On Tuesday, Pinellas County Commissioners voted to reopen public beaches and pools located at hotels, condominiums and commercial businesses.
Public beaches will reopen 7 a.m. on Monday, May 4, while hotel, condo and commercial pools will be able to reopen starting 6 a.m. Thursday, April 30. Authorities say pools must remain at 50% capacity, while beaches will open for all activities (even tanning) as long as six-foot social distancing is practiced, and groups are limited to less than 10 people.
Parking lots at beaches and playgrounds at child care facilities will also reopen.
Commissioners overwhelmingly approved today’s measure 6-1, while Ken Welch was the only no vote.
Pinellas County beaches were originally closed on March 19 due to the coronavirus pandemic. As of now, Hillsborough County beaches remain closed. Last week, Sarasota County reopened their beaches.
Meanwhile, Florida reported a record high 83 new deaths from the novel coronavirus on Tuesday, which now brings our state’s death toll to 1,191.
Support local journalism in these crazy days. Our small but mighty team is working tirelessly to bring you up to the minute news on how Coronavirus is affecting Tampa and surrounding areas. Please consider making a one time or monthly donation to help support our staff. Every little bit helps.
Follow @cl_tampabay on Twitter to get the most up-to-date news + views. Subscribe to our newsletter, too.