(TMC Report:UPDATE | April 30, 2020, 4:45 p.m.:) With phase 1 of Gov. Greg Abbott’s plan to restart the state’s economy taking effect tomorrow, many restaurants and retailers will be begin reopening their doors. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Houston’s COVID-19 Recovery Czar Marvin Odum announced measures they’re taking in order to safely and responsibly reopen the city.
“The virus has spread like fire. The curve is flattening—that is clear, but we are still reporting these new cases,” he said during his daily briefing this afternoon. “Like a fire, you can extinguish the flames, but often it continues to smolder. The reality is, if you start coming back together, not engaging in social distancing, not wearing face coverings, then it’s almost like adding fuel to the fire. You may think it’s out, but quite frankly, it’s not. It will come back … with a vengeance and be reignited, so please, as we start tomorrow, May 1, for those businesses opening up in stages, be very careful.”
Although the “Stay Home Work Safe” expires today, Turner said he is modifying the order. All city permitted and sponsored events will be canceled or rescheduled through the end of May. In addition, the Houston Public Library System will remain closed through the end of the month.
As people transition back to business mode, people should continue to practice social distancing, wear face coverings and stay at home, he emphasized.
Restaurants and retailers are required to limit their occupancy to 25 percent during the first phase of Abbott’s executive order. However, Turner said the city will be relying on an honor system to make sure businesses adhere to the occupancy limit.
“Quite frankly, it’s going to be on a trust basis and self-policing because we simply don’t have the resources to be going all around the city of Houston to check whether or not you’re following the 25 percent occupancy limit,” Turner said.
During the press conference, Odum highlighted three main priorities he will be tackling in his role: testing, contact tracing and “safe zone” measures.
“We’re moving forward with a different strategy on testing in the city,” Odum said. “The situation now allows us to look at this entire geography, think about all the risks that are out there, starting with our vulnerable and at-risk communities, thinking about that from a socioeconomic standpoint, where we’ve seen outbreaks in the past … to understand where the priorities are.”
Odum and his team have developed a plan for a number of different sites around the city to make testing available and more convenient starting next week.
However, testing alone is not enough, he said.
“The reason you need these [testing and contact tracing] together is because testing identifies additional infections out there,” Odum said. “Contact tracing allows you then to contain that to a small area, so you don’t get wide community spread.”
The third priority is to track hospital bed numbers, ICU capacity and critical equipment supplies to make sure the health care system remains in the “safe zone” as the city goes through the reopening process.
Odum collaborated with the Greater Houston Partnership and chambers across the city to develop a “Reopen Houston Safely” strategy, a set of guidelines and best practices for businesses to incorporate into their operations.
The city has also distributed approximately 120,000 face coverings and masks this past week through various channels, including city council members and faith-based community organizations. Turner said he plans to distribute 50,000 to 70,000 more over the next few days.
“As we move forward, people will be assuming a little bit more risk as people come together, but we’re going to do everything we can within our power to keep everyone safe and make this reopening work,” Turner said. “It’s going to require all of us to be responsible and do their part, as well.” — Shanley Pierce