Orange County will not be expanding its gathering size limits to match new North Carolina guidelines amid the transition to Phase 2.5 of reopening.
As the county is experiencing more than ten percent of positive test results across recent weeks, elected officials will opt to not match the sizes of 25 people indoors and 50 people outdoors that will begin in North Carolina on Friday. The statewide change is the latest step in North Carolina’s reopening plan amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but state leaders have said stricter county guidelines will supersede their own pandemic orders.
During a conversation with 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck, Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger said the Orange County leaders, including Carrboro Mayor Lydia Lavelle, Hillsborough Mayor Jenn Weaver and Chair of the County Commissioners Penny Rich, made the decision.
“We’re going to remain with our gathering sizes being ten people indoors and 25 people outdoors until we can see a change in those [case] numbers,” said Hemminger. “We’re going to comply with the rest of the parts of the governor’s orders to reduce confusion. But we don’t feel like we’re ready at this time because of our high percentage of positive [coronavirus] cases and the clusters we’re having to move forward.”
In addition, many of the changes made to outdoor equipment and playgrounds will be delayed a week. In a release, the county said areas that have been closed with now open on Friday September 11, a week later than the state’s order to allow staff in the county and towns time to prepare the areas for use. Some maintenance had been deferred due to the COVID-19 closure and reduced staffing levels, leading the parks and recreation managers to suggest a delayed reopening.
The Orange County state of emergency order, which was updated on Friday, was recently extended through the end of October. Although the state’s Phase 2.5 is initially slated to expire on October 2, the county will also not be updated its order to match that length.
Rich, who spoke with 97.9 The Hill on Wednesday, indicated this deviation from the state guidelines was likely. She cited concern about the approaching college football season as additional reasoning to continue capping gathering sizes until positive cases slow.
“To be quite honest, it has a lot to do with what’s going on in Chapel Hill with the frat parties, with the off-campus parties. Now that we’re bring back, there is a concern about tailgating. We know there’s no tailgating allowed on [UNC] campus, but that means tailgating and parties couldn’t happen somewhere else. And that’s a little bit of a concern for [Mayor Hemminger] and the law enforcement in Chapel Hill.”
The county added hundreds of new cases during August after UNC students returned to Chapel Hill for a fall semester with in-person instruction. University leadership moved back to a remote learning model less than ten days after classes began following several clusters of positive coronavirus cases being reported in residence halls.
Despite this element of the county state of emergency order remaining the same, Rich said the rest will be updated to reflect the changes announced for Phase 2.5.
“Anything else the governor put out there,” said the county commissioner, which includes gyms, museums, nursing home visitations and more reopening at limited capacities. “We’re going to open up the playgrounds and yes, people will be able to play doubles on the tennis courts after Friday. We’re going to open all that in accordance with the governor, but the gatherings are a little bit concerning for us.”
Hemminger said while she believes these changes will help people branch out from their homes more, she still urges caution when going to indoor areas shared by others.
“I think people need to make their own decisions about that,” the Chapel Hill mayor said about going to gyms. “If you need to exercise for health reasons and you think you can be safe, then gyms would love to have you. Everyone gets to choose what they’re doing out there as long as they’re doing the Three W’s: wear you mask, wait six feet apart and wash your hands.”
To read the full state of emergency order amendment or to see infographics explaining the changes made in Phase 2.5, visit the Orange County government website.
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