Minnesota businesses plan to reopen early in protest of pandemic restrictions

[BainsBane]

150 businesses refuse to follow the governments order. This is why people are dying and why we can't have Christmas with our families. The press needs to post the list so that we know to never give them our business again.

An informal group of small businesses in Minnesota plans to defy state coronavirus pandemic safety guidelines and reopen prematurely this week.

Calling itself the ReOpen Minnesota Coalition, the group is plotting the move as Gov. Tim Walz weighs whether to re-impose restrictions on bars, restaurants, health clubs and other public-facing businesses this week. Curfews and capacity limits went back into effect last month amid a statewide increase in cases of COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus, and are set to expire Friday.

The group is calling on businesses in rural Minnesota to reopen Wednesday and for businesses in the Twin Cities metro area to reopen Friday. Approximately 150 businesses have pledged to participate, according to Darius Teichroew, who helped organize the group.

In-person dining and indoor gyms, large-scale weddings, funeral receptions and other gatherings are not allowed under the restrictions Walz put in place last month, nor can these businesses stay open past a 10 p.m. curfew. Health officials cited the number of COVID-19 cases linked to bars, restaurants and social gatherings when announcing the restrictions.

But the ReOpen group said caseloads linked to such places and events are not substantial enough to warrant the rules small-business owners have had to follow since then at expense of their livelihoods. Owners of one restaurant in East Grand Forks, Minn., gave similar reasons for reopening in defiance of the restrictions last week, something that ultimately led to the suspension of their liquor license and to their being sued by the state Attorney General’s Office.

https://www.twincities.com/2020/12/14/minnesota-businesses-plan-to-reopen-early-in-protest-of-pandemic-restrictions/?utm_campaign=socialflow&utm_content=fb-PioneerPress&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&fbclid=IwAR3kCcR9cAY63mjdtyOSYEpLpwI-nNMsmrD6Qh_KJkxCo_cet63gLiK2LfI

Shortly have George Floyd was killed, I went into a coffee shop, Code Blu on Franklin and 27th S. The owner wasn't wearing a mask. As a result, I've never gone there since and spend money there in the future.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. I'd like to see a list of those businesses

so that when things finally do reopen, I can be sure not to have anything to do with them.

[BainsBane]

5. my feelings exactly

If you got to the link on the Pioneer Press page, there is a link to their Facebook group.

[Worried2020]

2. And some wonder why we've pretty much closed the border . .

.
.

As to mask wearing, I always wear one if I expect to be near others, and avoid people that are not wearing them, even when I know them well, and would luv to chat . . .

Sad, that

(sigh)

W

[Wellstone ruled]

3. The folks most effected are

all the Employees working in those Business's. But,as a ex-Minnesotan,I never said everyone really cared about one another. There is a percentage of Might is Right Cult Citizens who care only for themselves. Having family on the Front Lines and hearing the fear in their voices of being infected even though they take every precaution possible,is truly scary.

Especially in Rural Minny,where Might is Right if you are White.

[Mawspam2]

4. I not only wear a mask...

...but I only wear KN95 masks now that they are plentiful. Everybody else should, too.

[progree]

6. Havens Garden, Lynd; Boardwalk Bar and Grill, East Grand Forks

I've been discussing in this group at:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10599822

For an update, they've both gotten restraining orders, and Havens Garden is still open, and plans to remain so. It very much sounds like local law enforcement isn't going to do anything about it. Ditto Boardwalk Bar and Grill.

https://www.facebook.com/havensgardenmn

Boardwalk Bar and Grill is closed Tuesday Dec 15 for a court appearance (I thought it was Wednesday) but plans to stay open her usual days Tuesday thru Saturday 4pm to 11pm.

https://www.facebook.com/BoardwalkBarNGrill

I get that restaurants and bars and gyms and I forgot what else have to be closed and stay closed, and it has been very effective in bringing down the new case rate (see below), but its very unfair IMHO to have to lose their nesteggs and livelihoods that they spent years and maybe decades building. (It's also profoundly wrong to open and spread a fatal disease). I'm glad to see the MN Senate passed $200 million or whatever it was, so that the economic pain is spread more fairly, and not have all of the burden put all on a couple sectors of the economy. Though I suspect the $200 million is a drop in the bucket compared to the need.

The first effective full day of the 10pm curfew and the physical bars and counters being closed (people have to sit at a table to be served) was November 13, and the first effective full day when bars and restaurants were closed was November 21.

MN Covid, New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/minnesota-coronavirus-cases.html

MN Daily new cases, 7 day moving average
1,027 Oct 1 -- beginning of the big new wave we're in
5,291 Nov 13 -- 10pm curfew, must sit at a table
7,052 Nov 20 -- the all-time peak
6,703 Nov 21 -- 1st day that restaurants, bars, gyms closed (black Saturday)
3,670 Dec 14 -- latest, down 48% from the peak

It would probably be an even bigger drop if it wasn't for Thanksgiving (November 26)

==##################################==

North Dakota is down about 72% from its peak November 18 peak, and they did it with a 10 pm curfew

North Dakota Orders Mask Mandate, Business Restrictions, Washington Post (bars and restaurants close at 10p, limited to 50% capacity, but the excerpt doesn't say if bar areas are closed), 11/13/20
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142628482

NoDak Covid, New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/north-dakota-coronavirus-cases.html