The city of Tuscaloosa will abide by the new safer-at-home order that Governor Kay Ivey announced Friday and allow bars, restaurants, salons, gyms, churches and more to reopen in a limited capacity on Monday.

In a press release distributed Friday afternoon, a city spokesperson said Mayor Walt Maddox has repealed his April 28th executive order adopting the Reopen Tuscaloosa Plan and will now defer to Ivey and the Alabama Department of Public Health as they continue to update guidance on how the state should allow businesses to reopen in a way that minimizes the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

Maddox said last month that as mayor, he cannot issue regulations that are laxer than the governor's orders, but he could be more strict if believed that guidance from Montgomery was not doing enough to safeguard citizens during the pandemic. It appears that at this time, Maddox has elected instead to defer to Ivey and allow most businesses in the city to re-open at 50 percent capacity and with a sharp focus on social distancing and regular sanitation.

“The City cannot protect an individual from contracting COVID-19, but we can all take steps to protect our health care system,"  Maddox said. “We encourage every member in our community to follow all guidelines from the CDC and ADPH.”

Ivey's new order does still require that large-scale entertainment venues including nightclubs, movie theaters and bowling alleys remain closed.

The new order also lifts a ban on non-work gatherings of 10 or more people, which will allow churches and other places of worship to return to in-person sermons and meetings.

The new guidelines are pictured below.

Amended Safer
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