Retailers enforce mask order with mix of relief, fear
Business owners say they’re grateful for mandated protections but need guidance on conflicts with customers
A unmasked woman strode toward the entrance of Phoenicia Specialty Foods on Westheimer on Monday afternoon when the security guard flagged her attention.
“You have to wear a mask to come inside,” he told her, pointing to a sign on the door.
Her head cocked to the side and her mouth hung open as he ushered her toward a stash of masks for customers.
Monday was the first day a Harris County order mandated businesses require customers wear face masks or be fined for each violation. The new order marked a de facto compromise between the county, which sought to slow the pandemic by requiring residents wear masks, and the state, which in April prohibited cities and counties from enforcing such orders.
Last Wednesday, as new cases of COVID-19 spiked across the state, Gov. Greg Abbott clarified his stance: While residents could not be punished for not wearing masks, businesses could. Two days later, Hidalgo issued her order requiring businesses to have patrons wear face masks.
Many business owners said they were grateful more was being done to protect their front-line workers but are concerned the mandate may cause conflict with customers who view wearing or not wearing masks as a matter of personal liberty. Such conflicts could result in a loss of customers or a $1,000 fine at a time when businesses are already struggling.
“We’ll see how this goes,” said Ann-Marie Tcholakian, owner of Phoenicia Specialty Foods. “For us, it’s concerning because we know there is going to be a contingent of
people who are not quite as ready to follow such a mandate. … We don’t want there to be conflict inside the store because of this.”
Uncertain enforcement
In May, one such conflict went viral as a Costco employee asked a member to put on a mask because it was company policy. “I’m not doing it because I woke up in a free country,” responded the pugnacious shopper in the exchange, which was captured on video.
Carol Guess, chair of the Greater Houston Black Chamber of Commerce, called for guidance from public officials on what to do in such situations. “What are (businesses) supposed to do when they have a belligerent patron?” she asked. “Because they are not enforcers of the law. They have products and services for sale.”
Mayor Sylvester Turner, citing a recent sharp increase in COVID-19 cases, said he would have HFD start issuing fines “after the next few days” for businesses that refuse to comply with the order.
“The reality is, no one wants to do it. But I don’t want the city of Houston to end up in a shutdown mode because our hospitals are being overwhelmed and people are dying,” Turner said. “If we are forced to go to the next step, then we will go to the next step.”
Houston Fire Chief Sam Peña said his department lacked the staffing needed to patrol for violations of the mask order. Instead, HFD officials respond only to complaints — an average of 70 to 80 per day, Peña said.
“To this point, we haven’t issued any citations,” he said Monday afternoon. “But we also haven’t left the scene or the location without addressing the issue.”
Hidalgo said law enforcement officials will seek to educate businesses, rather than issue fines, if they are caught violating the mask mandate during the first five days of the order.
After that, plans for enforcement are less certain. Hidalgo said county attorneys are working to confirm with state officials what enforcement mechanisms would be acceptable under the governor’s executive order.
Robert Soard, the first assistant attorney for Harris County, said his office is weighing the idea of enforcing regulatory measures, such as suspending a business’s permit as state officials have done for some overcrowded bars and restaurants in recent days.
“We’re looking at all possibilities, including regulatory methods,” Soard said.
Businesses get creative
The Harris County order will be in place until at least June 30, and Hidalgo hinted it will likely be extended. On Monday, businesses across the county sought to comply with the order without offending patrons.
Some, like Feges BBQ, handed out masks to customers who came in without one.
Others, like Kroger, offered masks for purchase at the front of their stores.
At Phoenicia Specialty Foods, about 70 percent of the store’s customers would arrive with a mask prior to the order, said General Manager Michael Bateman. On Monday, that number rose to 90 percent.
Some among the remaining 10 percent grumbled, he said, but were generally agreeable — “as long as you give them the right information.”
The mask requirement “definitely has caused some anxiety amongst the dining public,” said longtime Houston restaurateur Bill Floyd, owner of Porta’ Vino, north of Memorial Park. When guests begin arriving for dinner Monday afternoon, they were asked to wear a mask upon entering and exiting. The restaurant had masks to provide those without.
“Hopefully it will not become another issue we have to fight,” he said.
A range of impacts
At the same time, many businesses expressed hope that the order will lead to greater safety. “With the uptick in cases, I’m hopeful guests will take it seriously,” said Alli Jarrett, owner of Harold’s Restaurant & Tap Room in the Heights.
Others said the order wouldn’t change much for their day-to-day operations. Becky Pachal, store manager for Lerant, a tableware retailer on Westheimer, said she had only seen one customer come to the store without a mask in recent weeks. The customer left after staff asked her to please put on a mask.
“It hasn’t been a problem for us so far,” she said.
And for some, the order has generated complications. It included exemptions for when clients are eating, drinking, exercising outside, pumping gas or going to banks (which require security surveillance and screening).
So Brad Schreiber, president of Ashton Gardens, which has two wedding venues in Houston, said the order leaves room for wedding guests to leave off masks while drinking and dining, which happens throughout a wedding reception.
But he said the line gets a bit blurry when telling a bride and groom to wear masks at certain important moments.
“There is some level of reasonableness that we have to apply,” he said. “We can’t make a bride and groom wear masks when they’re taking pictures and reciting their vows. We’re going to look at the bigger picture.”
‘I think it’s better’
Customers interviewed inside Phoenicia Specialty Foods were generally pleased with the new requirements.
“I think it’s better,” Nora Atay, of Houston, said while perusing the produce aisle. “Because I’m not comfortable if somebody’s not using a mask.”
Joel Thomas said masks aren’t fun to wear and he’s skeptical of how protective they actually are. But they can’t hurt.
“It’s kind of annoying, but if at the end of the day it keeps 100 people from getting sick, then it’s no big deal,” he said.