TRYING A DIFFERENT REOPEN APPROACH
Vicari: ‘We are not asking people to stand up and violate’ the shutdown order
If you can’t beat ‘em, try to work with them.
That’s the tact now being tried by the Joe and Rosalie Vicari, owners of the Andiamo and Joe Muers eateries in Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties.
Following a Zoom meeting Thursday with other restaurant and bar owners across southeast Michigan, the Vicaris say instead of opposing a state-mandated shutdown order, they will work to negotiate some other way to open safely before Christmas.
“That was the shift in our meeting today, we are not asking people to stand up and violate the ordinance,” Rosalie Vicari said.
“Because you will lose your liquor license and food permit. We are looking for a compromise, can we open at an even more reduced capacity, change our hours, whatever we can do to present to the governor so that she may consider letting us open safely.”
The Vicaris found themselves the target of criticism over the weekend when a letter they authored urging industry leaders to “band together” and open in light of the closure was leaked to the media.
They quickly regrouped and are now taking a softer approach.
At Thursday’s Zoom meeting, there were many questions about what would happen if owners defy the order and open their doors anyway. The Vicaris are urging them not to even try.
“When you are in a business where the government can issue an operating permit through liquor and food licenses, if you violate anything,
the government has right to take those away, fine you or suspend you,” Rosalie Vicari said.
This is the second shutdown ordered by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services after the pandemic resulted in a closure this past spring. Bars and restaurants were allowed to reopen in June for dine-in service with a reduced 50% capacity.
A three-week “pause” ordered three weeks ago expires Tuesday. Industry leaders fear it will be extended for at least another three weeks. Down in Ohio, bars and restaurants faced a similar order but have since been allowed to reopen.
During a COVID-19 update Thursday, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she hasn’t yet made up her mind as she wants to review additional data first. But she said it may be “sadly possible” because of coronavirus numbers in Michigan.
State health officials have said Michigan’s positivity rate has fallen from 14% on Nov. 16 to around 13%. They expect that will rise again following the Thanksgiving holiday, where families gathered despite warnings not to.
A shutdown extension would be “very disappointing for my business and my employees,” said Joe Vicari.
“To go three weeks without a paycheck is tough. Not too many people can go three weeks without a paycheck because the bills keep coming, the landlord wants his rent.”
And after Christmas comes January and February, traditionally two of the toughest months for the dining industry in Michigan as many residents decide to hunker down from the cold weather. What’s frustrating for the owners is the fact that the infectious rate for shopping malls is 9% versus 4.2% in restaurants
“So it’s actually safer to go to a restaurant than to a mall,” Joe Vicari said.
The Vicaris hope to have a meeting with the governor and other officials in Lansing before the Dec. 8 “pause” expires and negotiate a way to allow restaurants and bars to open for the Christmas season. After that, they would assess their numbers to see if the coronavirus figures are stabilizing, decreasing or rising.
“We learned you can’t fight city hall, that’s what we learned along the way,” Rosalie Vicari said. “And we understand everyone’s concerns should be for the safety of the citizens of Michigan.”