Struggling bar owners ask Gov. Cooper to lift curfew

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Bars across North Carolina are some of the businesses hit hardest by COVID-19 restrictions, and bar owners want Governor Roy Cooper to lift restrictions they believe are unfair.

Bar rooms have been closed for more than ten months, and owners are fed up.

“Bars and taverns in North Carolina are the only business that has not been allowed to have customers inside their doors,” said North Carolina Bar and Tavern Association (NCBATA) President Zack Medford.

Medford owns Coglin’s in Wilmington. He says COVID-19 restrictions on bars have been tough on him personally.

“We’ve already had to close two of our bars,” he said. “Luckily we still have Coglin’s Wilmington.”

In March 2020, bars that do not serve food were ordered to close their doors to slow the spread of COVID-19, and were not allowed to reopen until October. Since then they have only been allowed to serve customers in outdoor spaces at 30 percent capacity, and since in December they’ve had to stop serving alcohol at 9:00 p.m.

“It’s unfair,” Medford said. “Why would anyone go to our bars when they can go to a restaurant next door and sit inside in the warm temperature-controlled air.”

Medford and other bar owners are asking Gov. Cooper to extend the curfew to midnight. He believes that failing to do this before the Super Bowl could cause a spike of COVID-19 cases.

“People are going to be funneled to informal events at private homes where they’re not going to have anyone to enforce social distancing,” he said. “They’re not going to face security to walk around making sure people are wearing their masks.”

Medford argues if bars are going to be under such harsh restrictions, the state should give them a break on taxes and fees.

“We spent 10 months with our bar rooms closed, but the ABC permit still costs the same,” he said. “We’re still paying the same amount in taxes whenever we purchase liquor from the ABC system.”

Medford hopes Cooper will make an announcement about the curfew during a news conference on Wednesday.

It is not clear if the governor plans to make any changes at this time.

Click here to read the full news release from NCBATA.