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Mayor Durkan Issues Executive Order to Extend City Closure Policies to Align With New ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy’ Order

City will reopen municipal golf courses with new physical distancing measures starting Tuesday, May 5th

SEATTLE (May 4, 2020) – Mayor Jenny A. Durkan issued an Executive Order  Saturday, May 2nd to extend deadlines for City of Seattle’s policies on facility closures and City personnel policies to align with Governor Inslee’s statewide ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy’ order, which is now extended until May 31st. The Governor’s order was first announced on March 23 and bans all gatherings, closes all non-essential businesses unless employees can work from home, and requires all Washingtonians to stay home unless they are engaging in an essential activity.

“Governor Inslee has led our state in COVID-19 crisis by relying on science and data – extending the Stay Home, Stay Healthy order and creating a phased approach to reopening is critical to saving lives and preventing an exponential resurgence of the virus. At the City, we know it is still far too early to take our foot off the brake on our response to this disease.  To align with the Governor’s order, many of the city facilities will remained closed.  We know these are treasured City spaces and programs, but every one of us must continue to practice physical distancing until our infection rates have dropped significantly,” said Mayor Durkan. “I will continue to work closely with public health officials and our partners at the County and State to evaluate our data and ensure we can reopen safely in Seattle and our region.”

The following closures will be extended through May 31st:

  • Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) community centers, playgrounds, athletic fields, sport courts, pools, environmental learning centers, and select parking lots serving the City’s largest parks, except for those centers offering childcare, shower services, and social distancing shelters.
  • Seattle Public Library (SPL) locations, except those open 10 am – 6 pm for restroom use only
  • Cedar River Watershed Education Center and Rattlesnake Ledge Recreation Area
  • In-person access to all City departments’ public-facing customer service counters. Online and telephonic access will continue.
  • All permitted City events, as announced on March 13, 2020, with the exception of farmers markets which will continue to be evaluated for permit renewals on a weekly basis

Changes to parking enforcement will also be extended:

  • Enforcement of paid parking requirements on City streets
  • Enforcement of select hourly parking time limits outside of no-parking or special zones
  • Enforcement of parking restrictions at health care facilities
  • Enforcement of the 72-hour parking rule
  • Booting of vehicles with unpaid parking tickets

The City of Seattle also announced today the reopening of all four of the city’s municipal golf courses with limited hours: Jefferson Park Golf Course, West Seattle Golf Course, Jackson Golf Course, and Interbay Golf Course effective Tuesday, May 5. Courses will follow new operational guidelines and strict physical distancing practices which include: signage to indicate social distancing guidelines, minimized face-to-face interactions, removing high touch surfaces, increasing sanitization practices, converting sit-down food and beverage service to take-out only, eliminating equipment rentals, closing mini golf and using golf ambassadors to enforce social distancing. Seattle Parks and Recreation is also developing a pilot to provide hours when the public can run, bike, or walk within the golf courses.

Four major boat launches (Stan Sayres, Don Armeni, Magnuson, and Atlantic St) remain closed while the City further considers the guidelines and supports needed to create a safe environment for public access to these spaces. Hand-carry and smaller launches are open for use.