Masks off, doors unlocked: Pandemic restrictions ease in Duluth

DULUTH – The long-promised return to normal following more than a year battling the global COVID-19 pandemic has just about arrived in Duluth.

The doors to City Hall and many other government buildings will reopen Tuesday.

The skywalk was bustling over lunch Thursday as workers continue to return downtown.

And while some businesses still are requiring them, the local mask mandate has been repealed.

But if folks are tempted to declare victory over the virus, public health officials say this is just the next phase in a long road to recovery.

"The response may be waning, but the recovery from the pandemic is what we're starting to move into," said Amy Westbrook, St. Louis County's director of public health. "It's been a really long haul, and I do think our communities have done a lot of work and have tried to do the right thing, regardless of what they think is the right thing."

For the first time since March 2020, Duluth City Hall will be open for walk-in business starting Tuesday, and so will St. Louis County government buildings.

The West Duluth and Mount Royal library branches also will reopen Tuesday, but the downtown branch remains closed until June 7 as construction continues inside. Duluth fire stations plan to reopen to the public later this summer.

Face masks will still be required at the county jail, inside courtrooms and court offices and on public transit. Those who are not vaccinated are encouraged to continue wearing masks indoors, according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

David Ross, CEO of the Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce, said he was "pleased to see the consistency at the national, state and local level" ahead of the Duluth City Council's repeal of the local mask mandate on Monday. The Superior City Council also repealed its mask rules recently.

"It's the kind of consistency that will bring predictability and make decision­making easier for our local businesses," Ross said. "Which is exactly what they've asked for all along."

Staff, patients and visitors at local hospitals continue to be required to wear masks.

As of Thursday there have been 307 deaths out of 18,002 reported COVID-19 infections in St. Louis County. Over the past week new daily cases have fallen to an average of 15 a day. To compare, there were an average of 250 cases per day at the height of the deadly surge last fall and early winter.

"Our trends are looking good, and we continue to see our numbers going down," Westbrook said. "But it has been really tough to move the needle on our percentage of people vaccinated over the last couple of weeks."

Just under half of the county's total population, about 98,000 people, has been fully vaccinated, according to state figures.

That represents close to 60% of those 16 and older in the county. Almost two-thirds of those over 16 have had at least one shot.

"I don't think we've fully reached everyone who is willing to take a vaccine," Westbrook said. "There are people out there who are waiting for a vaccination opportunity that is right for them — right place, right time, right frame of mind for them. That's really who we're trying to reach now."

Brooks Johnson • 218-491-6496