Wolf Announces New Restrictions on Pa. Bars and Restaurants

Gov. Tom Wolf announced new statewide restrictions on bars, restaurants and indoor gatherings in response to a continuing rise of new COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania, including nearly 1,000 reported on Wednesday.

Under Wolf’s order, which goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, bars and restaurants are restricted to 25% occupancy for indoor dining and alcohol can only be served with meals or for takeout. Bar service is not permitted — all service must be at a table or booth. Outdoor dining may continue under existing guidelines.

Nightclubs are prohibited from operating.

Indoor events and gatherings are limited to 25 people and outdoor events to 250 people. The limits do not apply to religious institutions.

All businesses must offer telework wherever possible, and when not possible must adhere to previously issued business and worker safety orders and the mandatory masking order.

Gyms can continue indoor operations but are directed to prioritize outdoor activities.

Wolf said during a press conference on Wednesday that the past two weeks have seen ‘an unsettling climb’ in new cases and that medical experts looking at the current trajectory project a new surge that could be higher than when the state hit its peak in April with a single-day high of nearly 2,000 new cases.

‘With our current rapid increase we need to act again but this time we have more knowledge and we can act in a more focused manner because we have a better sense of how this virus is affecting Pennsylvanians,’ Wolf said.

Pennsylvania has added about 10,000 new cases of the virus since July 1. Through contact-tracing, Wolf said, three catalysts have been identified.

‘First some Pennsylvanians have been ignoring the mask-wearing requirements and social distancing when they’re visiting Pennsylvania bars and restaurants,’ Wolf said. ‘They are unknowingly spreading or unknowingly picking up the virus. This carelessness has resulted in pockets of super spreading.’

Other catalysts, Wolf said, are out-of-state travel, either by Pennsylvanians returning to the state or visitors, and a lack of national coordination that has resulted in large increases of cases in other states.

‘That has resulted in states in the south and southwest especially not committing to the things they should have done to keep this virus from spreading,’ Wolf said. ‘Other states have become petri dishes for covid-19 during the time when we were all working hard here in Pennsylvania to suppress the spread. It’s been spreading northward and eastward.’

The three catalysts have turned Pennsylvania’s downward trend into ‘an alarming escalation,’ that requires action, Wolf said.

‘We’re already at a tipping point where we really have to act,’ he said. ‘We have got to act now.’

House Majority Leader Rep. Kerry Benninghoff, R-Bellefonte, blasted Wolf’s order.

‘“Once again, Gov. Wolf has ignored the voices of the people and refused to work with their representatives, instead choosing to act alone and issue another harmful, unilateral order with far-reaching and devastating implications,’ Benninghoff said in a statement. ‘The irreversible impact of his countless, confusing orders cannot be overstated. Gov. Wolf’s decision today will close the doors of some small businesses forever and devastate the livelihoods of so many Pennsylvanians who were just beginning to feel hopeful for the future.’

Last weekend in State College saw long lines outside bars with students and visitors going downtown on the weekend of what would have been the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts before it was moved to a virtual event. Those scenes raised alarm among residents who were concerned about the lack of distancing, and in some cases mask-wearing, as well as what it might portend for the return of Penn State students in August.

‘I think this past weekend was a dress rehearsal for the fall, and it went poorly,’ Borough Councilman Evan Myers said on Monday. ‘If it was a dress rehearsal, my question is will the play be closed before the curtain even goes up?’

Allegheny County, which has seen spikes in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks, has already placed tougher restrictions on bars after identifying them as places where COVID-19 has spread.

Though not at the level of Allegheny County or Philadelphia, Centre County has seen an uptick in new cases as well, with nine reported on Wednesday and 61 since July 1.

On Wednesday, Centre County Board of Commissioners Chair Michael Pipe said he believes Wolf’s measure is important for the short-term to ensure long-term recovery. 

‘From my perspective the work we’re doing in July and August to reduce the spread and get cases lowered is going to help us reopen schools, bring students back to Penn State, as well as saving jobs, keeping businesses open, keeping people healthy,’ Pipe said. ‘The more we can do to reduce transmission, the better we’re going to be for keeping our economy open and getting our schools reopened.’

Centre County received $14.7 million in Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding through the state and will soon be allocating money from that to local businesses, including bars and restaurants,.

‘In August we’re going to be getting that money out, making sure that these businesses can get access to the CARES Act funds we have available to make sure they can keep their businesses open and operating,’ Pipe said. ‘It will be several million [dollars]. I think it’s safe to say it will by far be the largest percentage of the funds that we’re allocating.’