A number of South Florida’s largest shopping malls reopened their doors Monday after being closed for two months during the coronavirus pandemic.
In Broward County, Sawgrass Mills opened back up at 11 a.m., but the Sunrise mall will look much different at the start to keep in line with guidelines for social distancing from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
CORONAVIRUS LATEST
Masks will be offered while signs will encourage shoppers to keep at least six feet apart from one another. The mall will not provide strollers, and some restroom urinals and sinks will be taped off.
Mall hours will be altered to 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday through Saturday and 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday until further notice.
A number of other South Florida malls were reopening or set to reopen with heightened cleaning and social distancing practices to safeguard shoppers, retailers and employee.
Simon, which operates Sawgrass Mills, said it was also reopening Coral Square, Dadeland Mall, The Falls, Florida Keys Outlet Marketplace and Miami International Mall on Monday.
In Fort Lauderdale, The Galleria mall reopened with daily limited hours from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday, with some stores having different hours.
Gulfstream Park Village in Hallandale Beach reopened Monday, though the casino and some stores and restaurants will remain closed longer. Another mall, Pembroke Lakes Mall, is scheduled to open Tuesday.
“We have not made any changes yet because we just opened today. We have not made any changes, everything is the same, we are going to be serving. Of course we’re going to take precaution,” said Alex Kay, owner of Art Plex Photo in Gulfstream.
“Our goal is to work with our tenants to make sure that they are in compliance with all the local requirements,” said Albert Mulet, assistant general manager of Gulfstream Park Village.
In Miami-Dade, CityPlace Doral reopened on a modified schedule, Monday to Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday noon to 6 p.m., to allow additional time for cleaning and disinfection of all common areas.
Brickell City Centre announced that it will begin to reopen starting Friday, May 22, with new adjusted hours Monday to Saturday 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Sunday from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
The mall reopenings come as Broward and Miami-Dade counties join the state of Florida in phase one of reopening on Monday, which allows retail shops to open at 50 percent capacity.
