Gov. 
Gretchen 
Whitmer 

issued an executive order on 

Monday morning closing all 

Michigan restaurants, bars and 

entertainment 
venues 
in 
an 

effort to slow the spread of the 

novel coronavirus. The order 

goes into effect at 3 p.m. on 

Monday and the restrictions 

will last until March 30.

The restrictions apply to bars, 

restaurants, coffee shops, movie 

theaters, clubs, gyms, recreation 

centers, 
spas 
and 
casinos, 

among other places of public 

accommodation.

According to a press release, 

the 
order 
allows 
dining 

establishments 
to 
continue 

providing delivery services and 

offering takeout, but restaurants 

may only let five people inside at 

a time to retrieve their orders. 

Customers 
must 
maintain 

six feet of distance between 

themselves, in accordance with 

social distancing protocols from 

public health authorities.

In 
a 
statement, 
Whitmer 

urged Michiganders to act with 

caution when they go into public 

spaces.

“This disease is a challenge 

unlike any we’ve experienced 

in 
our 
lifetimes,” 
Whitmer 

said. “Fighting it will cause 

significant 
but 
temporary 

changes to our daily lives. By 

practicing social distancing and 

taking aggressive action now, 

the state is working to mitigate 

the spread of coronavirus so 

we reduce the risk that our 

health care system becomes 

overwhelmed. This is about 

saving lives. Michiganders are 

tough and we are going to get 

through this, but it will require 

everyone doing their part. That 

means making smart choices and 

not putting yourself or others at 

risk by going out in public unless 

it is absolutely necessary.”

Social distancing refers to 

people maintaining six feet of 

space between one another and 

avoiding being in situations of 

close proximity to others as 

much as possible. 

In the press release, Joneigh 

S. Khaldun, Michigan’s chief 

medical executive and chief 

deputy director for health at the 

Michigan Department of Health 

and Human Services, said this 

was an important step to protect 

people 
from 
the 
spread 
of 

coronavirus.

michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Tuesday, March 17, 2020

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-NINE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM

Whitmer orders all restaurants, bars to close
temporarily to slow spread of coronavirus

Executive order goes 
into action at 3 p.m. 
Monday, follows suit 
of several other states, 
expected to last for 
next two weeks at least

ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily

Following an announcement from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, local restaurants move to carry-out-only service.

LIAT WEINSTEIN

Daily News Editor

See RESTAURANTS, Page 3

GOT A NEWS TIP?
Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail 
news@michigandaily.com and let us know.

INDEX
Vol. CXXIX, No. 85
©2020 The Michigan Daily

N E W S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

O P I N I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
michigandaily.com

For more stories and coverage, visit
Follow The Daily 
on Instagram, 
@michigandaily

ANN ARBOR

Minutes before the March 

16 Ann Arbor City Council 

meeting, Mayor Christopher 

Taylor declared a local state 

of emergency regarding the 

current COVID-19 situation. 

Beginning March 17, all city 

of Ann Arbor buildings and 

non-critical services will be 

closed until April 5. 

According to Taylor, trash 

and recycling pickup, drinking 

water, waste water, police and 

fire services will be continued. 

City Council addresses 
COVID-19 concerns

FRANCESCA DUONG

Daily Staff Reporter 

Mayor calls 
on residents 
to stay home

‘U’ libraries, dining halls to shut down

VP of Student Life, UHS director urge students to return home if circumstances allow

Shortly after Gov. Gretchen 

Whitmer 
issued 
an 
executive 

order to close all restaurants, bars 

and entertainment venues in the 

state on Monday, the University 

of Michigan closed libraries and 

moved dining halls to take-out 

only meals as fears about the 

spread of coronavirus continue 

to grow. The closure went into 

effect at 3 p.m. and will affect all 

Michigan Dining locations and 

University libraries. 

In a message on the University 

Library’s 
Twitter 
account, 

University officials announced 

that libraries would close at 3 p.m. 

but assured students, faculty and 

staff that most library resources 

would remain available online. 

A separate post on the Michigan 

Dining Twitter account notified 

students that beginning Monday 

night, dining halls across campus 

will not offer seating and will 

only serve takeout meals. Though 

residential halls remain open, 

University 
officials 
continue 

to encourage students to leave 

campus if they are able to in order 

to promote responsible social 

distancing. 

Social 
distancing 
includes 

limiting 
large 
gatherings 
of 

people, maintaining a distance of 

six feet in between one another 

and staying home as often as 

possible. 

In a press release, Whitmer 

said closing public spaces and 

disrupting 
daily 
routines 
is 

necessary in order to combat 

the virus and slow its spread. 

Whitmer highlighted the need 

for people to make individual 

sacrifices that contribute to these 

efforts. 

“This is about saving lives,” 

Whitmer 
said. 
“Michiganders 

are tough and we are going to get 

through this, but it will require 

everyone doing their part. That 

means making smart choices and 

not putting yourself or others at 

risk by going out in public unless it 

is absolutely necessary.” 

See COVID-19, Page 3

LEAH GRAHAM

Managing News Editor

See LIBRARY, Page 3

ALEC COHEN/Daily

As of 3 p.m. Monday, all libraries and dining halls will halt normal operation.

