Gov. Jay Inslee gave Washington sports fans a pandemic surprise on Thursday. They will be able to return to the ballgame in person — wearing masks and with attendance limits — in time for the Mariners’ opening game on April 1.
The governor also made a reopening announcement for high school sports, motorsports, rodeos and other outdoor spectator events. And for those who prefer to get their entertainment in a restaurant or a museum, the movement to Phase 3 of Washington’s reopening plan on March 22 will allow 50% capacity for indoor spaces.
The move to Phase 3 is likely to please Washingtonians whose activities have been restricted for nearly a year since a few weeks after some of the first cases in the pandemic were diagnosed here.
Professional sports venues with permanent seating will be allowed up to 25% capacity for spectators, who must also wear masks and remain physically distant. The same capacity will be allowed for high school sports and other outdoor sporting events like rodeos, but spectators at in-person high school sports will be allowed back into the stands earlier — on March 18, at 25% capacity.
Also, starting March 22, the “Healthy Washington Roadmap to Recovery” will pivot back to a county-by-county system instead of the regional system operating in Washington since January. Counties will be reevaluated every three weeks after they all move to Phase 3, and if any county fails one of the tests concerning hospitalization rates or new COVID-19 cases, it will move down one phase.
The first evaluation is scheduled for April 12. To remain in Phase 3, larger counties must have fewer than 200 new cases per 100,000 people over 14 days and fewer than five new COVID hospitalizations per 100,000 people over seven days.
For Washington’s 17 counties with fewer than 50,000 people, the metrics are slightly different. To stay in Phase 3, the county must have fewer than 30 new cases over 14 days and fewer than three new COVID hospitalizations over seven days.
All these parameters will be tossed out the window statewide, however, if statewide intensive care unit capacity in hospitals reaches over 90%. Then all counties will move back to Phase 1.
Republicans in Washington’s Legislature earlier this month called for all business activity to resume at 50% capacity across the state. Inslee’s latest announcement will make that happen not just for restaurants and arts venues, but also for retail stores and other businesses that have been subject to pandemic restrictions.
