Jacksonville made global news today by announcing that the beaches would re-open just a few short weeks after they were shut down. It happened to be that the opening was on the same day that the state of Florida announced its highest daily positive test number. That's right: More than 1,400 Floridians tested positive on the same day our Mayor, Lenny Curry, decided to reduce restrictions and increase public gatherings.
For now, officials have attached a laundry list of arbitrary and confusing restrictions to the right to be at the beach, so we can assume that the rules will also be enforced through the arbitrary feelings of whatever officer happens to be around at the moment.
The mayor has reserved the right to cancel this order and re-close the beaches if and when he deems necessary, so at least he's left himself an out if it becomes too obvious that this was a bad move.
Unfortunately, as mentioned above, this move has caught the attention of national and international journalists alike. While people in other states and nations look on at our slow response, high infection rates, and high mortality rates with horror, they're not waiting to see if this was a bad decision or not.
Even if individuals at the beach can show some restraint and follow the guidelines for social distancing, it's likely that this will be one of the negative facts that Jacksonville is known for outside of North Florida. It certainly won't be helping our image for tourist business, and it may even cause Duval natives to be viewed suspiciously if they try to travel abroad.
Hopefully the fallout is minimal and Friday's numbers stay at the top of the record books for a long time.
