The Washington Post reported that dozens of restaurants in Michigan defied state COVID-19 orders and are opening. These owners say there is no data to support the lockdown. The paper reported these establishments have benefited from law enforcement unwilling to fine them and patrons who are willing to travel far distances to support them.
“If we didn’t open, we would have shuttered,” David Koloski, the owner of a diner in the state, told the paper. “Doors closed. Out of the house, out of a job, out of a car. Me and the rest of my staff.”
Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced in late January that the state would allow limited dine-in services, and, like New York City, would be limited to 25 percent capacity and must close at 10 PM.
The grassroots movement “Stand Up Michigan” keeps a list of restaurants that have remained open despite the statewide ban. The group releases data that supports the safety of indoor dining. The report also pointed to an interaction between a restaurant owner in the state and a sheriff’s deputy.
The deputy visited the establishment to tell the owner that phones at the office were ringing off the hook about his restaurant being open. The deputy informed the owner about the code. The owner responded, “Well, what happens next with you?”
The deputy, who was a frequent customer at the diner, responded, “Nothing. I’ll be seeing you tomorrow for coffee and breakfast.”
Randall Scot, the owner, told the paper that a trip to Florida convinced him to ignore the restrictions. The paper reported that Florida allows restaurants to operate at 100-percent capacity. “I decided at that point of time I’ll never shut my dining room down again,” he said.
The New York Post reported some restaurant owners lashed out at Cuomo’s capacity restrictions. These owners point to other restaurants throughout the state that are allowed to serve customers at 50-percent capacity.
“The restaurants are packed in Nassau, and I feel like I’m going to f—ing shoot myself,” Rocco Sacramento, the owner of Trattoria L’Incontro in Astoria, NY, told the paper.
Questioning the reasoning for capacity limits and the 10 PM mandatory closing time, Andrew Rigie, the director of the New York City hospitality alliance, told The New York Times, “Unfortunately, once again the state standards are being applied inequitably in the five boroughs without a transparent and data-driven system for further reopening the city’s restaurant economy.”
King Cuomo also declared, again without providing scientific data for the made-up date and capacity numbers, that beginning 15 March, he would permit weddings of up to 150 guests, providing all attending get tested and the wedding receives approval from local health officials.
TRENDPOST: Inconsistency has been a problem with lockdowns during the pandemic. For example, Nassau County, which is part of New York’s Long Island, has been allowed to serve indoor dining at 50-percent capacity despite a 6.5 percent positivity rate compared to a 5.8 percent rate in neighboring Queens.
And, again, why was Valentine’s Day chosen to be the day restaurants can partially re-open and not any other day before or after that day?
Cuomo’s decision to blame facts is particularly stinging because the only fact is that 140,000 jobs have been lost in the industry in NYC to stop a 1.4 percent-infection rate blamed on bars and restaurants.
