EAST POINT, Ga. — Gov. Brian Kemp signed Georgia’s first-ever shelter-in-place order last week. The move comes as the statewide effort helps combat the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus and will be in place until 11:59 p.m. on April 13.
However, the order overrides all other previous shelter-in-place orders issued by local municipalities - including most importantly local curfews.
East Point city council’s third emergency ordinance established a citywide curfew on Wednesday, March 25, 2020 from 9 p.m. until 7 p.m. daily until the morning of April 7, 2020.
The statewide ordinance negated that edict last Friday, April 3 at 6 p.m. as well as the curfews in the city of South Fulton and surrounding municipalities that had been in place for a week or more.
What changes for me?
During the order, residents are also not allowed to have visitors unless they are providing medical or emergency services, providing support to conduct "activities of daily living," providing necessary supplies and services - like food, equipment needed to work from home, products to maintain safety, sanitation, and essential maintenance. Visitors are allowed during end-of-life circumstances.
Businesses and services that were deemed essential prior to the ordinances will continue to remain open, including some of the following:
- Grocery Stores
- Food Banks
- Outdoor Farmers Markets
- Gas Stations
- Banks and financial institutions
- Hotels
- Hardware Stores and nurseries
- Healthcare Providers and facilities
- Transportation services
- City and County Government Services
What is different?
Businesses that may have been deemed non-essential under respective local ordinances, such as package stores will now be allowed to operate so long as they abide by the following criteria:
- Enforcing social distancing or non-cohabitating persons while present on their property.
- Providing alternative points of sale outside of buildings (for retailers and service providers).
- Increasing physical space between workers and customers
- Increasing physical space between workers' worksites to at least six feet.
What’s closed under the new order?
Close-contact businesses will continue to be closed to the public including:
- Body art studios
- Estheticians
- Hair designers
- Massage therapists
- Bars
- Gyms
- Fitness centers
- Bowling alleys
- Theaters
- Live performance venues,
- Operators of amusement rides
What is 'critical' infrastructure?
Under the new state ordinance, there’s a detailed list of what is deemed "critical infrastructure," which includes the following categories:
- Chemical
- Commercial facilities
- Communications
- Critical manufacturing
- Dams
- Defense industrial base
- Emergency services
- Energy
- Financial services
- Food and agriculture
- Government facilities
- Healthcare and public health
- Information technology
- Nuclear reactors, materials, and waste
- Transportation systems
- Water and wastewater systems
What’s closed under East Point City Government?
The provisions established under the prior three emergency ordinances voted on by East Point city council still apply:
- All East Point parks and playground facilities, including the Jefferson Park Rec Center are closed to the public until further notice.
- All City buildings remain closed to the public until further notice.
- Sanitation and recycling will continue services on their regular schedule.
- City utilities have suspended disconnection and will not assess late fees. However, utility payments are still being accepted online, or at the Customer Care drive-thru, dropbox, by mail and by phone.
- Municipal Court arraignments have been postponed until the week of May 18, 2020.
- All restaurants and other establishments that provide food may offer food for takeout and delivery services only.
For more information on COVID-19, please visit the Georgia Department of Public Health website or the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention website.
At 11Alive, we’re focusing our news coverage on the facts and not the fear around the virus. To see our full coverage, visit our coronavirus section, here: www.11Alive.com/Coronavirus.
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