Lamont Considers Cares Act Funding For Restaurant Relief

CONNECTICUT — Gov. Ned Lamont gave struggling restaurants a glimmer of hope Monday when he announced he would see what federal Cares Act money was left for possible relief.

“In terms of additional relief believe me I’m looking and seeing what we can do with the last of our Cares Act money to provide a little bit of support for the restaurants who are struggling,” he said during a news conference.

Restaurant workers protested outside the governor’s residence Monday, according to the Hartford Courant. Lamont went outside to meet the protesters and said he was trying to keep restaurants open for as long as possible, but he couldn’t promise they would stay open forever if the pandemic situation worsens.

Lamont has been between two groups on the issue of restaurants. Some restaurant owners and employees have called for him to relax capacity and other limits. A group of Yale-affiliated doctors sent Lamont a letter urging him to stop indoor dining and to close gyms.

So far Lamont has resisted calls to shutter indoor dining and said that many restaurant goers would end up eating with others anyways.

Some at the protest called for the state to open its own coffers. Connecticut is sitting on a $3 billion rainy day fund, but Lamont has said he would tap it in the near future for vaccine distribution costs if necessary. The state is also looking at multi-billion dollar deficits in the coming years.

The Connecticut Restaurant Association has said that 600 restaurants have permanently closed during the pandemic and that the rest of the state industry is on the verge of collapse.

Connecticut allows indoor dining at 50 percent capacity along with outdoor dining, but the latter has become more of a challenge as cold days and nights become the norm. Restaurants also have to have last call by 9:30 p.m. and close by 10 p.m.

Rhode Island recently went on a “pause” due to a disturbing uptick in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. Rhode Island restaurants can only be open to 33 percent capacity.

New York City restaurants closed for indoor dining Monday.