City of Miami Beach Augments State of Emergency Declaration with Additional Measures

(Miami Beach, FL) Mar 31, 2020 -

As South Florida continues to experience rising numbers of COVID-19 cases, the City of Miami Beach’s revised Emergency Order incorporates Miami-Dade County’s Emergency Order 15-20, which requires the immediate CLOSURE of all common use areas in all residential or commercial buildings, including pools, hot tubs, golf courses, tennis courts, basketball courts, fitness centers, gymnasiums and other common use amenities.

The city’s Emergency Order also requires all essential retail and commercial establishments (including restaurants that provide take-out and delivery services) to implement strategies to reduce COVID-19 exposure for their customers and employees including, at a minimum, the following measures:

  1. Limiting capacity and monitoring entrances and exits to reduce their maximum occupancy load by 50%.
  2. Providing alcohol-based hand sanitizers for use by customers and employees, subject to availability.
  3. Providing disinfecting wipes at points of entrance, cash registers, and/or other appropriate locations, subject to availability, or designating staff responsible for disinfecting carts, shopping baskets, point of sale terminals, and other areas as frequently as possible.
  4. Implementing procedures to ensure that both employees and customers remain at least six feet apart at all times, pursuant to Miami-Dade County Emergency Order 13-20.
  5. Closing all salad bars and other self-serve food stations.
  6. Refraining from distributing free samples or conducting tastings.
  7. Implementing procedures for custodial/janitorial staff to sanitize frequent touchpoints throughout the day, including point of sale terminals at registers, conveyor belts, door handles, door plates, shelves, and other appropriate locations.

Click here to read the revised Declaration of Emergency Measures effective April 1, 2020. Any violation of the aforementioned emergency measures would subject the individual or business entity to criminal penalties.

Additionally, in Executive Order 20-82 and Executive Order 20-86, Governor DeSantis has ordered all persons who enter Florida from an area with substantial community spread, to include the Tri-State Area (NY, NJ and CT) and Louisiana, to isolate or quarantine for a period of 14 days from the time of their arrival in the State. The Governor’s Executive Orders are mandatory, and compliance with these orders is a critical part of the city’s collective efforts to curb the potential spread of COVID-19 in Miami Beach. All persons isolating or quarantining under this Section shall be responsible for all costs associated with their isolation or quarantine, including transportation, lodging, food, medical care and any other expenses incurred during the period of isolation or quarantine.

Failure to follow the Governor’s Executive Orders is a second-degree misdemeanor pursuant to section 252.50, Florida Statutes, and is punishable by imprisonment not to exceed 60 days, a fine not to exceed $500, or both.

If you are aware of a violation of any of the State, County or City Emergency Orders, please contact the city’s non-emergency police number at 305.673.7901.

For additional information on the city’s efforts, including all emergency measures being enforced, please visit www.MiamiBeachFl.gov/coronavirus.