The Best Buy in Bridgewater is open for contactless service, where shoppers can walk up to the door and workers will get the product or you can drive up and the product will be put in your car.Ed Murray | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
New Jersey will allow nonessential retail businesses to reopen for curbside pickup and nonessential construction to resume, starting Monday morning, as the pandemic continues to show signs of slowing in the state, Gov. announced Wednesday.
The marks the second major move Murphy has made to ease the near-lockdown restrictions he installed over the last two months to combat the virus. He lifted closures on state and county parks, as well as golf courses, late last month.
The decision comes as the state鈥檚 economy sputters because of the pandemic, with and untold revenue losses.
The changes will take effect 6 a.m. Monday.
Murphy鈥檚 order also clarifies that including drive-in movies and religious services 鈥� are permitted in the state, as long as people stay in their cars. That takes effect immediately.
And the governor said he may take more steps in the coming days, including permitting elective surgeries to resume and giving guidance to beaches as Memorial Day nears.
Murphy said these steps are possible because New Jersey, one of the nation鈥檚 coronavirus hotspots, has seen its number of new cases, deaths, and hospitalizations drop after weeks of strict social distancing.
鈥淭he data we are seeing gives us confidence that we can begin the careful and responsible restart of our economy 鈥� to get people back to work, and to begin to set the stage for the steps to come,鈥� he said during his .
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The move comes a day after officials detailed plans for ramping up and contact tracing in New Jersey, which Murphy said is critical to have in place as the state reopens.
Murphy also said curbside service is a logical first step because it allows stores and customers to maintain social distancing as the state continues to deal with deaths, cases, and hospitalizations.
鈥淲e are not out of the woods yet,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hen compared to other states, we see that New Jersey still bears a significant burden from COVID-19. So keeping up with social distancing is essential as we move forward.鈥�
At construction sites, workers must wear face coverings, nonessential visitors will be barred, work hours will be staggered, break times will be limited, and proper sanitation is required.
At nonessential retail stores, customers must place curbside orders in advance and won鈥檛 be allowed inside.
Dining in at restaurants is still banned, though takeout and delivery is permitted.
Murphy thanked residents for following lockdown so far but stressed gatherings are still banned across the state and people should 鈥渟till stay at home as much as possible.鈥�
The governor has yet to give a definitive timeline for easing restrictions further, and some lawmakers and business leaders have to move quicker as the economy suffers.
Murphy said the state is 鈥渕oving slowly and deliberately鈥� because 鈥渁ny misstep risks further outbreaks.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 as basic as this: When public health tells us it is safe to remove a restriction, we鈥檒l remove it,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here is no light switch we can flip. We can only slowly raise the dimmer.鈥�
Nonessential businesses have been closed in New Jersey since March 21, when . He then April 8.
Eateries have been allowed to offer pickup and delivery service, and essential businesses 鈥� such as supermarkets and home improvement stores 鈥� have been allowed to stay open with social-distancing restrictions.
Some Republicans praised Murphy, a Democrat, for Wednesday鈥檚 steps but said businesses should be allowed to welcome customers inside with similar safety protocols.
鈥淲e are at such a critical time where many businesses are seriously in jeopardy of not even being able to reopen, and more delay will certainly be the death knell to so many,” state Sen. Steven Oroho, R-Sussex said.
But asked about those calls, Murphy stressed 鈥渨e鈥檙e still in a stay-at-home mode.鈥�
鈥淭his is a step in a positive direction,鈥� the governor said. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a responsible one. We just don鈥檛 want people congregating.鈥�
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Also Wednesday, the state Senate announced it will hold a remote public hearing Monday at 11 a.m. to get input from healthcare professionals about how to safely reopen the economy.
鈥淗earing from the medical community first will provide the roadmap for the safe re-opening for other crucial business sectors,” said state Sen. Paul Sarlo, D-Bergen.
As of Wednesday, New Jersey 鈥� a densely populated state of 9 million people鈥� attributed to COVID-19, with at least 140,743 total positive tests, since the outbreak started March 4. Only New York has more cases and deaths among U.S. states.
Officials Wednesday reported 197 new deaths and 1,028 new cases.
But Murphy said positive cases have dropped nearly 90% and COVID-19 deaths have decreased more than one-third from their peak.
New Jersey鈥檚 71 hospitals reported 4,226 patients with confirmed or suspected cases of the coronavirus as of Tuesday night. That鈥檚 down 48% from the peak in hospitalizations on April 14 and marks a month of steady declines.
Still, Murphy notes that of new deaths, cases, and hospitalizations compared to three neighboring states (Connecticut, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the nation鈥檚 two most populated states (California and Texas).
A found 66% of New Jersey adults believe the state is lifting restrictions at the right pace, while 19% feel it鈥檚 happening too quickly and 16% say it鈥檚 moving too slowly.
More than 1 million Garden State residents have since mid-March and many have been waiting for weeks to get paid and struggled to get through the state鈥檚 busy phone and online systems.
In addition, New Jersey鈥檚 government is missing massive amounts of tax revenue, and Murphy has warned the state faces within weeks that could lead to historic public-worker layoffs if the federal government doesn鈥檛 approve more direct financial aid.
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