Connecticut lifting coronavirus capacity limits on March 19

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) announced Thursday that he will be lifting coronavirus capacity limits starting on March 19, with other restrictions being lifted at later dates.

Starting March 19, restaurants, retail, libraries, personal services, indoor recreation, gyms, museums, offices and places of worship will not have additional capacity limits.

The exceptions include theaters, which will continue to have capacity limits, and restaurants, which will have to close by 11 p.m. along with only allowing up to eight people at one table.

The state will continue to require social distancing and mask use at these places.

“While it is encouraging to see the number of cases in our state gradually going down and people getting vaccinated at rates that are among the highest in the nation, we need to continue taking this virus seriously to mitigate its spread as much as possible,” Lamont said. 

Along with lifted capacity restrictions, the number of people allowed at indoor and outdoor events will increase and sports will be allowed to have tournaments.

On March 29, Connecticut will increase early childhood classes from 16 to 20 students.

The governor said that on April 2, amusement parks can open, indoor stadiums will open at 10 percent capacity, outdoor events can have 50 percent capacity or 10,000 people, and summer camps and festivals can start plans to reopen.

“Please continue to wear face coverings in public and when around other people outside of your households, maintain social distancing, and keep washing your hands and cleaning surfaces. Connecticut has made tremendous strides to combat this pandemic, and we don’t want to lose the progress that we’ve made,” Lamont added.

The announcement comes as other states are starting to ease their coronavirus restrictions.

Some states, such as Texas, have drawn scrutiny over their reopening plans, with the Lone Star State this week indicating it would end its mask mandate and fully reopen businesses.

Connecticut has had more than 280,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with over 7,500 deaths since the start of the pandemic.