What’s open amid the COVID-19 outbreak? Liquor stores, banks, post offices, car washes and more

Some businesses have temporarily closed to the public, curtailed hours, canceled or postponed events, and laid-off workers amid COVID-19. Gov. Roy Cooper ordered restaurants and pubs to close their dining rooms and bars except for take-out and delivery orders.

Here are everyday places that remain open. This list will be updated over time.

Let us know what else to include on this list by emailing reporter Joe Marusak at [email protected]:

▪ Post offices

▪ UPS and FedEx locations. Both have implemented additional safety precautions, as listed on UPS.com and FedEx.com.

▪ Day care centers

▪ Banks

▪ Public transit

▪ Parks and greenways. All Mecklenburg County parks, nature preserves and greenways are open to the public except for organized athletics, the county announced. “With lots of room to keep a safe social distance, they’re the perfect place to get some healthy exercise,” Mecklenburg Park and Recreation officials tweeted March 18.

▪ U.S. National Whitewater Center. Some large events have been canceled. Trails are open, as of March 19, subject to weather conditions. See the center’s event calendar for the latest and details on postponements for large events.

▪ Pharmacies

▪ Home improvement stores (check with individual stores; some have reduced hours)

▪ Convenience stores/gas stations

▪ Auto care centers

▪ Car dealerships

▪ Hospitals, with visitor restrictions

▪ Grocery stores, many with reduced evening and overnight hours.

▪ The CMPD Animal Care & Control animal adoption center. The center at 8315 Byrum Drive in Charlotte remains open for routine business, including visitors looking for a lost pet, reclaiming a pet and interested in adopting an animal.

Hours are 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Owner surrenders are by appointment only by calling 704-336-3799.

▪ ABC stores. Some county ABC boards are limiting store hours in response to the coronavirus outbreak, however. Mecklenburg ABC store hours are changing temporarily to 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, starting Thursday, March 19. Mooresville ABC stores also will close at 7 p.m., beginning March 19, until further notice.

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▪ Salons. Beauty professionals at Salons by JC, for instance, already sanitize the work space between every service, Luis Moreno, owner of three Salons by JC locations in south Charlotte, told the Observer. Because of the coronavirus, the salons’ concierge service is all the more “focused on keeping our salons clean, and sanitizing throughout the day,” he said.

▪ Video stores. At VisArt Video, 3104 Eastway Drive in Charlotte, employees will deliver DVD rentals curbside at a customer’s request.

▪Car washes. Autobell Car Wash is temporarily adding a “hospital-grade” disinfectant spray to all interior car cleanings amid the COVID-19 outbreak, president/CEO Chuck Howard said. The disinfectant is mandatory and will add $3 to your bill “to offset associated costs,” Howard posted in an online message to customers.