Thompson Park in the Lincroft section of Middletown, along with all other county parks, is closed until further notice. Gov. Phil Murphy ordered all state and county parks closed April 7 to strengthen social distancing practices.
By Allison Perrine
NEW JERSEY – Social distancing regulations continue to tighten as the number of positive statewide cases of COVID-19 approaches 50,000 and the death toll rises, the governor reported Wednesday afternoon, April 8.
That includes the closure of all county and state parks, a voting date change, the halt of nonessential construction and more.
As of Wednesday afternoon, there were 47,437 known positive cases state- wide, an increase of 3,088 overnight. Of that total, there have been 1,504 deaths related to the disease, an increase of 275 overnight.
In Monmouth County, there were 3,042 known positive cases as of April 8. In the Two River area, that includes 10 in Atlantic Highlands, 41 in Colts Neck, 15 in Fair Haven, 11 in Highlands, 100 in Holmdel, 24 in Little Silver, 254 in Middletown, 12 in Monmouth Beach, 32 in Oceanport, 60 in Red Bank, 23 in Rumson, eight in Sea Bright, 21 in Shrewsbury Borough and 51 in Tinton Falls.
And that is a reality we cannot escape for some time, said Murphy.
“It is still increasing, so with all due respect to this notion that we’ve found some plateau – we’re not at any plateau,” said Murphy. “And when the time comes that we can begin to put this emergency in the rearview mirror… we cannot think that we’re going to be able to get back to normal all at once. It’s going to take time to reopen our state and indeed our country, in a systematic and careful way to protect against a boomerang of coronavirus.”
With social distancing regulations still in place, Murphy signed executive orders moving the state’s primary elections from Tuesday, June 2 to Tuesday, July 7. The decision was made so that if the public health crisis improves, voting can hopefully be done in-person. If it does not improve, it will allow the state additional time to prepare for a statewide vote-by-mail election, which has never happened.
“Our democracy cannot be a casualty of COVID-19. We want to ensure that every voter can vote without endangering their health or their safety.”
All nonessential construction has been shut down throughout New Jersey, which took effect Wednesday at 8 p.m. According to Murphy, that does not include construction projects on hospitals and schools, in the transportation and utility sector, the building of affordable housing or housing sites that can adhere to strict limits on the number of workers on the site at any time, emergency repairs and other “limited instances.”
Additionally, tighter regulations are now in effect for essential retail stores. All customers and employees must wear face coverings. The number of customers in these stores must be limited to 50 percent of the approved capacity. Stores must provide special shopping hours for high-risk individuals and must erect physical barriers between customers, cashiers and baggers.
“No municipality or county may impose additional restrictions of their own on essential retail businesses. This is one set of rules for everyone in New Jersey,” said Murphy.
Looking to New Jersey interstate and toll roads, the governor has called for increased weight limits for trucks carry COVID-19 relief supplies, from the usual 40 tons to 46 tons. The state has the flexibility to do so because of the major disaster declaration it received from the federal government.
Earlier in the week, Murphy ordered the indefinite closing of state public schools and canceled statewide assessments. That includes the student assessment requirement for graduation this year, which means 13,000 current high school seniors will no longer be required to submit a portfolio appeal to graduate.
“We have been in this now for 20 days. Twenty days ago, all New Jersey schools were ordered to close and I asked that the education community give itself some grace,” said Lamont Repollet, the commissioner of the Department of Education Tuesday in response to Murphy’s executive actions. “Adjusting to these unprecedented times requires unprecedented acts of leadership and humanity. I’m extremely proud of, and impressed by, the education community and parents for meeting these complex challenges.”
This article originally appeared in the April 9th, 2020 print edition of The Two River Times.
