Los Angeles City Mayor Announces In-door Shopping Accessibility available May 26.
of the city mayor’s office.
Tuesday, May 26, Los Angeles City Mayor Eric Garcetti delivered news surrounding the biggest testing site in America at the Dodger Stadium; the site is equipped to test up to 6,000 people a day. Mayor Garcetti shared updated news from the baseball diamond arena. L.A. County is putting all their efforts into opening the city safely. Public officials are feeling the severity of the current state of the economy, and they are working on the blueprints of conducting business with social distancing.
Last week, bike paths and car parades were made available. The city continues to make their way into a new way of life, a post pandemic era. The mayor emphasized the caution that is still needed. Along bike paths, Garcetti reiterated the guidelines which include bringing your own mask and practicing physical distancing. Gatherings are prohibited on the beach and lounging on the sand will not be permitted. Car parades are available for special events, if there is space to practice social distancing. The Mayor declared, “Keeping a social distance says you want to embrace the future.” Garcetti also announced the opening of the largest testing site in America is coming online.
The Dodger Stadium has been described as the heart of L.A. and where monumental memories were made. According to the mayor, the house for the boys in blue is currently the largest COVID-19 testing site in America, adding to the pillar of hope for many. Garcetti stated, “This builds on the work we been doing for the past weeks and months,” he continued, “We want testing to be easy, accessible, and free for everybody here in Los Angeles.” Over 60 staff members will be available to conduct tests and big screen TV’s will prepare patients and provide instructions. Mayor Garcetti was one of the first people tested at the Dodger Stadium earlier today at its launch.
Moving on to the driving points of progress, Garcetti disclosed the numbers surrounding the viral outbreak; the mayor affirmed that the L.A. community is doing their job to stop the spread of COVID-19. As of May 26, there were 27 additional deaths; this brings the total COVID-19 related deaths in the L.A. County to 2,143. There were 1,843 new cases reported, bringing the total of positive COVID-19 reports to 47,822. The latest numbers reflect a 4 percent increase since May 25. There is a daily average of 1,200 new cases. Within the Los Angeles City, there were 748 new positive incidents of COVID-19, bringing the city’s total to 22,567 total reports. With the current numbers confirming a level of stabilization, the mayor announced all retail store businesses are available for in-door shopping.
The state ordinance created guidelines for local government to meet before bending the Safer at Home initiative. The main factors include hospital stabilization, county case count metrics, and testing capacity. According to L.A. public officials, Los Angeles has met and, in some cases, surpassed the minimum requirements the state has in place for reopening businesses.
Mayor Garcetti stated, “Every decision I’ve made, and fellow leaders have made here in Los Angeles, have been guided by principles.” He continued, “First, that every life is sacred.” Garcetti proceeded to outline that community involvement, alongside city leadership, is the formula to a safer future. The three elements of developing a solid livelihood include the mental, physical, and economic health, where the mayor has those in consideration, as well as the data and numbers behind coronavirus.
The progress in moving forward must align with what the state mandates that every store will have to adopt public health orders mandated by the Los Angeles Health Department and fellow city leaders. Starting Wednesday, May 26, all stores will be able to open for in-door shopping. There is a downloadable packet for L.A. businesses to complete before opening their doors. The mayor emphasized to reopen when it is safest for the business and customer; there is no rush to open.
