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Arnone to Murphy: Let Restaurants Reopen For Indoor Dining

Monmouth County Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

FREEHOLD, NJ – Monmouth County Freeholder Director Thomas A. Arnone issued the following statement regarding the reopening of indoor dining in Monmouth County:

“We are now halfway through the summer and restaurants’ doors remain closed for indoor dining. Restaurants had been prepared to welcome back customers inside on July 2, but then that was postponed indefinitely.

I have been in constant communication with our restaurant owners in Monmouth County, who are truly suffering from the loss of income this summer. July has been an extremely hot month, which has been great for our beaches, but not for our restaurants.

Many restaurants in Monmouth County have made the best they can out of these horrible circumstances, creating dining spaces on sidewalks, parking lots and even on streets in some towns. I commend all of the mayors and municipalities that have worked with their businesses to help them endure.

Still, there are too many dining establishments that are not able to open for outdoor dining and they have been forced to remain closed or rely solely on take-out and delivery sales to get by. It is incredibly unfair that they continue to wait for clearance to reopen for indoor dining and are given no inkling as to when that will be.

While I understand the concern for public health, the facts show that restaurants are proving that they are capable of providing a safe environment for their customers. It seems unfair to punish our dining establishments for the irresponsible behavior of those having social gatherings in private homes, which have led to outbreaks.

Outdoor dining has been open since June 15 and there have been no outbreaks among customers at any of the establishments—not one! This clearly demonstrates that our business community understands the consequences of not adhering to the safety guidelines. They are working diligently and taking every precaution to ensure the safety of their patrons.

As I have said many times, restaurants need to be allowed to open their doors back to their patrons before the summer is over with at least 50% capacity if we want them to survive.

As the Director of the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, I am asking the Governor to please reopen restaurants for indoor dining or at least provide a timely plan to address moving towards this goal—one with clear benchmarks to be met.

Having goals and standards will help alleviate at least some of the stress and uncertainty that so many business owners are dealing with right now.

We have to give these establishments a chance before it is too late.”

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Posted: July 28th, 2020 | Author: | Filed under: COVID-19, Monmouth County News, New Jersey | Tags: , , , , | 6 Comments »

6 Comments on “Arnone to Murphy: Let Restaurants Reopen For Indoor Dining”

  1. Seems rational said at 7:50 pm on July 28th, 2020:

    The numbers have been going down, lots of states have indoor dining with no issue. Let’s get this ball rolling!

  2. Hank III said at 12:52 pm on July 29th, 2020:

    Loved how Shaun completely distanced himself from this brilliant idea. In a couple weeks, Tommy will pretend he never said this lol.

  3. Curious said at 12:29 am on July 30th, 2020:

    Just curious. You cannot eat with a mask on. An unplanned sneeze or coughing spell propels the virus aerosols much farther than six feet. Why not leave it at takeout and raise prices for takeout containers etc. NJ is still number 5 for most cases in America. Are our lives so cheap we have to risk it for inside dining? Even those who stay home will be at risk from those who don’t. Thought we were fighting this like a war?

  4. By the looks of said at 10:07 am on July 30th, 2020:

    the numbers of people enjoying summer outdoor dining at many places, my guess is, that many healthy, intelligent adults will be willing to take the risk and attempt indoor dining, as well. With cold weather coming, will we see large ( scary?) propane heaters under tents, or will we just let so many more small, non- chain businesses shut for good? The destruction of so many of our basic freedoms during these times, are just as frightening and dangerous as this disease.

  5. Get Smart said at 5:57 pm on July 30th, 2020:

    Perhaps our Freeloaders, who are concerned about small business, should have spoken out on non tax paying churches getting the biggest share of PPP money. Those small businesses deserved it. They can’t pass the collection plate. They pay taxes. Why are they not pressuring their party to stop worrying about a new FBI building and get to work?

  6. Louie Cypher said at 9:45 am on August 1st, 2020:

    Outdoor dining has been open since June 15 and there have been no outbreaks among customers at any of the establishments—not one!

    Precisely! As we all know by this point, the “virus” is fake news of the highest order. Reopen everything asap!