70% Not Ready For Indoor Dining; 63% Against Indoor Events: Poll

KANE COUNTY, IL — A majority of people who responded to an informal poll of regional Patch readers said they are still not comfortable eating inside restaurants or enjoying indoor entertainment, even though Illinois eased some restrictions under phase 4 of its reopening plan.

Just 29.7 percent of the 566 respondents in Kane, DuPage, Kendall and Will counties said they are comfortable dining in restaurants again, while 26.5 percent said they are willing to patronize outdoor eating areas.

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More than 70 percent of those who responded said they have not changed their behavior since Illinois moved to phase 4 of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Restore Illinois plan for reopening amid the pandemic. About 27 percent of respondents said they noticed changes in their routines over the past month.

About a quarter of Patch readers who took the poll said they were comfortable using a gym or fitness center and attending indoor entertainment events. Just over 36 percent of survey respondents are ready for outdoor entertainment, the poll shows.

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Nearly three-quarters said the speed at which Illinois moved to phase 4 was “too fast” or “just about right.” About 22 percent said the state was moving too slow in reopening.

Seventy-two residents in Kane County took the regional Patch poll, with a quarter saying they felt the state moved too slowly. Sixty-eight percent of Kane County residents who took the poll said they were not comfortable eating inside restaurants, and just over 20 percent of residents have changed their behavior over the past month under phase 4, the poll shows.

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Just one-sixth of Kane County parents who took the poll said they were comfortable sending their children back to school for the fall semester. Districts throughout the county are grappling with how to safely reopening for in-person learning amid the pandemic.

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Many Kane County residents who took the poll called for mask mandates in Illinois and warned against reopening too quickly.

“I thought that phase 3 was appropriate, and phase 4 was too much, too fast,” wrote one reader from Aurora. “They are not being careful enough about indoor spread, and there are still people not wearing masks.”

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“I am happy that our state has proceeded cautiously and I am in favor of on-going mask requirements,” a Batavia reader wrote. “I think we should continue to be cautious and not move forward too quickly from here.”

Some who took the poll called for masks to only be required for at-risk people — and for students to not wear them in classrooms — while others accused Pritzker and the news media of fear-mongering amid the pandemic.

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One reader from St. Charles called Illinois’ said Pritzker “has been overstepping his authority since April 8,” when his initial 30-day emergency declaration expired.

“Masks should be optional. Those of us that are healthy should be able to get back to real life,” wrote the reader from St. Charles. “Putting ridiculous restrictions on small businesses and schools is going to cause detrimental issues that can take years to repair. The fear mongering needs to end and we need to reopen 100% now.”

Patch conducted an informal survey of readers in Kane, DuPage, Kendall and Will counties during the first two weeks of July to understand their opinions on Illinois' move to phase 4 of its plan to reopen businesses and reduce restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

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