Exclusive
California’s nightlife is returning to confinement amid new spikes in coronavirus cases, something the Los Angeles bar and club scene might not survive … TMZ has learned.
If you live in the Golden State, you probably heard about the governor. Gavin newsom Once again, he ordered the closure of bars and clubs in 19 counties, including Los Angeles County, where those places had only just begun to open after months of closing.
# COVID19 continues to spread at an alarming rate.
Effective immediately, 19 counties must close indoor operations for the following sectors:
– Restaurants
– Wineries
– Cinemas and family entertainment
– Zoos, museums
– Card roomsBars must close ALL trades.
– Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) July 1, 2020 @GavinNewsom
Newsom also said that people couldn’t do a dinner service inside restaurants, so even if a bar serves food, it’s not a start. The fact is … Newsom had no choice. The virus is out of control.
However … it’s a big deal for many bars and clubs, especially the smaller ones that were increasing to get back into the game … only to close a second time.
John Arakaki who owns St. Felix, a couple of fancy bars that have been operating in the Hollywood area for the past 11 years, says he quickly went through 60 percent of his government loans in security training, payroll, cleaning the kitchen and everything in between. When it reopened 3 weeks ago, you were able to recover even after including all of your income and expenses. I had hoped to turn the corner on the fourth weekend, but that is not going to happen. He says that if he is depressed for 3 more weeks, survival looks bleak.
Cat & The Fiddle, a West Hollywood pub, reopened on Monday … only to have it closed again 2 days later. The owner spent $ 5-10,000 in the past two weeks on face masks, safety training for his staff, and beer and food inventory.
Hell, even popular Hollywood spots like Bootsy Bellows and Poppy, two popular WeHo clubs, are on the line: They were on the rise for a big 4th of July, and that’s now down the drain money. They say they can survive, but that is a relative term.
Some of the restaurant and club owners are especially frustrated because they feel that the second closing order came out of nowhere. The reality … COVID numbers increased for many days, and at one point, the shutdown was only a matter of time.