County outlines rules for salons, church services
Drive-in worship to begin Friday, salons allowed to open Monday
Maui County officials announced new requirements for hair and nail salons, religious drive-in services and dine-in restaurants, which are slated to reopen in the coming days.
While the overall trend of COVID-19 positive cases is decreasing statewide, the community must still act with care as Maui County begins to resume medium-risk businesses and operations, officials said.
“I’m excited to see all this leveling off of the curve,” Victorino said during a news conference Monday afternoon. “You have done a great job, and I just want to thank the people of Maui County for their resilience, their effort and passion.”
Managing Director Sandy Baz said that drive-in church services with modifications may resume starting Friday.
Attendees must stay inside the vehicle with members of the same household for the entire service. Windows, sunroofs and convertible tops must remain closed unless parked six feet away from another vehicle. Sitting in truck beds is not allowed.
Baz said that organizers should use unattended dropboxes for any collections and should not interact with people sitting in their cars unless it is to inform them of guidelines.
Hair and nail salons may reopen Monday with modified operations and by appointment only. All employees and clients must wear face masks, which can only be removed when trimming near the ears. Clients with an appointment must wait outside.
Blow-drying or face-to-face services, such as beard trimmings or waxing, are not allowed.
“Blow-drying sprays hair and particles into the air around, even with six-foot distancing,” Victorino said. “You can do the coloring and you can do the washing, but you leave with a wet set of hair and you can do the blow-drying when you get home.”
The mayor himself said he had a hair appointment scheduled for Tuesday.
Work stations must also be spaced six feet apart, and salons may want to consider divider shields and alternative work schedules, Baz said. Manicurists must have plexiglass or similar dividers between staff and clients.
Employees must be temperature screened upon arrival. Anyone with a temperature over 99 degrees must be sent home.
To help with daily business reports and for any potential contact tracing records, Baz said that salons must also keep a detailed log of operations, including who came in, on what day and time, their contact information and feedback on the stylist to help with contact tracing if needed.
Other items like capes/ smocks and towels must be single use, or washed and dried and used for only one customer at a time. Pedicure bowls must be disassembled and disinfected daily.
Maui County has slowly been rolling back restrictions as cases have declined. Last week, retail businesses were allowed to resume and on Monday, the Department of Motor Vehicles reopened with limited services from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at all locations through May 22.
Services are limited to the following: renewals for driver’s license, permit and state ID only if expired prior to March 16; initial issuance or replacement of identifications; initial issuance and replacement for disabled parking placards; and motor vehicle transactions, such as ownership transfers, initial registration, duplicate titles and registrations, and replacement license plates and emblems.
Customers must wait in designated areas outside the office and are limited to a single transaction. Tickets will not be issued if wait times exceed office hours.
Starting June 5, dine-in restaurants may also begin to reopen if social distancing and other health policies can be met.
“All businesses will need to comply with the modifications required in our county rules, state laws and our administrative rules,” Baz said.
Indoor exercise facilities, gymnasiums and pools are also on the docket for reopening in June, but Victorino said that physical distancing and safety practices are still being analyzed.
While Gov. David Ige signed another supplementary proclamation Monday that would allow for the reopening of medium-risk businesses, each county is allowed to open in phases at their own pace and comfort.
“We’re definitely working together to make sure we are opening our businesses in a concurring manner as the state is,” Victorino said. “These are many areas that people have longed for and wanting us to reopen, but we have to make sure that we have all the proper sanitation, all the proper social distancing, and all the other areas that protect our citizens’ safety and health.”
On Saturday, more than 60 parks and beaches reopened countywide, and people were allowed to sunbathe, watch the sunset and meditate, sedentary activities that had previously been outlawed at beaches. Victorino said that “you folks did a great job” over the weekend, though he reminded the community that grilling is still not allowed.
“I took a moment to drive from Puamana all the way to Kamaole III and stopped at many beachfronts and beach parks along the way,” he said. “Almost to a person, you folks were abiding by the social distancing, congregating with family members and not more than that, and utilizing masks when possible, and really keeping everyone separated, and you know, I was really proud of Maui County.”
Tennis courts are open to singles play only. A full list of open parks is available at mauicounty.gov.
Makena State Park and Polipoli Spring State Recreation Area are also open, but with modifications.
No new cases were recorded in Hawaii on Monday. As reported last week in The Maui News, there remains just one COVID-19 patient at Maui Memorial Medical Center. Victorino said Monday that 96 people have returned from isolation and that there have been no new COVID-19 admissions to the hospital in two weeks. No patients have utilized a ventilator in the past month.
Maui Memorial continues to maintain a coronavirus unit if needed.
* Dakota Grossman can be reached at dgrossman@mauinews.com.