Restaurant owners have removed the signs Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that the ’constitutional compliance’ sign at Bagalis has been taken down since the publishing of this article.
Signs on the doors of Bagalis and Greco’s Pastaria calling the Frisco restaurants “constitutionally compliant” businesses popped up this week, sparking opposition from community members.
However, owners of the two businesses say they are following all public health protocols, as the sign suggests otherwise, and Greco’s has taken it a step further by filing a police report as the sign was put up without the restaurant’s permission and promptly removed.
Eagle County is getting ready to join the state’s new 5 Star Business Certification program, but it’s going to take a while.
The Eagle County Commissioners this week talked about establishing a framework for the program, which allows participating businesses to basically drop a level from a county’s current status on the state’s COVID-19 dial.
Summit County as of this Monday had cleared 134 restaurants to open. Summit County is currently in the state’s red classification, which tightly restricts business occupancy. Restaurants there who meet the threshold of the 5 Star program can now operate at 25% of capacity, or 50 people, whichever is fewer. That’s in accordance with the state’s orange classification.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include more recent lodging occupancy data.
Predictions for lodging occupancy from Christmas to New Year’s, which is typically one of the biggest booking periods of the year, vary as cancellations and last-minute bookings continue.
While some lodging establishments have good news ahead of the holidays by being able to open in-person dining services through the state’s five-star program, limiting bookings to one household has become a major hindrance for the industry.
At a community update meeting Monday, Dec. 21, Breckenridge Tourism Office CEO and President Lucy Kay said lodging was running around 85% occupancy last weekend. Kay cited a Nov. 30 report from DestiMetrics that forecast lodging occupancy to be in the 90% to 95% range from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1. However, she said forecasts are changing rapidly as people book and cancel at the last minute.
Photo by Taylor Sienkiewicz / tsienkiewicz@summitdaily.com
Summit County’s 5 Star Business Certification Program allowed 134 restaurants to open to indoor dining over the weekend.
The program allows restaurants to reopen to in-person dining at 25% capacity or 50 people, whichever is fewer, despite the county being in level red on the state’s COVID-19 dial. The catch is that restaurants have to comply with more stringent regulations than those required for in-person dining in level orange, including spacing tables and parties at least 10 feet apart, screening customers and employees for symptoms, and gathering contact information to help with contact tracing.
If Summit County eventually moves into level orange, businesses in the five-star program can operate at capacities associated with level yellow.
The Summit Chamber of Commerce has rolled out a grant program for businesses struggling to get by during the pandemic.
The COVID-19 Innovation Grant program is meant to help businesses continue to operate through the pandemic and related restrictions.
The program, which is funded by Summit County government and administered by the Summit Chamber of Commerce, will dole out $100,000, and businesses can request up to $5,000 each.
Blair McGary, executive director of the Summit Chamber, said the funding comes from the county’s general fund rather than CARES Act money, which has to be spent by the end of the year.