The state closed all bars. This Key West business didn’t wait to be told
On the granddaddy of all drinking holidays, St. Patrick’s Day on March 17, one of Key West’s most famous watering holes voluntarily closed down ahead of the governor’s order that shuttered bars and nightclubs.
Then all bars and nightclubs in Florida got shut down for 30 days by Gov. Ron DeSantis, cutting off income for a workforce filled with bartenders, servers and bar backs who make their living off tips.
What can local government do to help those out of work for 30 days?
“We just got this information two minutes ago,” Monroe County Mayor Heather Carruthers said of the ban. “I don’t have an answer for you. Our resources are quite limited.
”A lot of legislation going through won’t help the hourly worker,” Carruthers said.
“There will be loans right now, SBA loans,” Carruthers said.
No cases of COVID-19 have been reported in the Florida Keys. But only 16 people have been tested as of Monday, according to newly released data from the state. Of those 16, 11 tests have yet to produce results. The other five were negative.
Testing is ramping up, said Monroe County’s top health official, Bob Eadie.
“Wow you’re doing that through all of Florida?” Eadie said, when he learned of the bar ban, which starts at 5 p.m Tuesday. “What are we going to do with all of those people who were servers and the bartenders? I don’t know that the entire world ought to be having a diet of fast food but that’s another issue I guess.”
And bars like Sloppy Joe’s, a Duval Street heavyweight, didn’t wait for Gov. Ron DeSantis to close down bars due to the spread of the coronavirus to make a decision.
“At this time, we feel this is the right thing to do, and are placing safety first,” the bar’s management posted on Facebook Tuesday morning. “As a leader in the community we are responding to the advice of the CDC and Monroe County by doing our part to help suppress the spread of the Coronavirus.”
The bar encouraged others to “do their part and be responsible in following the recommendations of health experts.”
Many locals applauded the decision by Sloppy Joe’s in Key West, where officials have not imposed any restrictions on the hours of bars and restaurants.
“I will remember your sense of community and safety over finances when this is all over,” Patricia Doyle Brown posted. “Thank you for leading the way.”
This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 11:57 AM with the headline "The state closed all bars. This Key West business didn’t wait to be told."
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