Venues, couples struggle to have socially distanced wedding receptions
The transition to the green phase of COVID-19 restrictions has given couples in southwestern Pennsylvania the green light to walk down the aisle — as long as they shorten their guest list.
Although Gov. Tom Wolf’s latest order permits gatherings of up to 250 people, owners and managers of wedding venues say it’s rarely possible to have that many guests and maintain social distancing. So most venues are operating at 50% capacity, following the new coronavirus guidelines set for bars and restaurants.
This leaves couples hoping for a large summer wedding with two options: have a smaller wedding or postpone it until the fall or spring.
“The couples this year have just been on a roller coaster,” said Alison Kwiatkowski, director of sales for Roost, an event venue in Downtown.
Roost, part of a dual operation with the restaurant Revel, has been working with couples to plan more intimate wedding ceremonies and receptions. The venue can accommodate up to 128 guests under the current restrictions, which is far from its “sweet spot” of events with 200 guests. Starting in July, Roost and partners Bethel Bakery and Pittsburgh Officiants will offer “minimalist” wedding packages that range from an hourlong event with up to 20 guests to the more popular three-hour ceremony and dinner for up to 45 guests.
“We want the minimalist packages to be a one-stop shop for them,” Ms. Kwiatkowski said. “If they had to postpone, they may have some of the things for their wedding already, so we can always customize the package.”
Like Roost, most local venues are gearing up for their first weddings since COVID-19 closed everything down in March. Some have scheduled weddings for later this month or early July. Others are still trying to determine when they can safely get back to business.
Of nearly 30 venues contacted for this story, only a handful were willing to comment out of fear that they were not correctly following the governor’s guidelines. Some feared they would face legal action from couples whose weddings were canceled. A person representing an outdoor venue in a county outside Allegheny said they were receiving calls from couples who had previously booked banquet halls but felt social distancing would be easier at an outdoor venue. The representative refused to allow the venue’s name to be published.
Lee Deiseroth, owner of the Fluted Mushroom catering company, said his business has received similar calls about booking at The Circuit Center and Ballroom, its venue in the South Side Flats.
“We took one couple away from a competitor” that wasn’t being as flexible with dates and guest count, he said.
But the game has definitely changed. The Circuit Center can typically squeeze in 600 people for a wedding but will maintain the 250person limit for its first wedding July 25 and others later in the summer.
Event planners and couples are eagerly awaiting each announcement from the governor’s office, hoping that larger gatherings will soon be allowed. Under the current restrictions, couples can’t have a dance floor at their receptions.
“There’s been such a fluid set of restrictions,” said Jonathan Werth, front office manager at the Duquesne Club in Downtown. “If a dance floor is something that [becomes] acceptable, we’re going to activate it as soon as we can.”
The Duquesne Club is offering couples adjoining rooms in case they want to exceed its limit of 125 guests in a single room.
Couples forced to shorten their guest list are sometimes choosing to stream their wedding on Zoom or other videoconferencing platforms, venue representatives said. Many couples who had planned to be married this summer moved the date to the fall or spring. Others are opting for a small ceremony now and a larger celebration down the road.
Katlyn Doolin, the wedding department manager at Bethel Bakery, says one couple she works with have rescheduled their wedding four times — from March to September.
“It’s kind of like a weird game of wedding musical chairs,” Ms. Doolin said. “Things just keep shifting and moving, and for us, it’s just about being there to help support through all of these changes.”
At Roost, Ms. Kwiatkowski said her goal is to provide as close as possible to a traditional wedding experience despite the pandemic.
“I got tired of hearing brides saying they were ‘settling.’ You don’t have to settle. It’s a magical day.”