Why won’t NC let bars reopen? Human behavior, the state’s lawyer argues at hearing
People behave differently in bars.
That was the rationale presented Friday by attorneys defending Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision to keep North Carolina bars closed while allowing restaurants to reopen at half capacity.
“It’s not just the facilities, it’s human behavior inside those facilities,” said senior deputy attorney Amar Majmundar, representing Cooper’s order. “Restaurants present a different environment.”
Nearly one month ago, North Carolina moved into Phase Two of its reopening plan, allowing restaurants in the state to serve guests in half-capacity dining rooms, while also requiring certain social distancing and cleaning measures. Bars, though, were excluded from the order and remained closed.
The North Carolina Bar and Tavern Association, a collection of nearly 200 bars across the state, sued Cooper earlier this month in an effort to force their reopening under the same guidelines imposed on the state’s restaurants.
The bar owners are asking for a preliminary injunction that would allow them to operate. They expect a decision from presiding Judge James Gale by next week.
‘We’re not asking to open the floodgates’
Arguing on behalf of the NCBTA, attorney Mike Tadych said Phase Two opened 85% of North Carolina’s bar industry, as restaurants, wineries, brewery taprooms and hotel bars were allowed to resume business.
“We’re asking to be treated like the other 85%,” Tadych said. “We’re not asking for special treatment, we’re not asking to open the floodgates. ... These businesses have been dead in the water for 94 days, with zero income to fight though this.”
Tadych said the bar group is asking for the opportunity to comply with Cooper’s Phase Two order in the same way as restaurants, which are allowed to serve guests at 50% capacity, with tables spaced out six or more feet, regular cleanings of high touch surfaces and daily symptom checks of employees.
Referencing various relief bills that have been drafted at the state and federal level, Tadych said bar owners appreciate the aid, but that the industry expects to lose the majority of its businesses due to the pandemic closures.
“It’s a minor salve for a pretty big cut,” Tadych said.
Friday’s hearing centered on the question of whether or not bars are more dangerous than restaurants if they follow the same social distancing guidelines. Concerns over dancing and mingling within bars would be mitigated, the NCBTA attorneys argued, by requiring bars to meet the same requirements as restaurants under Phase Two.
“They’re not asking for a dance floor with people going cheek to cheek,” Judge Gale said.
‘People are going for a different purpose’
State attorney Majmunder said the behavior of bar patrons is different than people going out to eat. He referenced an affidavit from N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen describing the scenes in bars as often yelling to be heard, singing, dancing and being in confined in tight spaces for long periods of time. All of that increases the likelihood of spreading the virus, Cohen said.
“Some (bars) are very small,” Majmundar said. “People are going for a different purpose (than restaurants).”
The distinction between bars and certain restaurants is sometimes a thin one. Last week, thousands viewed a video from Friday night on Raleigh’s Glenwood Avenue, as patrons packed into several restaurants, appearing to ignore social distancing guidelines and largely drinking rather than eating.
Despite remaining closed throughout the shutdown, Raleigh’s legendary bar The Players Retreat was referenced throughout Friday’s hearing, held up as the kind of restaurant that, despite having a well-known kitchen, is filled with people drinking.
“If you’re going to The Players Retreat, you don’t say ‘Let’s go get a burger,’” Judge Gale said. “You said, ‘Let’s go get a drink and hang out.’”
State attorney Majmundar said the public health threat posed by the coronavirus remains as serious as ever, pointing to North Carolina’s recent increase in cases. Every day, an average of 16 people die in the state of the disease, Majmundar said. He said Cooper is prioritizing lives over businesses.
“In the face of the pandemic, lives are at stake,” Majmundar said. “In the face of that grim reality, the governor is not only permitted, but is obligated to the best of his ability, to protect the public health.”
In court filings, the state has also argued that bars pose a smaller economic value to North Carolina than some of the businesses allowed to open, specifically the state’s prized brewing industry.
State officials have used a dimmer switch metaphor to describe the plan for reopening North Carolina’s economy, arguing that it’s safer to bring industries back gradually rather than all at once. For bar owners so far left out of that reopening, Tadych said the switch only goes on or off.
“It’s not a dimmer switch for our clients, it’s a light switch,” Tadych said. “For the majority of businesses selling alcoholic beverages, the light switch is on.”
This story was originally published June 19, 2020 at 1:38 PM with the headline "Why won’t NC let bars reopen? Human behavior, the state’s lawyer argues at hearing."
