UPDATED, March 19, 1:10 p.m.: Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez has expanded his order of businesses that must close — and those that can remain open — during the coronavirus pandemic. All malls and casinos will have to shut down. Construction sites, hotels and banks can remain open.
Medical facilities, grocery stores, gas stations and restaurant kitchens can stay open for pick-up and delivery. The announcement is effective Thursday at 9 p.m.
Gimenez ordered all non-essential businesses to close, including: art supply stores, craft supply stores, barbers, beauty salons, nail studios, bookstores, casinos, including Calder, Casino Miami, Magic City and Hialeah Park, clothing stores, indoor amusement parks, trampoline parks, driving ranges, jewelry stores, malls, music supply stores, pawn shops, social clubs, tennis clubs, golf courses, fishing charters, souvenir stores, spas, sporting goods stores, tutoring centers, music classes, toy stores and children’s stores.
Essential businesses that will be allowed to stay open include: architectural, engineering and landscape services, assisted living facilities (ALFs), nursing homes, adult day care centers and senior residential facilities, banks, childcare facilities with limits of 10 children and adults in a group, convenience stores, factories, manufacturing facilities, bottling plants and other industrial sites, gas stations, grocery stores, hotels, hardware stores, home-based care for seniors, adults or children, landscaping and pool services, laundromats, logistics providers, mail and shipping services, natural and propane gas providers, pet supply stores, pharmacies, professional services, and restaurant kitchens for pick-up and delivery only.
Read more
Commercial
New York
Wynn, MGM close Las Vegas casinos over coronavirus concerns
Commercial
South Florida
Social distancing? Coronavirus not stopping South Florida construction projects — for now
Commercial
South Florida
SoFla landlords, retailers brace for coronavirus impacts
Commercial
South Florida
Restaurants, bars, gyms and theaters ordered to close in Miami-Dade
Waste management services, telecommunications providers, media services, taxis and private transportation providers, food cultivation, and services providing food, shelter and other services for the economically disadvantaged can also stay open. Any business operating solely through electronic or telephonic means, and businesses at airports, seaports and other government facilities, can stay open as well.
Across South Florida, from Miami-Dade County to Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton, counties and cities enacted emergency measures this week to shut down restaurants, bars, nightclubs, movie theaters, gyms and other entertainment-type venues to help prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The mass closures of such businesses, especially restaurants and bars, will be devastating for the industry, experts say. Retail and office tenants are expected to ask their landlords for rent breaks as their April 1 payment due date approaches.
Malls in South Florida, such as Bal Harbour Shops, Brickell City Centre, Aventura Mall and all Simon-owned properties, had already announced they planned to close before Gimenez’s announcement. Major retailers such as Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s had also stated they were closing.
All parks and beaches in Miami-Dade were instructed to close as of Thursday morning, the mayor said in his daily webcast.
In Florida, 390 people have Covid-19, the disease caused by coronavirus, according to the Miami Herald. Nearly half of those cases are in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.