Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday afternoon that weddings, parties and other events could get a little bit bigger on May 15 when he relaxes coronavirus-related restrictions again.
"Thanks to rising vaccinations and the hard work of all Virginians, we are able to take additional steps to expand capacity limits and ease #COVID19 mitigation measures in the Commonwealth beginning May 15," the governor's office announced Thursday afternoon.
Increased capacity will apply to sports and entertainment venues in addition to social gatherings.
Still, wearing a mask and vaccination will be critical to continuing on a healthy trajectory. Mask mandates will remain in place and the Virginia Dept. of Health will continue to make efforts to reach the half of Virginia adults who still have not received their first COVID-19 vaccination shot.
“It’s good news that half of all adults in Virginia have gotten a shot so far,” Northam said. “Vaccination numbers are up, and our COVID-19 case numbers are substantially lower than they were earlier this year. So, we have been able to begin easing some mitigation measures. We took a few more targeted steps this week, and we will do more next month.”
According to information from the governor's office:
- Social gatherings: The maximum number of individuals permitted in a social gathering will increase to 100 people for indoor settings and 250 people for outdoor settings. Social gatherings are currently limited to 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors.
- Entertainment venues: Indoor entertainment and public amusement venues will be able to operate at 50 percent capacity or 1,000 people, up from 30 percent capacity or 500 people. Outdoor venues will be able to operate at 50 percent capacity—up from 30 percent—with no specific cap on the number of attendees.
- Recreational sporting events: The number of spectators allowed at indoor recreational sporting events will increase from 100 to 250 spectators or 50 percent capacity, whichever is less. Outdoor recreational sporting events will increase from 500 to 1,000 people or 50 percent capacity, whichever is less.
- Alcohol sales: Restaurants may return to selling alcohol after midnight, and dining room closures will no longer be required between midnight and 5:00 a.m.
