LAMBERTVILLE, Mich. — Beginning on Wednesday, customers can't eat or drink inside a restaurant or bar in the state of Michigan.
This is the second time this year Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's administration announced a ban on dining-in amid rising coronavirus cases. She made the announcement during a rare Sunday press conference.
The new emergency order enacts a three-week pause on indoor social gatherings and other group activities in an effort to curb rapidly rising COVID-19 infection rates.
Sidelines Restaurant Group owns three restaurants in Michigan, including Sidelines Italian Grille in Lambertville.
The last time the group had to do carry-out only was in the middle of June.
Since then, their restaurants have been open at 50% capacity. But with Governor Whitmer's new statewide restrictions, they're forced to close indoor dining once again.
Tom Morris, the group's Director of Operations, says he's concerned most about his staff, which he says will have to be cut back for the next three weeks.
"We have a lot of good employees," said Morris. "Our company has always been family-oriented, and we always take care of our people. If this lasts more than three weeks, then we'll have to lay certain people off and that's not what we want to do."
He says the last time they did carry-out only, their sales were cut in half.
And this time around, the federal government isn't assisting small businesses or employees that file for unemployment as much as they did earlier in the year.
The group will be taking the new restrictions one day at a time as they continue to thank the community for their support.
The restrictions are expected to last until Dec. 9.
Under the order, gyms will remain open for individual exercise with strict safety measures in place.
Casinos, movie theaters and group exercise classes will be closed.
Professional and college sports may continue without spectators, however, all other organized sports, including high school athletics, must stop. Under the order, colleges and high schools are ordered to proceed with remote learning only, ending in-person classes.
Individualized activities with distancing and face masks are still allowed:
- retail shopping
- public transit
- restaurant takeout
- personal-care services such as haircuts, by appointment
- individualized exercise at a gym, with extra spacing between machines.