Florida’s Orange County Economic Task Force has been discussing the ways that Florida’s businesses and tourism industries will be able to reopen.
Split into several workgroups, the task force is looking into the guidelines that should be set for businesses, a way to ensure customer confidence, and specific suggestions for industries. Here are today’s takeaways.
The Reopening Business and Bringing Back Tourism Work Groups met today to continue their work on finding solutions for the county.
The Reopening Business group is currently working to develop ways to make Phase 1 of the Governor’s Re-Open Florida plan easier for local and small businesses.
The team has also been looking to discuss what reopenings will look like for large-scale industries such as Disney and the NBA. Alex Martins, a representative from the NBA, spoke on some plans for the league today. He began by noting that “We are most likely going to open our practice facilities for our players this Friday.” Their personal Phase 1 will include strict distancing and health guidelines.
Four players will be allowed in a facility at a time with one player per basket. Everyone will be required to wear masks except for the athletes while they are actually working out. There will also be a deep clean sanitization every night.
Beyond that, they expect to follow the data like everyone else. They’ll get to Phase 2 when the data shows indications that it is safe to. At that point, more staff and players will be allowed in the facilities again.
Martins also mentioned that they’ve been asking, “How do we get back into basketball again?” The league is considering playing in a centralized facility (like Disney World perhaps?), potentially without fans.
The good news for basketball fans is that the NBA is looking to get through as much of the current season as possible when they start playing again, potentially playing as late as Labor Day or delaying the start of next season.
Later in the morning, the Bringing Back Tourism Work Group convened to discuss a three-phase plan for improving customer confidence in businesses and therefore bringing in consumers.
The three phases of their current proposition include the following:
- Marketing and communications through Visit Orlando to keep Orlando at the top of people’s minds.
- A focus on local business. Present recommendations such as following CDC guidelines to restore trust and confidence in consumers.
- Local community support and engagement. Promote “staycation” and encourage locals to make use of travel-related activities to promote the economy.
Beyond that, the committee is still discussing how best to provide validation for small businesses that are making extraordinary efforts to keep their guests safe, perhaps a seal of approval.
Both Work Groups meet again tomorrow and we’ll be sure to report in with takeaways from the meetings.
What do you think of the takeaways from today’s Orange County Economic Recovery Task Force meetings?
Want to learn more about the Disney Parks closures?
- The Disney Parks Closures: Here's Everything We Know
- Here's Everything That Disney World is Refunding Due to the Temporary Closure
- Here's Everything That Disneyland is Refunding Due to the Temporary Closures
- Here's Everything That the Disney Cruise Line is Refunding Due to Suspended Itineraries
- Should I Cancel My Disney Trip? Taking a Closer Look at Our Most FAQ
- Flattening the Curve: Why Disney is Closing Everything
- All the Times That Disney World and Disneyland Have Closed Throughout History
With such a large place as Disney World it’s going to be hard to open up small. Are we talking one park? You’ll still loose revenue daily with such a large payroll/daily expenses to run Disney. Add a disclaimer at the bottom of your reservations for the next year because you know the ones that catch it will sue! We are ready!