Theaters closed but you can do a drive-in movie. A list of what’s open around Charlotte

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 jmarusak@charlotteobserver.com.

What’s still open?

▪ Drive-in movie theaters. Hounds Drive-in in Kings Mountain is temporarily requiring customers to remain in their cars during movies, with no opening of hatches or sitting on the back of a trucks allowed, according to its website. People can bring food until the crisis ends, as the concession stand is closed.

▪ Post offices

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

“We have been providing a critical service for people,” Jay Patel, a UPS franchisee with five south Charlotte UPS retail stores, told the Observer Saturday. Explaining why the 75 Charlotte area UPS retail stores remain open, Patel referenced the numerous people having their medications shipped to the stores.

UPS stores such as the one on Rea Road in Blakeney Crossing provide essential services for people and businesses such as shipping, mail and package receiving, printing, scanning, faxing and notary signatures, Patel said

▪ Day care centers

▪ Banks.

Some Wells Fargo branches are closed because of a high number of employee absences due to illness, school closings and other reasons. Remaining employees at those branches have been moved to other, busier branches. Closed are the Kenilworth, Davidson, Mooresville Plaza, and Dunn Commons branches, among others. The Derita branch is open 1 hour a day.

Effective Friday night, Bank of America plans to modify its weekday branch hours to 10 a.m.-4 p.m., the Observer reported. On Saturday, branches will return to regular hours. Bank officials said Friday they added 1,000 new workers to the bank’s consumer and small business banking group in March to help customers. The bank has hired 1,700 new employees this month, according to a bank memo, the Observer reported Friday.

Some Truist branches without drive-thru lanes that serve what the bank calls a critical community need will remain open, but with “regular enhanced cleaning and sanitization protocols,.” according to a Truist news release. Branches offering in-branch consultations “will incorporate controlled access protocols for lobbies to continue to serve clients in a safe and secure manner” officials said in the release. “As part of this initiative, some branches will temporarily close and those teammates will be redeployed to nearby open branches. “

More details on affected Truist locations will be provided soon on the Truist Coronavirus Information website.

▪ Public transit. Starting Wednesday, Charlotte Area Transit System passengers can ride light rail and buses for free — but on much-reduced schedules, the Observer has reported. The Blue Line light rail service will follow a Sunday schedule, starting Wednesday. CATS bus service will run on a Saturday schedule Mondays through Saturdays and on the regular Sunday schedule on Sundays. The route 290-Davidson Shuttle will not run.

Express bus routes will operate two trips in the morning and two in the afternoon weekdays. Four express routes — 41X-Steele Creek, 61X-Arboretum, 65X-Matthews and 88X-Mountain Island — will stop operating.

Schedule modifications are at RideTransit.org. Riders with questions should email TellTransit@charlottenc.gov or call 704-336-RIDE (7433).

Sales of monthly passes have been suspended. Those who have already bought April passes can exchange them for another pass at some future date.

On Monday, March 23, the N.C. Department of Transportation reduced daily trips of its passenger rail service, NC By Train, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Piedmont trains 73, 74, 77 and 78 stopped operating until further notice. Piedmont trains 75 and 76, plus Carolinian trains 79 and 80, will continue operating on normal schedules.

Amtrak is waiving change fees on all existing or new reservations made before April 30. Passengers can modify their trip on Amtrak.com, or find their reservation on the home screen in the Amtrak app. To cancel a reservation with no fee, passengers must call 800-BY-TRAIN — 800-298-7246 — and speak with an agent.

▪ 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.

On Thursday, County Manager Dena Diorio said local officials believe it’s safe for the public to use Mecklenburg parks so long as social distancing is observed, even in the outdoor space.

Local grocery options amid coronavirus

▪ Grocery stores, many with reduced evening and overnight hours. Many now offer specific senior hours for elderly shoppers only.

For more information on getting groceries delivered, local grocery store options and other changes, click here.

How to order groceries online — for some, it’s no longer a luxury, but a necessity.

Adopting pets and other places still open

▪ 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.

▪ Pet day care and boarding facilities. At Puptown Charlotte on Statesville Road, curbside drop-off and pickup are available, allowing customers to stay in their cars, owner Kristen Hall Shirley told the Observer. Puptown also can give “FaceTime tours” of the facility while new customers wait outside, she said. “Although it’s such an uncertain time, I’m really grateful to be surrounded by dogs,” Shirley told the Observer. “They always know how to put a smile on my face.”

▪ Veterinary hospitals. Business has been brisk, probably because more people are at home, David Hoe, CEO of Veterinary Management Inc., told the Observer. VMI owns multiple Charlotte area vet hospitals. Hoe said his locations have set up curbside check-in in response to COVID-19. “Pet owners are kept out of the building, and we will FaceTime or call the pet owner who waits in the car,” Hoe said. “It’s quite efficient and working very well.”

▪ 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

▪ Dry cleaners

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

▪ Convenience stores/gas stations

▪ Auto care centers

▪ Car dealerships. Scott Clark Auto Group is offering vehicle pickup and delivery for car service, vehicle delivery for at home test drives for sales, and discounts to customers who drop their cars off rather than wait for their cars, company officials announced Thursday. Its dealerships also are installing a hospital-grade air purification system for the safety of customers and employees.

▪ Hospitals, with visitor restrictions

▪ Wireless provider stores. While large national providers such as AT&T continue to close many of their outlets temporarily, some locations are being kept open for the essential services provided to emergency responders, healthcare workers and government users, according to an AT&T news release on Friday.

In announcing further store closings on Friday, AT&T officials said “where possible, we will keep at least one retail location open within a 20-mile radius in urban and suburban areas, and just over a 30-mile radius in rural areas.”

Christopher Callender told the Observer on Saturday that his AT&T store remains open in Sun Valley Commons at 6701 Old Monroe Road, Indian Trail.

“Per our government contract with FirstNet/First Responders, we are considered an essential business as we can assist in helping not only these First Responders and their families stay connected, but other people in the community that might need our help,” Callender said in an email.

▪ 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.

Customers are not allowed to shop in the aisles at the ABC store for now. Instead, employees take orders at the door and pick up requested items. Customers then go directly to the check out counter to pay.

▪ 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.

Staff Writer Austin Weinstein contributed.