COVID-19 Update: King County Moves to Phase 1.5

Your Update on What's Happening at the King County Council  

Dear Friends & Neighbors,

I am excited to share with you that this morning, King County was approved to move to Phase 1.5 of the state's 4-phase reopening plan. Here's an overview of what that means for key sectors across King County, effective immediately:

RESTAURANTS:

✅ Outdoor dining is allowed at 50% of capacity with all tables and chairs maintaining 6 feet of distance.

✅ Indoor dining services may operate at 25% of capacity, provided tables and chairs are more than 6 feet away from each other.

IN-STORE RETAIL:

✅ All non-essential retail activities may operate, but an establishment's occupancy may not be not be higher than 15% of capacity.

✅ Businesses must provide signage encouraging indoor visits to less than 30 minutes, with face-to-face interactions limited to 30 minutes.

✅ Essential retail activities may continue to operate according to the existing state regulations.

PERSONAL SERVICES (such as hairstylists, barbers, cosmetologists, estheticians, manicurists, etc.):

✅ All activities may operate but the number of clients served will be limited to no more than 25% of capacity or one person if it is a single bed/chair studio.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES (such as accountants, attorneys, financial advisors, and other office-based occupations that are typically serving a client base):

✅ All activities allowed but an establishment's occupancy should not be higher than 25% of capacity.

✅ Businesses must provide signage encouraging indoor visits to be less than 30 minutes, with face to face interactions limited to 30 minutes.

CONSTRUCTION:

✅ All construction, including those activities for which social distancing may not be maintained and the start of new construction projects, is authorized to resume.

For more information, see the announcement from the Executive’s office.

If you have specific questions about Phase 1.5 guidelines, you can call King County's COVID-19 Business and Community Information Hotline at: (206) 296-1608.

In the midst of tumultuous times in our county and in our country, I hope you are encouraged by this bit of good news. As we enjoy this slight lift of the limitations we’ve been experiencing, please remember to take reasonable precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Now more than ever, we need to be looking out for each other.

Stay safe,

Reagan Dunn Vice Chair Metropolitan King County Council

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When Will King County Move to Phase 2?

Visit this data dashboard to track King County’s progress toward meeting various metrics that are required to move to Phase 2. Right now, the dashboard shows that while COVID-19 cases have declined and healthcare systems have adequate capacity, the availability of testing remains a challenge.