As another measure to combat the coronavirus, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has announced a ban on "non-essential" construction in his state.
The stoppage, announced this morning, goes into effect this Friday at 8:00 p.m.
Construction will be allowed on hospitals, schools, transportation, utilities and affordable housing, Murphy said in a press briefing.
Here is the full text of his announcement:
"All non-essential construction across the state will cease indefinitely effective 8 p.m. Friday. Exemptions to the shutdown include projects that are hospitals and schools, in our transportation and utility sector, the building of affordable housing, other individual housing sites that can adhere to strict limits on the number of workers on site at any given time, emergency repairs and work needed to safely secure a construction site, and other limited instances.”
Besides settings such as schools, hospitals, infrastructure and manufacturing facilities that serve essential industries, the executive order lists the following as essential:
- Residential projects that are exclusively designated as affordable housing;
- Projects already underway involving individual single-family homes, or an individual apartment unit where an individual already resides, with a construction crew of 5 or fewer individuals. This includes additions to single-family homes such as solar panels;
- Projects already underway involving a residential unit for which a tenant or buyer has already entered into a legally binding agreement to occupy the unit by a certain date, and construction is necessary to ensure the unit’s availability by that date;
- Projects necessary for the delivery of essential social services, including homeless shelters;
- Any project that is ordered or contracted for by Federal, State, county, or municipal government, or any project that must be completed to meet a deadline established by the Federal government;
- Any work on a non-essential construction project that is required to physically secure the site of the project, ensure the structural integrity of any buildings on the site, abate any hazards that would exist on the site if the construction were to remain in its current condition, remediate a site, or otherwise ensure that the site and any buildings therein are appropriately protected and safe during the suspension of the project; and
- Any emergency repairs necessary to ensure the health and safety of residents.
The executive order goes on to outline requirements for social distancing on essential jobsites, as well as what to do if an employee is infected.
The Northeast Spa and Pool Association will be seeking further clarity.
This and several other measures come one day after the state suffered its largest loss of life in a 24-hour period to COVID-19, with 275 deaths yesterday.
