COVID-19 restrictions Wednesday, increasing occupancy capacity for many businesses and lifting the modified stay-at-home order.
“Today’s action is a show of confidence and trust, but we must remain cautious. People are losing their loved ones each day,” Cooper said in a press conference. “We must keep up our guard. Many of us are weary, but we cannot let the weariness win. Now is the time to put our strength and resilience to work so that we can continue to turn the corner and get through this.”
Lifting the modified stay-at-home will no longer require people to stay at home and businesses to close to the public between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. Alcohol sales will still have a curfew, but it will be pushed back two hours from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Cooper also announced the increased occupancy of many businesses that will be split into two categories: 30% capacity and 50% capacity.
Businesses that will have a 30% capacity limit while not exceeding 250 persons in indoor spaces include:
- Bars
- Meeting, reception, and conference spaces
- Lounges (including tobacco) and night clubs
- Indoor areas of amusement parks
- Movie theatres
- Entertainment facilities (e.g., bingo parlors, gaming establishments)
- Sports arenas and fields
- Venues
Businesses that will have a 50% capacity limit include:
- Restaurants
- Breweries, wineries, distilleries
- Fitness and physical activity facilities (e.g., gyms, bowling alleys, rock climbing facilities)
- Pools
- Museums and aquariums
- Retailers
- Outdoor areas of amusement parks
- Salons, personal sare, tattoo parlors
“Keep wearing a mask, waiting 6 feet apart, and washing your hands. We’ve seen in the past how fragile progress can be, so we need to keep protecting each other while we get everyone a spot to get their shot,” North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy K. Cohen said in a press release.
The new restrictions go into effect Friday at 5 p.m. and will expire March 26 at 5 p.m.