Some cities following Stitt’s lead in lifting some restrictions
In Lawton and some other Oklahoma communities, municipal officials began last week gingerly taking steps to reopen their shuttered cities and towns as the number of coronavirus cases may have crested across the state.
While there’s still a strenuous ongoing national and local debate over the impact so quickly reopening stores and other businesses will have, and as the number of total cases and deaths continue to inch upward, quite a number of Americans, including thousands in Oklahomans, can now hit city streets to shop ’til they drop in many of their favorite stores.
The relaxation of some local restrictions mimics similar action taken last week by Gov. Kevin Stitt, who eased tough state-mandated COVID-19 guidelines and limits.
Lawton relaxed its COVID-19 restrictions after a city council session last week that lasted approximately six hours, and which consisted exclusively of councilmembers discussing their views on the pandemic and the efforts the city has made to minimize the virus’ spread.
The city’s COVID-19 mandates were eased after the council session.
The city has decreed that beauty salons, pet groomers and tanning salons are just a few of the businesses that can now make sure their customers and their customers’ pets look their best as the pandemic continues to kill people worldwide.
In addition, the citywide curfew that had been in place for several days now only applies to people young people under the age of 18. The original curfew hours from 11 p.m. through 5 a.m. remain.
Big-box stores such as Walmart, Home Depot and others have now had their mandated occupancy limits raised from 100 to 150 individuals that can be in their stores at the same time.
Over the last week to 10 days, numerous Americans have protested in the streets and attended official city and town councils across the country, voicing their anger and fear over local government orders to close their doors as a last-resort defense to fighting and defeating COVID-19.