Virginia governor to delay reopening northern parts of state, near DC, for two weeks

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Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday he will delay reopening northern parts of his state, the population-dense suburbs of Washington, D.C., until May 29.

The rest of the state is still expected to begin reopening on Friday, May 15.

According to the governor, the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William, the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas and Manassas Park and the towns of Dumfries, Herndon, Leesburg and Vienna (Northern Virginia Region) will remain in Phase Zero for an additional two weeks.

The northern Virginia region shares a border with D.C. and Maryland, which have not given specific dates for reopening.

On May 4, Northam announced his order restricting nonessential businesses from May 8 to May 15, but at that time he shot down the idea that some regions in the state would open before others. “When we go into Phase One, I want to do that as a commonwealth,” Northam said.

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“While the data show Virginia as a whole is ready to slowly and deliberately ease some restrictions, it is too soon for Northern Virginia,” Northam said in a press release Tuesday.

The northern Virginia region had about a 25 percent positivity rate of coronavirus tests, while the rest of the state had closer to 10 percent, the governor explained. In the last 24 hours, he added, northern Virginia reported 700 new cases while the rest of the commonwealth reported 270.

Northam said he would provide more details about northern Virginia’s plan for eventual reopening on Wednesday. He urged residents from that region to avoid traveling to other parts of the state.

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In Phase One of Northam’s plan for reopening, salons and retailers would reopen, but at a limited capacity and with greater cleaning measures. Indoor gyms would remain closed and restaurants would still be limited to takeout and delivery. Houses of worship would be allowed to hold service if they follow social distancing guidelines. Phase One is expected to last around three weeks.