WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Phase 2.5 has been a much-welcomed step forward for several businesses that couldn't open for the past 6 months.
Places like Gyms and bowling alleys were allowed to reopen starting last Friday.
Newly reopened business Rock Box Bouldering in Winston-Salem decided to stay open on a holiday.
“The best part has been seeing all of our community members come back I didn’t see them anywhere else,” Ben Burgess owner of Rock Box said. “This was the place we gathered.”
Rock Box Bouldering rock climbing gym reopened Saturday.
“Usually on any given day, we’d have like 50 to 70 check-in. So over two days having over 70 to 90 people is like about 70 to 80 percent of what we're used to,” Burgess said. “It gives a little bit of hope we’ll get back on our feet.”
They're only allowing members their first two weeks, and plan to keep capacity smaller than Governor Roy Cooper's 30 percent requirement.
“For us, that’d be like 40 to 50 people, that’s a lot,” Burgess said. “ So we figured we’d keep it at 15 people and it feels totally safe.”
Folks bounced into Surge Trampoline Park in Winston-Salem as well.
“I was surprised because we have 11 other parks they all only had only 20 to 30 people to begin with,” Surge district manager Jane Walker said. “On their first day, we had 154.
Walker said they have COVID-19 precautions in place.
Those requirements included wiping equipment down and guests washing their hands every 30 minutes.
"Everything was perfect it was a blessing, Walker said. “It really was nice to be open and have the kids, and our first day we had some of our favorite families came in.”
Both businesses said there’s nothing they’d change.
As more businesses open up health experts encourage folks to use their best judgment and put health and safety first.