TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - The Shawnee County Commission has voted 2-1 to allow bars to stay open until midnight seven days a week.
Frankie Saiya, the owner of Abigail’s Bar and Grill, said in a Shawnee County Commission meeting on Thursday morning that masks are clearly making a difference in his bar. However, County Commissioners are still wary of easing restrictions on Shawnee County bars.
Saiya said in the meeting that local bar owners understood that after the 4th of July the Shawnee Co. Commission would revisit the restrictions on bars, which he says are becoming detrimental. However, he said it has been five weeks since bar owners have heard from Commissioners.
The Commission said less than three weeks after their bar rules to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 went into effect bar owners were already starting to contact it to ask for ease of restrictions. Commissioners said, however, that it takes three weeks to see new trends with the virus. They said numbers for the first week of August may have looked better in Saiya’s eyes, but numbers for this week seem to be trending downward.
Commissioners said another issue is the guidelines set in place such as shorter hours, not sitting at bars and no live music are still not being followed by some.
Meanwhile, Saiya said the majority of bar owners want what is best for the community and for their businesses to keep functioning. He said bars are one of the most regulated industries so owners are no stranger to following regulations, while he does acknowledge that some owners are not following the regulations.
The Abigail’s owner said he sees more of the public wearing masks and adhering to guidelines as well as a change in attitude towards COVID-19 regulations. He said a burden is being placed on the bar industry and he feels like they are feeling the effects of how other industries operate such as schools and care facilities. He said the effects that nursing homes have on the virus should not be tied to restrictions for local bars.
Saiya said while it has been five months since schools were shut down due to COVID-19, in the grand scheme of things it seems like the blink of an eye. He said if another five months of shutdowns happen, he foresees the closure of countless local businesses.
According to the Abigail’s bar owner, people are going to gather whether regulations allow for it or not. He said that the Commission is pushing people out of a safe and regulated environment that can be controlled and tracked into one where mass gatherings may happen without the knowledge of officials.
The owner of the Dutch Goose Sports Bar and Grill said the Commission is placing an unfair burden on local businesses. He said that cases of coronavirus are not being counted from bigger stores such as Walmart and the local government is only regulating smaller businesses.
Commissioner Cook said he holds firm that the commission should continue to follow the regulations put in place by local health officials. He said the county COVID-19 numbers are not as low as he would like them to be before bar regulations are eased. He said that while he understands that local business owners may be hurt by restrictions, he said the Commissions duty is to the whole of the public and not just one sector of business.
Commissioner Riphahn said cases of COVID-19 are still being tied to bars. He said the Commission is fighting two fronts, not only are they trying to fight the spread of COVID-19, they are trying to fight an economic collapse as well. He said coronavirus is more than just a virus.
Commissioner Mays said other county’s bar restrictions seem to be less stringent, but this does not mean their local health officers are not listening to science. He said pushing bar closing back one hour a night for three days a week will not have as much of an effect on the spread of COVID-19 as much as the opening of schools will.
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August 13, 2020 at 10:30PM
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Shawnee Co. Commission votes 2-1 to allow bars to stay open until midnight - WIBW
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