Welch, Bateman and Davenport meet with Lincoln restaurant and bar owners facing Tier 1 mitigation

 

[November 05, 2020] 

Tuesday evening approximately 15 to 20 Lincoln area bar and restaurant owners met at Sorrento’s Pizzeria in Lincoln to discuss how to keep their doors open during the Region 3 Tier 1 mitigation for coronavirus. Also joining the meeting were a number of downtown retailers as well as Logan County Board Chairman Emily Davenport, Lincoln Acting Mayor Tracy Welch and Ward 4 Alderman Kevin Bateman.

This past Sunday, Governor JB Pritzker enacted Tier 1 mitigation measures for Region three in Illinois that includes Logan County. The region on the whole sits as a positivity rate over 10 percent. Logan County’s most recent measure says that the positivity rate locally is at 3.6 percent.

The positivity rate is not based on total population of a geographic area. It is based on the percent of coronavirus tests that have returned positive versus those that have returned negative.

According to information recorded in 2018, the population of Logan County is 28,925 souls. Allowing for some growth the total population today may be around 30,000. Within Logan County, as of Tuesday, November 3rd, 18,720 tests for coronavirus have been administered. These results do not indicate how many repeat tests have been performed. Nonetheless, numbers appear to indicate that a large portion of the population has been tested, and testing continues on a regular basis at the Logan County Department of Public Health.

The Illinois Tier 1 Mitigation Plan includes closing indoor service in bars and restaurants, which is a big problem for local businesses as the calendar reaches November and warm weather is not a given. The mitigation will remain in place according to the Illinois Department of Public Health for at least two weeks. If the overall positivity rate for region three drops the mitigation could be lifted. If it increases then the region could be put into Tier 2 status, which would have the same restrictions and additional conditions to outdoor gatherings.

If the positivity rate continues to rise, then Tier 3 mitigation could be put into place which would include a shutdown similar to what the state saw early in the year. All “non-essential” retail would be closed, and work from home would be highly recommended for those not in retail settings.

Tuesday evening, Welch spoke about a recent meeting with the Logan County Department of Public Health Administrator Don Cavi.

Welch, Lincoln Police Chief Paul Adams, Logan County Sheriff Mark Landers, Logan County State’s Attorney Brad Hauge, City Attorney John Hoblitt and Davenport had met with Cavi to discuss the impact this mitigation would have on local business owners and talk about what would and would not be done to enforce Tier 1 standards.

Welch said that the city does not support the idea of closing down any of our small businesses. He said there had been discussion with Chief Adams, and it was agreed that the city will not be seeking out violators. A portion of the punishment for violating mitigation rules is pulling liquor license for those who have multiple violations. Welch said that as acting mayor, he is the lead on the city’s liquor commission. He told the bar owners that he will not be pulling licenses, period.

Welch said that the Logan County Sheriff has also stated that they will not be doing random checks for compliance and will not issue warnings or violation citations randomly.

Welch then explained what can happen. If a complaint is filed by a customer or employee alleging non-compliance, the local health department is required to investigate. Welch noted that while the city and county have their own governance, the local health department is an extension of the Illinois Department of Public Health, and they absolutely must do what the higher authority tells them to do.

Having said that, Welch, said that Cavi is sympathetic to what is going on in our community, and concerned for the wellbeing of the small businesses throughout the county. He is not anxious to enforce these mitigation rules, and indicated that he does not plan to authorize random checks of our local businesses.

When will local law enforcement get involved?

Welch said that local law enforcement would be on hand to help business owners with non-complaint customers when called. He explained the scenario saying if a guest arrives without a face mask and refuses to put one on upon request, that is a problem the business owner/manager should address. The non-compliant guest should be told to put on a mask or leave. While, technically a person cannot be forced to wear a mask, if the owner/manager feels the guest is argumentative or combative, then the police may be called to assist in removing the guest from the premises.

Welch suggested to the businesses that they continue to do as they feel comfortable. Stay open, or close, it should be the choice of the business owner, and the city is going to support every business owner in the decision he or she makes.

Welch said that he also felt that there was some opportunity to work with Cavi to find some kind of middle ground. Welch noted that Cavi does not want to shut down businesses, but he has to live by his own set of rules. If business owners can show they are doing a good job of maintaining the original Phase Four Recovery Plan rules, Cavi is going to be receptive to their ideas on compromise.

Bateman said that as the alderman who serves the majority of the downtown business district, he too supports the local businesses staying open. He noted that he is upset about the inequality of the way the rules are written. He noted that some bars and restaurants for example are required to close while others may stay open because they offer gaming. To date, gaming has not been suspended, so any establishment that has video gaming is exempt. Bateman said that wasn’t fair, it wasn’t right, and he could not support that rule at all.

Welch and Bateman also talked about what is going on in surrounding areas, noting that a lot of communities are ignoring Tier 1 mitigation. Bateman noted that both Chicago and Springfield are not complying. He said that these were “Pritzker cities,” and even they see that this is not a viable option for the eradication of coronavirus.

Welch noted that his wife, Annette who is also on the Logan County Board, had recently visited Galena. The region Galena is in has been in Tier 1 mitigation for the past three weeks. In that town, none of the bars and restaurants are going along with the new rules. Welch said that his wife had asked about enforcement, and was told that in the three week period there had not even been one citation issued.

Jim Drew who with wife Lisa is the owner of Sorrento’s said that he had spoken to Logan County State’s Attorney Brad Hauge just before the meeting. He said there were indications that Cavi would like to “sit at the table” with business owners to work out a plan for continued operation.

One restaurant owner asked what there was to work out. She said that the businesses are doing everything that was outlined in Phase Four. In her business she uses paper menus, disposable plates and flatware, there are no condiments on her tables, and the staff wears face masks. When guests leave a table it is disinfected before the next guest is seated. This is all in compliance with phase four and she doesn’t know what else she could do.

Another owner said that they were masking, but they were not using disposable plates and flatware. He said his business couldn’t afford to pay for disposables.

Drew said that he thought perhaps that was part of the concern of the health department. There is a lack of uniformity in what the businesses are doing. If all the businesses were doing the same thing, all following the proper procedures for phase four, then perhaps the county health department would be less concerned about the situation.

Welch said that in Sangamon County, the health department is on board with what Welch called “Tier 0.5.” In that county, the rules are being followed with modifications to make it easier for small businesses to comply. Welch said he would guess that the Sangamon health department was on board with the altered plan because it had been negotiated in a reasonable fashion between the health department and the business owners.
 

Bateman suggested that the business owners join together and draft a letter to the health department stating their intention to stay open and addressing how it will maintain safe practices. He said that it was a good start for opening the line of communication, and would show unity among the businesses.

In the meantime, Bateman encouraged the businesses not to shut down. He said, “It is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission,” so keep the serving areas open until someone forces them to close.

It was also noted that in Kane County one business was shut down by court order. Lisa Drew said the business immediately filed a counter, getting an order of protection against the governor, and was able to keep the doors open that way.

Welch explained that with the matter going into the courts, the business was allowed to stay open until the judicial system had the opportunity to hear the case. Welch said that such a hearing will take time to schedule and during that time the restaurant can operate business as usual. He said it might not be the best option, but working the system would keep the business open for an unknown period of time.

Addressing the costs incurred by using disposable dinner services, Bateman reminded the group that there are state and federal grants available. He suggested that anyone who needs money because they have had to change business practices to accommodate coronavirus should be looking into those grants. He said that Lincoln City Administrator Beth Kavelman can help with that. The county also has information that can be shared, and there is money being funneled through the Greater Peoria Economic Development Council. The GPEDC also has a data base of all available grants that is easy to access and will help local small businesses.

As the meeting began to wind down, Bateman and Welch offered words of support. Bateman told the group, “Do what you have to do to survive.”

Welch commented, “If you need something from us reach out, we will do what it takes to help you. We won’t stand by and watch.”

Lisa Drew volunteered to draft a letter for the group and said she would send the draft out to everyone as soon as it was finished. She also suggested that at some point in the near future, they might have a follow-up meeting, but no date was set.

For those interested in the grant funds that are available, links from past articles in Lincoln Daily News are shown below. Contact information for Welch and Kavelman is also provided.

[Nila Smith]

Additional information

As economy looks to re-open, region-wide business recovery program launches to connect businesses with local recovery experts

TADA Instructions – Pdf

City of Lincoln encourages local businesses to participate in round two of the Business Interruption Grant program

Contact information:

Lincoln City Administrator Beth Kavelman
217-732-2122

Lincoln Acting Mayor Tracy Welch
217-871-2497

Find contact information for all city aldermen here