Yes earlier, no tonight: Governor Ige changes his mind on reopening shopping malls

Earlier today Governor Ige confirmed shopping malls can open on Thursday, May 7.  Tonight he told selected media in a secret press- event shopping malls on Oahu and Maui would not open until May 15

Stay-at-Home Order Becomes Safer-at-Home

At a late-morning news briefing Governor David Ige announced that the phased approach to re-opening Hawai‘i’s economy is beginning. He said, “Today was another victory in the battle with COVID-19. Only four positive cases were reported. This makes more than two-weeks of single-digit daily new cases. We have some of the lowest numbers of cases in the country. And we have flattened the curve. The Governor’s 7^th Supplementary Proclamation allows people to leave their homes to patronize certain businesses and activities. To reflect the new approach in the COVID-19 response, the Stay-at-Home order is now referred to as the Safer-at-Home order.

Achievement of Key Metrics Allows for Stabilization Phase

The governor has often repeated the key metrics Hawai‘i would need to see before re-opening the economy. A declining trend in COVID-19 cases, sufficient healthcare capacity (including enough in case of a surge), and a robust testing and contact tracing program, are the key metrics that have now been met. The Stabilization Phase (phase 1) allows for a reduction in restrictions for businesses classified as low risk from a health perspective. An important consideration was the ability of businesses to keep both employees and customers safe and their ability to follow social distancing guidelines.

Department of Health:

Four New COVID-19 Cases Reported

Four additional cases of coronavirus being reported by DOH are all Honolulu adults, bringing the total positive case count in Hawai‘i to 625. Note thefollowing: One county of diagnosis was re-categorized from Hawai‘i island to O‘ahu. One case’s residence changed from out-of-state to O‘ahu.

Hawai‘i COVID-19 Counts as of 12:00 noon, May 5, 2020

** Refers to positive cases that have an unknown county of diagnosis at the time of this report. As more information becomes available for these cases, they are assigned to the proper County of Diagnosis. A negative number indicates the number of previously unknown cases that have now been assigned to a county.

Laboratory* Testing Data

*Electronic Laboratory Reporting  **20 test results were inconclusive.

For more tables please visit: https://health.hawaii.gov/docd/

Hawai‘i Tourism Authority:

Airports Seeing Upticks in Visitors

Hawai‘i’s airports are continuing to see an uptick in passenger arrivals. Yesterday, 845 passengers arrived in Hawai‘i. This includes 246 visitors and 310 residents. The following table shows passenger numbers coming into the state. The following table in the DBEDT section shows interisland travel.

AIRPORT ARRIVALS FOR MONDAY, MAY 4, 2020

https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/4556/050520-passenger-count-press-release.pdf

Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism

INTERISLAND AIRPORT ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES FOR MAY 2, 2020

https://dbedt.hawaii.gov/economic/covid19/

Department of Land and Natural Resources:

Select Hawai‘i State Parks Re-Opening for Hiking and Beach Access But Not Gatherings

The DLNR Division of State Parks is re-opening select parks and monuments across the state with an emphasis on social distancing and exercise, and continued restrictions on gatherings of any sort. The announcement is in line with Governor Ige’s emergency rules, as well as advice from the Hawai‘i Dept. of Health.

DLNR Chair Suzanne Case commented, “The department is excited to cautiously reintroduce State Park access to Hawai‘i’s residents in this unprecedented time of virtually no out-of-state visitors. However, conventional park activities such as parties, gatherings, picnics, setting up on the beach, and camping are still not allowed. This public use is strictly for mobile activities such as hiking and ocean use to support our residents physical and emotional health during the stay at home mandate. For this reason, certain frequently visited parks and access to them remain closed.”

“It is critical that people honor this intent and follow all social distancing practices and park area closures to eliminate gathering. State Parks strongly encourages residents stay within their own ahupua’a and neighborhoods rather than traveling across an island to another community’s remote State Park. Revenue losses require that certain gates remain closed. Inappropriate behavior and changing public health circumstances may require that certain parks be closed again, such as what has recently occurred at some parks on the mainland, “ added Curt Cottrell, DLNR Division of State Parks Administrator.

See the list of open and closed State Parks at:https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/

Phase One Businesses/Activities That Can Re-Open Effective May 7 at 12:01 a.m.

• Non-food agriculture (landscape, floral, ornamental)
• Astronomical observatories and support facilities
• Car washes
• Pet Groomers
• Healthcare & social assistance (including elective and non-emergent services)
• Non-profits
• Retail businesses & services (including apparel, electronics, and shopping malls)
• Wholesale and warehousing operations

What’s Next?

The re-openings announced in the 7^th Supplemental Proclamation are in addition to previously announced openings (florists, certain real estate services, car dealerships, automated & mobile service providers, services provided one-on-one, and golf courses) and Governor Ige expects to announce additions in the coming weeks. He explained, “We are looking at the timing and guidelines for re-opening businesses such as restaurants, personal services including hair stylists, and places of worship.” He said the health of our community continues to be the over-arching priority, so Hawai‘i does not experience a severe recurrence of coronavirus. If there is a second wave of COVID-19, some restrictions may be reinstated.

 The Governor’s Continued Encouragement

Governor Ige said the re-openings are the result of community-wide vigilance and commitment to social distancing. He cautioned again, “We are not out of the woods yet. Keep up social distancing. Wash your hands and wear your masks. Keep in mind, that while we encourage people to patronize the newly re-opened businesses and activities, people are safest at home.