Welch: City’s businesses are ready to safely reopen

Many businesses in Mountain Brook and the state of Alabama were beginning to reopen at press time after some of the official restrictions on commercial activity during the COVID-19 pandemic were amended.

On May 8, Gov. Kay Ivey updated her April 28 “safer-at-home” order and further loosened restrictions on some businesses, including bars, breweries and restaurants, as well as service providers like barber shops and hair salons.

Retailers are allowed to open but cannot exceed a 50% occupancy rate.

In Mountain Brook, Mayor Stewart Welch told Village Living he believes the city’s small businesses are ready to open up.

“If there are some retailers who are choosing to wait a little bit longer to open up, that is certainly appropriate, but the ones who are opening under the governor’s guidelines, I think they’re ready,” he said.

“They care about their employees, and they obviously care about their customers,” Welch said. “They are taking whatever precautions make sense to keep the public safe and keep their employees safe.

“This has gone on long enough for people to understand and examine their own businesses and figure out, ‘How do I open and also keep people safe,’” he said.

There is a powerful economic reason to reopen the city, the mayor said.

“People want to get back to work,” he said. “We need that for the local economy. We need that, obviously, across the country. And I think it can be done with the maximum amount of safety.”

On a cautionary note, Gov. Ivey said the threat of COVID-19 “continues to be active, and it is deadly.”

Welch also said the city “strongly recommends that the most vulnerable part of our population continue to shelter at home as much as possible.”

The mayor is urging all business people and area residents to follow four primary safety protocols.

One is social distancing, which remains part of the governor’s order, Welch said.

Everyone in the community will be asked to wear some kind of face covering.

“Wearing face masks is a request, not a mandate,” Welch said.

Retailers will be asked to have hand sanitizer available as people enter their shops.

People should also learn not to touch their faces and to practice “extreme personal hygiene,” Welch said.

“You should sanitize your hands when you enter public space and sanitize your hands when you exit public space,” he said.

Welch expressed concern for restaurant operators due to a requirement remaining in Ivey’s order that eateries keep tables at least 6 feet apart.

“The amount of people that are going to be allowed into a restaurant is going to make it a real challenge for a restaurant to be successful,” Welch said.

He said city officials and restaurateurs recently brainstormed some “creative ways” to adhere to Ivey’s mandates while allowing eateries to serve more people.

As reported in this issue, the City Council voted May 11 to help restaurants more easily expand their use of sidewalk dining and — at a called meeting May 13 — voted to temporarily designate a few parking spaces on most blocks in the villages for curbside delivery for restaurants and retailers.

“If there was ever a time when we need to support our businesses it would be now,” Welch said.

He believes the city’s businesses can survive. “I’m extremely optimistic — with the caveat that everybody pitches in and does their share,” he said.

The Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce will host a celebration called “Reopen Mountain Brook” from June 1-6.

Participating merchants will offer specials and create “safe, creative and personable shopping environments,” according to the chamber website.

For details, go to mtnbrookchamber.org.