Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced a Stay at Home order, which includes:
Subject to the exceptions in section 7, all individuals currently living within the State of Michigan are ordered to stay at home or at their place of residence. Subject to the same exceptions, all public and private gatherings of any number of people occurring among persons not part of a single household are prohibited.”
The Exception is:
Individuals may leave their home or place of residence, and travel as necessary: To engage in outdoor activity, including walking, hiking, running, cycling, or any other recreational activity consistent with remaining at least six feet from people from outside the individual’s household.
While announcing the order, Governor Whitmer added, “You can go outside, get that fresh air… just be smart about it.”
UPDATE: In order to comply with this order, the Michigan DNR has announced all campgrounds, overnight lodging facilities, and shelters are closed through April 13th. State parks and recreation areas do remain open.
UPDATE: Kayaking and stand up paddle boarding are also allowed during this time as long as social distancing is practiced.
City of Detroit Statement on Park Usage
The City’s General Services Department (GSD) issued a statement on park usage during the outbreak:
To reduce the spread of COVID-19, the City of Detroit has closed all of its recreation centers through April 5, 2020. Park facilities such as clubhouses, community centers, and public restrooms will also remain closed during this time.
Recent evidence suggests that the COVID-19 virus can live for several days on surfaces such as playgrounds and other “high touch” areas in public spaces. For this reason, please refrain from using playgrounds or other park amenities, and instead focus on taking long walks or bike rides, practicing social distancing of at least 6 feet from other individuals.
Reducing Mental Stress
We have signed on to the National Recreation and Parks Association statement supporting the safe use of parks and open spaces during the COVID-19 outbreak. We agree that we need our parks, trails, sidewalks, and bike pathways more than ever, not just to get around, but to keep our wits.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has flagged mental health as a top concern associated with the COVID-19 outbreak. We recognize that social distancing may take a toll on our mental health, especially during high-stress and anxiety-producing global public health emergencies. We also know that parks provide a connection to the outdoors and green space as well as opportunities for physical activity which studies demonstrate reduces stress and improves mental health.
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Our local parks, trails and open spaces have always served as places where people can find respite and seek peace and restoration. During this time of uncertainty, these places are needed now more than ever. Our nation’s park and recreation professionals are working hard to maintain these spaces and keep them safe, accessible and benefiting our communities during these challenging times. Let us all do our part to use them in a way that respects each other and public health guidance.
Sad News from Chicago
John LaPlante recently passed from the coronavirus. He was “a staunch advocate for bicycle lanes” in Chicago, but he also played a major role in Detroit.
LaPlante taught a workshop for the Michigan Department of Transportation on how to better design streets for bicyclists and pedestrians. We were able to first bring that workshop to Detroit in 2009. LaPlante brought his extensive engineering knowledge as well as many years of experience implementing it.
The workshop came at a perfect time as we’d recently helped get the City of Detroit’s non-motorized master plan passed by City Council. The Department of Public Works was tasked with implementing the plan and the workshop helped inform the city’s traffic engineers on how to do so.
While we’d been advocating for bike lanes, it was a challenge. This helped turn things around. LaPlante made this a key milestone in Detroit’s transportation history. Shortly afterwards, the city added many more bike lanes around the city, including the ones on Dexter, Grand Boulevard, Conner, Kercheval, Lafayette, and more.
This news only reinforces the responsibility all of us share in reducing the COVID-19 impact for everyone in the community. Stay healthy.
The 
There are many City of Detroit staff that are making this city a better place to bike, walk, and run. One of those staff members recently retired: Ashok Patel, who led the Traffic Engineering Division of the Department of Public Works. We first worked with Mr. Patel to help get the Corktown bike lanes approved. He worked with us and MDOT to bring a road design workshop to the city which led to another citywide investment in bike lanes. His contribution to this progress has been significant!
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