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| ‘We are Trying to Protect Our Own’: The Towns Keeping Part-Timers Out | ‘We are Trying to Protect Our Own’: The Towns Keeping Part-Timers Out |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| John Lowry vacationed in Door County, Wis., when he was a child. He loved it so much that 30 years ago he moved there. It’s not in his nature to tell people who share his fondness for what he calls “the Cape Cod of the Midwest” to please just stay away. | John Lowry vacationed in Door County, Wis., when he was a child. He loved it so much that 30 years ago he moved there. It’s not in his nature to tell people who share his fondness for what he calls “the Cape Cod of the Midwest” to please just stay away. |
| Mr. Lowry has always supported the rights of property owners, and generally believes in freedom from too much government interference. He once registered as a Republican, but now considers himself “a conservative liberal or a liberal conservative.” He knows Door County’s vacation homeowners pay property taxes and should be able to enjoy their homes. But these are extraordinary times. | Mr. Lowry has always supported the rights of property owners, and generally believes in freedom from too much government interference. He once registered as a Republican, but now considers himself “a conservative liberal or a liberal conservative.” He knows Door County’s vacation homeowners pay property taxes and should be able to enjoy their homes. But these are extraordinary times. |
| On a recent morning, Mr. Lowry, 79, the chairman of the town board in the Door County community of Liberty Grove, sat down and wrote a message unlike any other he’s ever delivered to this community that thrives because of its two million visitors each year. | On a recent morning, Mr. Lowry, 79, the chairman of the town board in the Door County community of Liberty Grove, sat down and wrote a message unlike any other he’s ever delivered to this community that thrives because of its two million visitors each year. |
| “If you have a seasonal home in Liberty Grove, please stay at your winter homes at this time,” said the advisory that was posted to the town website. | “If you have a seasonal home in Liberty Grove, please stay at your winter homes at this time,” said the advisory that was posted to the town website. |
| “It’s difficult to tell somebody to please don’t come,” he wrote. “But under this circumstance, it doesn’t make sense for anybody.” | “It’s difficult to tell somebody to please don’t come,” he wrote. “But under this circumstance, it doesn’t make sense for anybody.” |
| As the coronavirus quickly spreads across the nation’s urban centers, local leaders in some rural areas — who prize their independent, conservative values that tend toward a live-and-let-live attitude — are taking actions that contradict their ethos in order to keep the virus away. | As the coronavirus quickly spreads across the nation’s urban centers, local leaders in some rural areas — who prize their independent, conservative values that tend toward a live-and-let-live attitude — are taking actions that contradict their ethos in order to keep the virus away. |
| Like Door County, a peninsula that juts between Green Bay and Lake Michigan, many communities are setting up new rules aimed at sealing off borders to part-time residents, part of a patchwork of regulations about which businesses can remain open and under what circumstances citizens are allowed to be out of their homes. | Like Door County, a peninsula that juts between Green Bay and Lake Michigan, many communities are setting up new rules aimed at sealing off borders to part-time residents, part of a patchwork of regulations about which businesses can remain open and under what circumstances citizens are allowed to be out of their homes. |
| Fear is driving many of these decisions. | Fear is driving many of these decisions. |
| Some officials have anguished over their actions, chiefly because they go against the beliefs of their communities. | Some officials have anguished over their actions, chiefly because they go against the beliefs of their communities. |
| In New York’s Catskills region, residents still complain about government moves decades ago to seize land surrounding a key watershed. Yet fearful of the virus’s spread, a handful of rural counties have issued bluntly worded orders for second homeowners to stay away. | In New York’s Catskills region, residents still complain about government moves decades ago to seize land surrounding a key watershed. Yet fearful of the virus’s spread, a handful of rural counties have issued bluntly worded orders for second homeowners to stay away. |
| “We are a very strong property rights county,” said Shelly Johnson-Bennett, the planning and watershed affairs director for Delaware County, N.Y. “But we’re really trying to get people to understand how dire this is. We don’t want anyone to die.” | “We are a very strong property rights county,” said Shelly Johnson-Bennett, the planning and watershed affairs director for Delaware County, N.Y. “But we’re really trying to get people to understand how dire this is. We don’t want anyone to die.” |
| Door County officials decided last week to declare a public emergency for the interconnected web of communities that is home to about 27,000 full-time residents scattered across the 80-mile-long peninsula. The county had not yet registered any infections, but the declaration freed up resources in case people started getting sick. | Door County officials decided last week to declare a public emergency for the interconnected web of communities that is home to about 27,000 full-time residents scattered across the 80-mile-long peninsula. The county had not yet registered any infections, but the declaration freed up resources in case people started getting sick. |
| Cars with out-of-state license plates were showing up in the little towns across the county where shops were still boarded up for the winter. Hundreds of vehicles, one county official said. | Cars with out-of-state license plates were showing up in the little towns across the county where shops were still boarded up for the winter. Hundreds of vehicles, one county official said. |
| People started joking about shutting down access to bridges that lead to the northern part of the peninsula. As the days passed, the jokes turned serious with texts and emails sent to officials calling for checkpoints at the county borders to block anyone with out-of-state drivers’ licenses from entering. People were getting scared. | People started joking about shutting down access to bridges that lead to the northern part of the peninsula. As the days passed, the jokes turned serious with texts and emails sent to officials calling for checkpoints at the county borders to block anyone with out-of-state drivers’ licenses from entering. People were getting scared. |
| “We are trying to protect our own, if you will,” said David Lienau, chairman of the Door County board of supervisors. | “We are trying to protect our own, if you will,” said David Lienau, chairman of the Door County board of supervisors. |
| That meant protecting Door County from people like Jennifer Miller LaRiccia who, her whole life, has considered herself one of Door County’s own. | That meant protecting Door County from people like Jennifer Miller LaRiccia who, her whole life, has considered herself one of Door County’s own. |
| Ms. LaRiccia’s remote, three-bedroom cabin in an unincorporated spot called Whitefish Bay has been in her family since 1926, when her great-grandfather tacked the tamarack logs together himself to craft the rustic two-story structure with a stone fireplace and vaulted ceilings. She spent childhood summers there, taking dips in the chilly lake and walking barefoot along pine cone-lined roads. | Ms. LaRiccia’s remote, three-bedroom cabin in an unincorporated spot called Whitefish Bay has been in her family since 1926, when her great-grandfather tacked the tamarack logs together himself to craft the rustic two-story structure with a stone fireplace and vaulted ceilings. She spent childhood summers there, taking dips in the chilly lake and walking barefoot along pine cone-lined roads. |
| She lives in Bay Village, Ohio, a far western suburb of Cleveland, but visits her cabin every year in early May to open it for renters, blocking off two weeks for herself and her family over Memorial Day. She returns in October for alone time. | She lives in Bay Village, Ohio, a far western suburb of Cleveland, but visits her cabin every year in early May to open it for renters, blocking off two weeks for herself and her family over Memorial Day. She returns in October for alone time. |
| The cabin’s seclusion in the middle of bushy trees and steps away from an empty stretch of beach has always been part of its allure — but now, in the middle of a global pandemic, it’s more appealing than ever. | The cabin’s seclusion in the middle of bushy trees and steps away from an empty stretch of beach has always been part of its allure — but now, in the middle of a global pandemic, it’s more appealing than ever. |
| Earlier this month, coronavirus had yet to hit Cleveland hard, but Ms. LaRiccia believed it was coming. Her city, with its world-class hospitals, was bound to lure patients seeking care. Families of those patients would get sick. Health care workers would fall ill. Infections would spread. It was just a matter of time. | Earlier this month, coronavirus had yet to hit Cleveland hard, but Ms. LaRiccia believed it was coming. Her city, with its world-class hospitals, was bound to lure patients seeking care. Families of those patients would get sick. Health care workers would fall ill. Infections would spread. It was just a matter of time. |
| Ms. LaRiccia wanted to get out. But this past week as she was thinking of fleeing to her vacation home, Mr. Lowry, in Liberty Grove, about a 30-minute drive from Ms. LaRiccia’s cabin, was getting increasingly worried. | Ms. LaRiccia wanted to get out. But this past week as she was thinking of fleeing to her vacation home, Mr. Lowry, in Liberty Grove, about a 30-minute drive from Ms. LaRiccia’s cabin, was getting increasingly worried. |
| Updated June 22, 2020 | Updated June 22, 2020 |
| A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico. | A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico. |
| The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth. | The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth. |
| The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave. | The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave. |
| So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement. | So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement. |
| Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. | Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. |
| A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study. | A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study. |
| The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April. | The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April. |
| States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people. | States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people. |
| Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days. | Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days. |
| If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) | If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) |
| If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. | If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. |
| If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested. | If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested. |
| Most of Mr. Lowry’s neighbors were taking the outbreak seriously. Schools had closed. Officials had canceled a half marathon to prevent disease spread. Hotels had canceled reservations through at least April. The city of Jacksonport even canceled Maifest, a decades-old event on Memorial Day weekend with an art fair, funnel cakes and kolaches that traditionally kicks off the summer season. | |
| Mr. Lowry felt like he should be doing more. He knew older residents are more at risk of death from the virus, and like him, most of his neighbors are senior citizens. Many people are in Door County, where the median age of residents is 52. | |
| The nearby community of Sister Bay was having an emergency meeting, and Mr. Lowry decided to attend to see if he could glean ideas to come up with better solutions. | |
| What he heard rattled him. | What he heard rattled him. |
| Health officials said the main hospital had capacity for 25 patients and could surge up to only about 50 if needed. Just four intensive care beds were available. Nurses had been beckoned to staff a local hotline that was being inundated with worried callers. The manager of the local Piggly Wiggly, one of a few grocery stores on the tip of the peninsula, talked about difficulties securing five pallets of toilet paper to alleviate a shortage. | Health officials said the main hospital had capacity for 25 patients and could surge up to only about 50 if needed. Just four intensive care beds were available. Nurses had been beckoned to staff a local hotline that was being inundated with worried callers. The manager of the local Piggly Wiggly, one of a few grocery stores on the tip of the peninsula, talked about difficulties securing five pallets of toilet paper to alleviate a shortage. |
| “Wow,” Mr. Lowry kept thinking to himself as he listened. “What can we do to protect our residents?” | “Wow,” Mr. Lowry kept thinking to himself as he listened. “What can we do to protect our residents?” |
| He thought about his own values, and how foreign it would be to tell people to stay away from their own property. He had voted for President Trump in 2016, the same as the majority of other residents of Door County. The county voted Republican up and down the ballot. He was a homeowner and even owned an art gallery and home accessories store. How did any of that measure against a deadly virus? | He thought about his own values, and how foreign it would be to tell people to stay away from their own property. He had voted for President Trump in 2016, the same as the majority of other residents of Door County. The county voted Republican up and down the ballot. He was a homeowner and even owned an art gallery and home accessories store. How did any of that measure against a deadly virus? |
| His town board was meeting the following night, but Mr. Lowry decided officials needed to take immediate action. He wrote the advisory telling second homeowners to stay away, and notified the ones who had already arrived that they should self-isolate for 14 days. | His town board was meeting the following night, but Mr. Lowry decided officials needed to take immediate action. He wrote the advisory telling second homeowners to stay away, and notified the ones who had already arrived that they should self-isolate for 14 days. |
| Other communities followed and the county itself issued a new, strongly worded advisory with similar pleadings. Even the state chimed in, with the governor later in the week telling residents to avoid travel of any kind. | Other communities followed and the county itself issued a new, strongly worded advisory with similar pleadings. Even the state chimed in, with the governor later in the week telling residents to avoid travel of any kind. |
| Back in Ohio, Ms. LaRiccia was scrolling through Facebook when the admonitions to stay away from Door County popped up. Commenters were starting to bicker. | Back in Ohio, Ms. LaRiccia was scrolling through Facebook when the admonitions to stay away from Door County popped up. Commenters were starting to bicker. |
| She considered the tension that sometimes arose between full-time and seasonal residents. The people who came from Chicago and Milwaukee with their big-city lifestyles. They were young. They sometimes got rowdy. Hoping to separate herself from that crowd, she had always invited full-time resident neighbors each October for poetry readings and chili soup lunches. | She considered the tension that sometimes arose between full-time and seasonal residents. The people who came from Chicago and Milwaukee with their big-city lifestyles. They were young. They sometimes got rowdy. Hoping to separate herself from that crowd, she had always invited full-time resident neighbors each October for poetry readings and chili soup lunches. |
| Ms. LaRiccia started to get angry about officials telling her she couldn’t visit her own home. She pays her taxes and shops locally when she visits. Her family has been on the peninsula longer than most people who live there now. Vacationers like her have poured millions of dollars into the county’s economy. | Ms. LaRiccia started to get angry about officials telling her she couldn’t visit her own home. She pays her taxes and shops locally when she visits. Her family has been on the peninsula longer than most people who live there now. Vacationers like her have poured millions of dollars into the county’s economy. |
| “Maybe some of us wanted to get away and come up there,” she said. | “Maybe some of us wanted to get away and come up there,” she said. |
| But then she thought about the full-time residents. They were scared. And really, does anyone know how best to stop the spread of this pandemic? Ms. LaRiccia decided to stay home. | But then she thought about the full-time residents. They were scared. And really, does anyone know how best to stop the spread of this pandemic? Ms. LaRiccia decided to stay home. |
| “It’s the right thing to do for our country and it’s our personal responsibility to do what’s necessary to stop this virus,” she said. “Even if we don’t understand it.” | “It’s the right thing to do for our country and it’s our personal responsibility to do what’s necessary to stop this virus,” she said. “Even if we don’t understand it.” |