NC bar owners say they’ll file lawsuit against Gov. Cooper to reopen bars
A newly formed group of bar owners plan to sue North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper for the exclusion of bars from Phase Two of the state’s reopening plan.
The North Carolina Bar & Tavern Association put out a news release Thursday morning announcing the expected suit, a reaction to North Carolina reopening restaurants and breweries at 50% capacity last week, but leaving bars and nightclubs closed. The group says it will file its lawsuit Friday if there are no changes to Cooper’s executive order on Phase Two.
“It makes no sense to say it’s safe to have a drink in a distillery or a beer in a brewery, neither of which serve food, but it’s somehow unsafe to enjoy that same cocktail or beer in a bar,” said Zack Medford, president of the North Carolina Bar and Tavern Association. “We aren’t asking for special treatment — we are asking to enjoy our constitutional right to enjoy the fruits of our labor and for equal treatment. We want to get back to work just like everyone else. The safety of our guests, our employees and our community is absolutely paramount to us. We’re willing and eager to abide by the rules when we are open.”
Medford owns the Downtown Raleigh Bars Issac Hunter’s Tavern and bottle shop Paddy O’Beers. The NC Bar and Tavern Association says it represents more than 100 bar owners in the state.
Few options for bar owners
The coronavirus shutdown has been devastating to North Carolina’s food and beverage industry. Restaurants have tried to make it through the pandemic on takeout and loans, but bars have been left with few options, other than selling beer and wine to go.
“We’ve attempted to address the inequality through discussion and diplomacy, but if we can’t find resolution from the governor or the Legislature, then our only choice left will be the courts,” said the NCBATA’s government relations consultant, Jack Cozort, in a news release.
In explaining the separation of bars and restaurants in Phase Two, North Carolina officials said last week they hoped to ease the state into the reopening of businesses, comparing the plan to a dimmer switch on a light.
“We recognize that that means there are some businesses that we didn’t want to move forward with at this time,” North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen said last week in a press briefing. “All of these activities have risks. The question is should we be doing them all at the same time? The data really was saying to us that we need to take a modest step and continue to go slow.”
Bars weren’t the only businesses that hoped to reopen in Phase Two, but were left out for now. Gyms and other workout facilities must also remain closed. On Wednesday, a group representing gym owners filed a lawsuit against Cooper seeking to reopen gyms.
The North Carolina Senate just passed a bill Thursday morning that would satisfy the demands of bar owners. The bill would expand restaurant seating, allowing for 50% capacity outdoors as well as indoors, and would apply to bars, effectively reopening them, the News & Observer reports.
Last week when Gov. Cooper announced that the state was not ready to reopen bars alongside restaurants, some bar owners said the distinction felt arbitrary, if not pointed.
Sean Umstead and Michelle Vanderwalker own the downtown Durham cocktail bar Kingfisher and didn’t expect to open until the middle of June at the earliest. The bar isn’t affiliated with Medford’s group, but Umstead said he felt like bars were being punished because of a stigma some have for the nature of bars themselves.
“To me, it’s an arbitrary distinction that’s being made for a reason other than science,” Umstead said. “I don’t like them arbitrarily pushing my timeline when they’re not doing the same for restaurants.”
This story was originally published May 28, 2020 at 11:54 AM.
