Gov. Jared Polis on Tuesday in a statewide COVID-19 briefing spoke of finding ways to support restaurants in the coming months. He encouraged municipalities to begin formulating a plan to help restaurants get through the winter, when outdoor dining is less favorable.
“(Restaurants are) one of the key pieces to our economy, that is personally meaningful to all of us because I don’t think there is a Coloradan who at some point in our lives has not been to a restaurant,” Polis said Tuesday, when statewide COVID cases grew to 80,085 and deaths due to COVID totaled 2,009.
The state last week recorded more than 1,000 cases of COVID-19 in one 24-hour period, the most since March, according to a news release from Polis' office. Tuesday, Colorado saw another day with more than 1,000 cases and the positivity rate was above 5%, according to the release. COVID-related hospitalizations were at 288 on Monday, up from 132 on Sept. 4, according to the governor's release.
“Coloradans are very alarmed by the increased number of very sick people coming into hospitals and know that we must do better with the basics like reducing the number of people we are with, washing our hands, avoiding crowds and wearing a mask,” Polis stated in the release.
The restaurant industry was among those hardest hit by the pandemic, with some closing, others struggling and still others having adapted to provide takeout and delivery services, Polis said Tuesday.
He added that consumer confidence has been slow to return and that outdoor dining has taken on new importance.
“Our restaurants are neighborhood institutions, they’re gathering places, they are community-building places, they are part of our rich cultural fabric. ... They sustain livelihoods, they are a part of our culture and of course restaurants support jobs,” Polis said during Tuesday's briefing.
In the release, Polis stated, “Prior to serving as governor, I built businesses and know that our economic health is inherently tied to our public health. We know that when our restaurants thrive and consumer confidence increases, our agriculture industry and supply chain benefits. The better we do at suppressing this virus and finding creative solutions for safer outdoor dining, the more we can support small businesses, like our restaurants, and keep building back our economy stronger than before.”
Outdoor dining spaces — such as those created by the Bigger Hearts, Stronger Streets initiative in Longmont this summer — have been a lifeline to the restaurant industry, allowing a return to 100% capacity in some cases, he said during the briefing. Some of the barricades that created that extra outdoor space along Main Street in Longmont came down last month, with those that remain slated to be in place at least through Halloween.
Del Rae Heiser of the Longmont Downtown Development Authority said the organization is talking with downtown businesses to come up with a wintertime solution for expanded space but nothing has been finalized.
Several Colorado industry leaders, public health officials, engineers and others will gather Monday to discuss creative solutions for outdoor dining through the winter months.
Sonya Riggs, president and CEO of the Colorado Restaurant Association, during Tuesday’s briefing, said “65% of restaurants stated that they would consider closing if nothing changes.”
The participating partners in Monday’s workshop hope to find creative and affordable solutions for outdoor dining and provide some funding to help restaurants adapt to the colder temperatures, Riggs said.
The Xcel Energy Foundation and Xcel Energy on Tuesday announced they will commit $500,000 to the Colorado Restaurant Association Foundation to help support restaurants through the winter, according to Polis' news release. They also will match donations up to an additional $250,000, for every $500,000 raised for the Colorado Restaurant Association Foundation, according to the release.
