Columbia plans to promote businesses that ‘pledge’ safe reopening plans
As businesses reopen from the coronavirus lockdown, how can customers know which shops and restaurants have strong safety precautions in place?
Soon, the answer might be to look for a poster.
The city of Columbia is asking businesses to sign a pledge to reopen safely, and in response the city will issue a poster that businesses can post in their windows to advertise the steps they are taking to keep their customers safe.
Columbia rolled out the pledge on Thursday. When business owners sign, they will pledge to follow guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
Businesses will commit to:
- Monitor the health of employees
- Clean high-touch areas frequently
- Encourage the use of face coverings and promote regular hand washing
- Limit the number of people, both inside the building and in outdoor spaces
- Promote social distancing at all times, including in the public right of way adjacent to the business
Once enough businesses sign the pledge, the city will also create a map page on its website to display which businesses have signed the pledge.
Safety requirements remain a concern as businesses try to get back to their normal operations. When restaurants were allowed to reopen for dining earlier this month, city officials expressed concern after customers lined up on the sidewalks outside some reopening businesses, standing close together without protective equipment.
Health experts continue to warn that large gatherings can spread the disease, which could reverse gains made by prolonged periods of social distancing.
Businesses have slowly been opening up as South Carolina reopens from the coronavirus outbreak, which closed most businesses for at least some time. Only last week, Gov. Henry McMaster lifted restrictions on gyms, pools and salons, leading to many barber shops getting clogged with customers who had gone without a trim for almost two months.
Columbia is taking other steps to reopen from the coronavirus lockdown, including a phased reopening of city park facilities and resuming enforcement of parking meters, even as the city weighs other requirements it would like reopening businesses to follow.
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