Bars can reopen Wednesday in Tarrant County, but some Fort Worth owners are skeptical
The Lazy Moose bar on Magnolia Avenue was filled Monday night with about 20 bar and restaurant owners after Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley announced the county would allow bars to open at 50% capacity starting Wednesday.
Whitley set up the meeting Monday at 5:30 p.m. to talk with local owners, go over details of reopening restrictions and urge everyone to follow COVID-19 safety rules.
On Monday at 3:30 p.m., Whitley gave the go-ahead for bars to open in Tarrant this week under Gov. Greg Abbott’s order, in which Abbott said that bars could open across the state at 50% capacity at each county’s discretion.
Whitley explained some specifics of Abbott’s order, including that bars need to close at 11 p.m. He urged owners to follow the rules and do their part to keep the community safe, bar owner Tino DeFranco said.
DeFranco, who owns Your Mom’s House and Whiskey Garden in the West 7th entertainment district, said he was glad Whitley is allowing bars to reopen, but he thinks some local spots “are not going to make it” financially, especially because the hours between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. are usually the most profitable time of the day for many bars. Those operating as restaurants with food and beverage certificates are allowed to stay open later, he said.
At Monday’s meeting, some owners argued about the fairness of the rules, DeFranco said.
“I don’t agree with the fact that there’s no end game, there’s no light at the end of the tunnel,” DeFranco said.
At Monday’s press conference, Whitley called out certain bars that did not appear to be following COVID-19 restrictions, referring to public Snapchat videos from the Crockett Row area of West 7th. He said he would ask the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission to suspend liquor licenses for venues that ignored capacity restrictions or mask mandates.
At Monday’s meeting with owners, Whitley said he spoke to staff at Varsity Tavern, one of the bars he said appeared to be flouting COVID-19 safety regulations, and warned them to follow the rules. Varsity Tavern owners did not respond to requests for comment.
John Hinkle, owner of Woody’s Tavern at 4744 Bryant Irvin Road, said certain bars — like those Whitley mentioned — make reopening harder for everyone. His own bar mostly sees the same customers each day and he said COVID-19 restrictions are “easily doable.”
“Not all bars are the same,” he said. “There are some bars that don’t want to listen to what the governor is saying and they make it bad on everybody.”
Hinkle was grateful that Whitley made the time to talk with owners on Monday and was happy “he’s decided to give us a chance.”
“We haven’t been involved in this for seven months,” he said. “We’re being held hostage because they think we’re the cause of the problem, but we haven’t been in it.”
Ryan Higgs, owner of Main at South Side at 1002 S Main St., said he is happy bars that do not meet the 51% food-revenue rule can open, but he is skeptical of the timing of the reopening announcement.
“Because they’ve allowed old folks homes to have visitation and schools to open, and then they open the bars,” he said. “And when the numbers go up, they can blame the bars.”
His wife was more optimistic. Jenna Hill, who owns Liberty Lounge at 515 S Jennings Ave., said it meant a lot that Whitley sat down to talk with them and give them answers, and she and other owners just want to keep the community safe.
“This is not about me, this is about all of us,” she said. “If we work together and stay safe, we can get through this. You can’t be selfish right now. We have to help each other.”
Counties where COVID-19 patients occupy more than 15% of total hospital beds must keep bars closed, while other counties can choose to open them, according to Abbott’s order. Coronavirus hospitalizations in Tarrant County were about 11% of occupied beds and about 8% of total beds as of Monday, the highest rates since Aug. 16, according to county data.
