NJ governor signs executive order closing state and county parks to further social distancing
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy Tuesday announced that he signed an executive order closing all state parks and forests and county parks to further social distancing measures.
The order takes effect on Tuesday, April 7, at 8 p.m. and is in effect until further notice. Mercer County Park and the 70-mile Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park are two examples of area parks that are affected by the executive order and will be closed.
“My Administration’s top priority is to flatten the curve of new COVID-19 cases, so we do not create a surge within our health care systems and overwhelm the health care professionals who are managing our response on the frontlines,” Murphy said. “We have seen far too many instances in our parks where people are gathering and socializing in groups and by closing these areas, we are further limiting public interactions to only the most essential purposes. Data shows that our aggressive efforts to flatten the curve are beginning to make a difference; however, we must continue our push to flatten it to the point where our day-over-day increase is zero.”
Municipalities still have the authority to keep municipal parks open or closed.
Murphy also signed Executive Order No. 119, which extends the public health emergency declared on March 9. Under the Emergency Health Powers Act, a declared public health emergency expires after 30 days unless renewed.
“While we have taken aggressive action in our fight against COVID-19, we must continue to use every resource at our disposal to flatten the curve and mitigate the spread of the virus,” Murphy said. “Extending this order allows us to continue taking appropriate action to protect the public health and welfare of New Jerseyans during this challenging time.”
The order extends all Executive Orders issued under the Governor’s authority under the Emergency Health Powers Act. It also extends all actions taken by any executive branch departments and agencies in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Krystal Knapp is the founding editor of Planet Princeton. Follow her on Twitter @krystalknapp. She can be reached via email at editor AT planetprinceton.com. Send all letters to the editor and press releases to that email address.
Well, there goes my one and only coping mechanism. Depression here we come. Cabin fever and loopiness? Here we come.
I hiked the forests of Hunterdon and Mercer County all of last week and saw maybe three people, and we had enough room to physically distance by at least 10 feet.
I wonder if the Governor understand that all of NJ isn’t’ crowded like Hoboken and Newark?
We are now all effectively under house arrest.
There is a reason why prison is considered punishment.
The D&R tow path has been loaded with people on the good weather days. I finally decided that I would avoid the area because the path is quite narrow in places and it was becoming harder to maintain the 6′ distance. Now it’s official…..keep out. Even that little area near the dam and adjacent to Rt. 27 (the end point for the crew races) has been made a no go zone. So I bike or walk around the neighborhood, there are very few people walking around and it’s much easier to maintain the proper distance from my fellow earthlings. I can also bike along Rt. 27 since there is much less traffic.