Once again, businesses are forced to turn around as the province tightens COVID-19 restrictions in Nova Scotia.
As of Friday, the restrictions on masking, boundary accumulation, and physical distancing are returning. Food establishments and licensed liquor stores must have a physical distance between tables and a limit of 20 people per table. Users must be seated to remove the mask to eat or drink, and all other mask requirements for indoor public places remain.
Prime Minister Tim Houston and Dr. Robert Strang made the announcement Monday, saying it is only a short-term step. But the impact is already being felt.
Brendan Doherty, co-owner of The Old Triangle in downtown Halifax, says they lost hundreds of bookings in the 24 hours after the announcement.
“They pulled the rug out from under us. Completely, ”Doherty said. “People are optimistic, but it’s a pretty dark time right now. It just doesn’t make sense “
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Doherty assumed he would return some kind of restrictions, but says he did not receive a notice from the province or Public Health. He has been unaware of data indicating that restaurants have been a hot spot for the spread of COVID-19 and feels the decision needs to be re-evaluated.
“We have always been the first place to have restrictions and the last to remove them,” he said.
“I want to keep everyone safe as much as anyone else, but we are reading the same data that the province is publishing and we cannot be closed due to a runny nose or mild cases.”
It was around this time last year that additional restrictions were imposed on bars and restaurants in Halifax. But Patrick Sullivan of the Halifax Chamber of Commerce says things are different this time, with vaccines and more testing options.
Sullivan says the province should change course.
“We know it is safe in a restaurant or hotel, or wherever events are held. We know it is safe if people follow health restrictions and use (COVID-19) tests, ”Sullivan said.
Gordon Stewart, president of the Nova Scotia Restaurant Association, says the losses will be “massive,” likely to result in millions in lost revenue.
“We have a huge increase in costs, about eight percent on average for food costs, which means restaurant prices are going to go up,” Stewart said. “We have labor rates that are going to skyrocket, we have problems with supply lines… it’s just one thing after another.
“Having restrictive measures now is only adding more pain to everyone.”
Stewart says he, too, was taken by surprise by the changes, as he was not consulted by the province or Public Health beforehand.
“If there was a consultation, I certainly would have been putting my foot on the gas, not at halftime, because I think there was a much greater opportunity to do something better.”
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Sue Uteck of the Spring Garden Area Business Association says downtown businesses are already fighting for the latest urban landscaping project underway. She also wants to be more clear about what the decision entailed.
“There is a level of frustration on the part of traders,” Uteck said. “(They are saying) ‘How can a religious gathering have 150 people, or a sporting event, but nevertheless, I demand that my clients be twenty feet apart?'”
As for Doherty, he says it is not too late for the province to back down.
“All I want to do is just do my job and go home at the end of the day,” he said. “These restrictions make it really difficult to do.”
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