'Enough's Enough': Allegheny Co. Businesses Eagerly Await 'Green Phase' Announcement From Governor
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Tomorrow Governor Wolf will be announcing whether the region will be moving from the "yellow" phase into the "green," lifting the shutdown order on businesses requiring close contact with the public like sit-down restaurants, hair salons and gyms.
Local leaders are optimistic Gov. Wolf will give the go-ahead tomorrow.
Joe Cardamone has been cutting hair at his shop on the corner of Forbes Avenue and Wood Street for 43 years, but not for the past three months.
"Enough's enough. We've been hostage for 12 weeks. I think that's enough," he said.
Hair salons, restaurants, health clubs and gyms are beyond eager to learn whether Gov. Tom Wolf will be moving the region into the "Green Phase," allowing them to open at last.
But, according to all the metrics set by the state, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald says there's no reason he shouldn't.
Even with testing on the increase, the number of new cases in the region continues to trend downward.
In the past 14 days, Allegheny County has recorded 300 new COVID-19 cases. That's 23 cases per 100,000 in population, and well under the state's threshold of 50 cases per 100,000. Also, way under the state average of 83.
To move into the "Green Phase" counties must have stayed in the "Yellow Phase" for a minimum of two weeks without showing severe spikes or outbreaks, and that is the case throughout the region.
"The worry was, and it's a good worry to have, is that if we opened up, the numbers would spike up again, but we have seen our numbers stay consistently low," Fitzgerald said.
It all bodes well, but there is one exception.
Beaver County has only been in yellow phase for one week, and if the governor moves the region into green, it's possible Beaver may be delayed. But, in all other southwestern counties, businesses that require close contact with public, like Cardamone's Salon, can reopen using safety protocols of masks, gloves and social distancing. However, should the governor delay, a coalition of hair salons says they'll reopen without him.
"The other salon owners, they want to open now, but I think they're going to open up June 1," he said.