CLAYTON, Mo. – Three St. Louis County Council members spent the morning talking with County Executive Sam Page about their plan to reopen the economy. So far, there are have been over 3,000 positive coronavirus cases and 159 deaths in St. Louis County this year.

Councilmen Tim Fitch, Ernie Trakas, and Mark Harder, say their plan is based on the phased plan for the state of Missouri and other ones developed around the United States. Nashville released a phased plan last week. You can find out their roadmap to reopening, reported on by our sister station, WKRN.

The proposal reopens businesses by sector based on they way they deal with customers. The phased approach would take place over eight weeks. Most businesses would be open in four weeks. It depends managing on keeping the number of new coronavirus cases low.

Councilman Fitch says county residents need to know about a timeline to reopen. Currently, Page’s order was in place indefinitely. Fitch says after talking with Page, the County Executive likes most of the councilmen’s plan, it is the timeline they aren’t agreeing on yet.

Coronavirus cases in St. Louis County do not seem to be in decline. But, Councilman Fitch said in a statement, “We cannot wait for ideal conditions in order to reopen or it may be too late to recover.”

“We are looking at a loss in sales tax revenue that could exceed 50% for the month of April alone and potentially be even greater for May,” said Councilman Harder.

Dr. Alex Garza, the Incident Commander of the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force, said Wednesday said that reopening is possible if social distancing is in place to keep transmission low.

A state of emergency was declared in St. Louis County because of a coronavirus outbreak on March 13, 2020. A stay-at-home order has been in place since March 23 and has been extended indefinitely.

Eureka, a town located in western St. Louis County, has announced that it will be reopening for business on May 4, 2020. This is in line with what St. Charles County and the rest of the state of Missouri plan to do.

FOX2 News will have more coming up tonight, including reaction from Sam Page.

Plan:

County Council members Mark Harder, @ernietrakas and I just met with CE Sam Page to deliver our plan to safely reopen St. Louis County. We will share it with the media at noon today in front of the County Government building in Clayton. #ReopenTheCounty pic.twitter.com/datFIOFiMp — Tim Fitch (@ChiefTimFitch) April 30, 2020