Douglas commissioners, residents take to Nevada Capitol asking the county be reopened
Carson Street was once again filled with noise Thursday morning as a procession of Douglas County residents announced their arrival to the Nevada State Capitol through honks and hoots.
The county is asking for restrictions to be lifted, and presented a letter detailing their requests.
Two of the county commissioners were wearing PPE and attempting to social distance, however, none of the residents themselves wore masks or kept six feet apart.
According to the letter, they are not asking a complete return to normal, but rather are asking the state to allow the county to open slowly so that they may alleviate the economic suffering to the county.
They are asking for retail establishments, hair salons and barber shops, and outdoor recreation areas to be reopened, among others.
They reason that because Douglas County is generally a rural county, the same restrictions should not be placed upon them as the more populous counties such as Clark and Washoe.
They are asking that the terms essential vs non-essential be done away with, and instead it should be focused on whether or not a business is complying with CDC guidelines.
“'Non-essential' retailers should be permitted to reopen on the same basis as 'essential retailers,' in compliance with CDC guidelines," the letter states. "The notion of 'essential' vs 'non-essential' should be abandoned in favor of criteria based on business compliance with CDC guidelines, regardless of what they are selling. This should be the first approach to economic recovery."
They are also asking for places of worship to be reopened, citing that the closure of churches infringes on constitutional rights and that the closure of them was a “bitter blow” to the community.
"Action should be taken swiftly to modify the directive regarding houses of worship," the letter states. "It was a bitter blow to many people of faith when you banned in person religious services only days before Easter Sunday, despite many of our clergy putting thoughtful plans in place for social distancing to protect the public. Although well intended from a public health perspective, this caused many legitimate concerns about the role of the State over religion. In these trying times, our people need the support of their faith communities more than ever."
At 5 p.m. Thursday, the governor will hold a press conference to unveil Nevada United: Roadmap to Recovery, our State’s plan to reopen the economy while continuing to safeguard Nevadans again COVID19.
See the full letter below.
Douglas County Board of Com... by Carson Now on Scribd
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