"Stay Home" extension has lawmakers and business owners concerned

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — In an announcement that many expected, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed a new executive order that extends her "Stay Safe, Stay Home" order through the end of the month. The new order now expires May 1. But not all Michigan lawmakers voted in favor of it. Some of them say it's hurting businesses who may have to close for good. "Now is not the time to pull back at all, it is the time to identify. That’s exactly what we’re doing,” said Whitmer during a press briefing on Thursday. “This doesn’t mean that everything is going to go back to normal on the 30th. However, we do know for the next 3 weeks we have to take these important actions.” There are new rules for companies to limit exposure to others. The governor also wants big box stores to close certain sections like flooring, garden centers and plant nurseries. That news caused a last-minute surge to stores like Lowe's, where people waited in line for nearly an hour to get things like paint. “If you’re not buying food or medicine or other essential items, you should not be going to the store," said Whitmer. Some state lawmakers say the extension is hurting businesses. Especially the ones who can safely abide by social distancing guidelines like landscapers and greenhouses. Big-box stores like Home Depot had already been allowed to sell plants until the governor's new request on Thursday, but local companies without that same opportunity could now go bankrupt. “I have heard abundantly loud and clear from people that this idea of keeping this shutdown without any flexibility to go on towards the end of the month and possibly into June, as the governor has suggested, it’s just not practical,” said State Representative Steven Johnson. Johnson voted against the governor's extension, and told FOX 17 he's received more calls from constituents on this issue, that any other during his time in office. “Let’s get away from essential and non-essential, because every job is really essential, and let’s talk about safety," he said. "What can we do safely. You talk about people who are working outside, landscapers who are by themselves, well they can do that safely.” Johnson and other lawmakers tell us they're tired of what they call double standards, like lawn crews being able to work at public parks, but people like local home builders cannot build houses. One man found Grand Rapids city crews working at MacKay-Jaycees Park. He wondered if the city can work, why can local companies do the same thing.