'Everybody Is Scrambling': Bar Owners Uncertain After Gov. Polis Orders In-Person Service Closure
GOLDEN, Colo. (CBS4)- Gov. Jared Polis announced on Tuesday bars will be closed for in-person service in order to fight coronavirus in the state. That announcement was unexpected for many in the industry who recently reopened.
Bars may sell take-out alcohol, and those which serve food and function as restaurants can continue to do so if patrons remain 6 feet apart, they are seated with their own party and do not mingle with other patrons.
Bars and nightclubs were allowed to reopen with limitations two weeks ago.
"We are expiring a slight uptick the last two weeks," Polis said. He said there are 32,717 cases of coronavirus in Colorado as of Tuesday afternoon.
The announcement, which goes into effect in the 48 hours, came as a shock to many in the industry.
"You know, Governor Polis has been helpful to our industry and we really appreciate that but this came out of left field and everybody is scrambling to figure out what it means. What these new restrictions are and why they're happening now," said Stephen Gould, Founder & master distiller of Golden Moon Distillery.
Gould's phone was ringing off the hook Tuesday. He oversees government affairs for the Colorado Distillers Association. Between calls from other distillers and calls to the state liquor enforcement division, he was busy.
"All I've been told… if they've got the food truck, if they've got the partnerships in place, according to what I was told at 3 o'clock by liquor enforcement, they're fine. There was a meeting at 3:30 and things have changed again. It's almost like someone in the governor's office is making this up as they go along," he said.
While the move came following a spike in cases in other states, Colorado is doing comparatively well managing its COVID-19 cases, especially in hospitals.
Dr. Joseph Forrester, a pulmonary and critical care specialist who has overseen cases across four HealthOne hospitals in Colorado, says he saw his first case in March and had more than 100 per day in hospitals by April. Across his hospitals today?
"It's less than 10 in the ICU. So we've done a great job in the state and in the region of decreasing the cases that are hospitalized and decreasing those that are critically ill," he said.
He believes the compliance in Colorado has helped and thinks continued measures to maintain distance is advisable.
On Tuesday Polis noted the surges neighboring states are experiencing. He said he does not want Colorado to "become a mecca" for people visiting bars. "We don't want to stand out," he said.
"There is not a way that we have found for them to be a reasonably safe part of people's lives during the month of July, in our state."
He noted conversations he had with the governors of Arizona and Texas, who say their states' recent surges are blamed, in part, on large parties, bars and nightclubs.
"Having bars and nightlife in an unsustainable way is too big of a risk in Colorado," he said. "It's too big a risk of schools being too unsafe to return to, it's too big a risk of having to close gyms and pools."
Gould argues, not all establishments are the same.
"It's only a few bad players that are not following the rules that are dangerous," he continued, "shut them down, don't shut us down."
Gould has made considerable efforts to keep the Golden Moon Distillery and its customers safe. He even installed plastic dividers between tables. Since he has been able to open, he partnered with the restaurant next door, Miners Saloon.
"We're so small that if we had to rely on our own kitchen, it would not have been economically viable to run this facility with a number of staff," he said.
As a board member for the Colorado Distillers Guild, he knows others who have just figured out how to open, who don't serve food, will have to close again and takes issue with the timing of the order.
"I think it's very reactionary based on what we see in the national news and even if it's the right thing to do, there should've been a plan in place it should not have been done at the last minute."
Polis also said during Tuesday press conference that visitors to Colorado are urged to be responsible and wear a face masks, follow health guidelines and maintain good hygiene.
Some counties which qualify for the next phase of reopening, "Protect Our Neighbors," will be allowed to open bars. Polis said officials are working on guidance that will allow bars to expand outside like restaurants.
State health officials say communities can start requesting approval to enter the Protect Our Neighbor phase next week. They will be approved if they can meet qualifications such as enough available hospital beds, enough PPE (personal protective equipment) and stable or declining number of hospitalizations.
