As Los Angeles edges out of the most restrictive tier in its covid-19 reopening plan, small business owners who’ve struggled to stay afloat say that whatever hope it brings is mixed with feelings of frustration and anger.
“On a monthly basis, our increased expenses to operate safely outdoors is between $10,000 and $12,000 a month,” he said. “Increased cleaning crew, increased cleaning materials, the tent rentals … our maintenance is five times what it was on equipment alone; [it’s] getting worn and broken being outside, and being weathered.”
Thirty minutes away, in historically Latino East LA, 58-year-old Senen Sanchez has relied on delivery apps to serve chili rellenos, enchiladas and taquitos out of Chico’s Mexican Restaurant.Senen Sanchez is owner of Chico's Mexican Restaurant in East Los Angeles. He says his revenue stream has taken a"painful" hit since the pandemic began.
Restaurants in the city of 10.4 million people only returned to outdoor dining a few weeks ago, after seeing a spike in cases that made January the state’s deadliest month of the pandemic so far. By September 2020, more than 15,000 businesses in L.A. had shut their doors -- more than any other city in the U.S. -- with half of the closures expected to be permanent, according to a Yelp analysis.
London noted it’s not just those working inside the restaurants who are impacted by the restrictions -- it’s everyone who helps to keep the restaurant running, too. “The summertime was the hardest,” Marsden said. “After they shut us down inside, they basically said, ‘Well, now you can go outside, but you can’t go inside. But here’s what you need to be outside.’ And again, it’s like this 48-hour warning.”
“I told my staff to meet up with me the following week and I would give them their last paychecks and then bags of food,” Marsden said. “Remember, Thanksgiving is one of the biggest holidays for restaurants. I went out and bought $10,000 worth of food to sell that now can’t be sold.” Like Marsden, many people across California have expressed frustration with Newsom. Some have even called for his resignation.
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Giving them a stage is deplorable.
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It’s really strange not to let you operate your businesses with all the health protocols in place. Especially at this point that there’s an active roll out of the vaccines.
Lockdown babies.
Do you think this is what people really need right now?