Southwest Illinois business groups push back against Pritzker’s COVID restrictions
As epidemiologists pleaded with the public to help control the spread of coronavirus now before winter threatens outdoor dining, local business groups pushed back against new restrictions on bars and restaurants in the metro-east.
COVID-19 cases have increased steadily in the region since July 4, and the upcoming Labor Day weekend threatened to send them higher as people gather in large groups, St. Clair County health officials said on Tuesday.
The virus spreads quickly and easily indoors even from people who aren’t showing symptoms, and bars and restaurants are one of the primary causes of the spread, said Susan Bleasdale, medical director of infection control and an infectious disease physician at the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System.
People don’t wear masks when eating and drinking, and lose inhibition when they’re at bars, talking loudly, dancing or singing around people they don’t know, Bleasdale said. It makes for ideal conditions for the virus to spread through tiny droplets suspended in the air.
The prevalence of COVID-19 in the metro-east grew so much in recent weeks that Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced a ban on indoor service at bars and restaurants on Tuesday.
Local business groups pushed back against the restrictions Wednesday by sending letters to the governor’s office.
The Edwardsville/Glen Carbon Chamber of Commerce asked Pritzker to rescind the restrictions, which include capacity limits and 11 p.m. closing times for bars, casinos and restaurants.
“These policies will undoubtedly lead to shuttering of beloved local establishments,” the letter said. “For the sake of our neighbors, our friends, our families, the fabric of our communities, and the future of our economy, it is critical to embrace and support our local businesses — not further damage them.”
Because the metro-east borders Missouri, it’s easy for residents to drive across the Mississippi River to go to bars and restaurants in St. Louis where indoor dining is allowed, the letter said.
The O’Fallon/Shiloh Chamber of commerce said their more than 115 bars and restaurants that employ roughly 2,750 employees have lost more than $1 million in revenue.
“We are advocating on behalf of the small businesses we represent. They are suffering. Small business is the heart of America. Please lessen the restrictions on them. Without small business, our local economy may never recover,” the chamber wrote in a letter to Pritzker’s office.
The Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce called the restrictions “extremely hurtful and unfair” in their letter to the governor.
“Another shutdown will likely lead to permanent closure of these restaurants and bars, while many entertainment venues will not be able to re-open at all,” the letter said.
But the governor said “the greatest hindrance” to restoring economic well-being is not restrictions, but the virus itself.
“Until we get it under control, ... we are going to be fighting for our economic recovery with one hand tied behind our back,” Pritzker said at a news conference in Chicago Wednesday.
Cold weather is just around the corner, said Nicholas Soulakis, a public health scientist at Northwestern University. The public should put the effort in now to control the spread of coronavirus by wearing masks, washing their hands, avoiding crowds and maintaining social distance so they might be able to enjoy indoor dining again this winter.
The chambers of commerce, meantime, asked the governor to help support businesses in the metro-east through remaining Business Interruption Grant money for them. The state awarded $46 million to 2,600 businesses statewide in August, and promised to send out more.
A northern Illinois region that includes Will and Kankakee counties saw a ban on indoor service last week, and more areas could follow as cases continue to increase in a majority of regions defined by the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Nine of the 11 regions have seen the percentage of cases coming back positive creep upward over the past two weeks, Pritzker said. Four of them saw a full percentage point increase in the positivity rate.
Only two regions saw a reduction in the positivity rate in the same period: west central, which includes Quincy and Springfield, and east central Illinois, which includes Urbana-Champaign, Decatur and Effingham.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced 2,128 new cases of the virus on Tuesday and 27 additional virus-related deaths for a total of 238,643 cases and 8,091 deaths since the state started tracking the virus. The state has tested more than 4.1 million people.
As of Tuesday night, 1,596 people statewide were hospitalized with COVID-19, and of those, 347 were in an intensive care unit and 142 were on ventilators.
The state’s preliminary seven-day average positivity rate was 4.5% for Aug. 26-Sept. 1.
Here are the restrictions in the metro-east.
Bars
- All bars close at 11 p.m.
- No indoor service
- All bar patrons should be seated at tables outside
- No ordering, seating, or congregating at bar (bar stools should be removed)
- Tables should be 6 feet apart
- No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting
- No dancing or standing indoors
- Reservations required for each party
- No seating of multiple parties at one table
Restaurants
- All restaurants close at 11 p.m.
- No indoor dining or bar service
- Tables should be 6 feet apart
- No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting
- Reservations required for each party
- No seating of multiple parties at one table
Meetings, social events, gatherings
- Limit to lesser of 25 guests or 25% of overall room capacity
- Reception halls are limited to lesser of 25 guests or 25% of overall room capacity
- No party buses
- Gaming and casinos close at 11 p.m., are limited to 25% capacity, and follow mitigations for bars and restaurants, if applicable
Organized group activities, sports, fitness centers
- No change
- All Sports Guidance effective August 15, 2020, remains in effect
- Outdoor Activities (not included in the above exposure settings) continue per current DCEO guidance
Once the region goes into the new phase of restrictions, IDPH will monitor the positivity rate for two weeks. If the positivity rate averages less than or equal to 6.5% over those two weeks, the region will return to Phase 4 in the state’s Restore Illinois plan.
Phase 4 allows indoor service at bars and restaurants with limited capacity.
If the region’s positivity rate averages between 6.5% and 8%, things will stay the same and IDPH will continue to monitor to see if additional restrictions are needed. If the region exceeds 8% test positivity after two weeks, more restrictions will be put into place.
The latest regional metrics can be found at dph.illinois.gov/regionmetrics.
This story was originally published September 3, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
