NORTH KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Several area leaders are meeting this week to formulate plans on how to re-open the Kansas City metro following weeks of stay-at-home orders.
Kansas City, Missouri, and Jackson County are under those orders until May 15. But the statewide orders in Missouri and in Kansas expire on May 3rd at 11:59 p.m.
Under federal recommendations,gyms can reopen under phase one -- if they practice strict social distancing.
Owners of one gym in North Kansas City are eager to get their clients back to working out, but still are waiting for more guidance.
"The hardest part for me has been canceling plans and trying to make plans when you don't know the future," J.P. Price, co-owner and coach at Strong Barbell Club, said.
The gym, located at 1200 Swift Street, is preparing to re-open next week after North Kansas City joined Clay and Cass counties in rolling back their stay at home orders.
"What we're expecting from now until then, is to learn protocol that we need to do to keep things as clean as we need to, to keep the right amount of people in our building at a time," Price told 41 Action News.
Price and co-owner Ethan Harak hope leaders around the area are clear when drafting their recommendations.
"Because you hear things on the national, state, county and city level and then knowing which plans to follow and the fact that nobody is on the same page at all, it's really, really, challenging," Price said.
During the closure, Price and Harak didn't apply for a small business loan to pay the bills.
"We know that there are other businesses out there that are much more desperate than us,” Harak said, “We thought we would let them have it essentially.”
They did, however, use the down time to renovate the facility before its one-year anniversary.
"Painted yesterday. We're doing trim today and then we'll finish everything hopefully by the middle of the week and have everything put together by the weekend," Price said.
When they officially open again, some rules already in place will continue for a while.
"I know you're used to walking in here and doing what you want to, but go right to the bathroom, don't touch anybody. Wash your hands still. Don't touch anybody. And then wash everything you touch after you touch it," Price said.