With coronavirus cases rising in New Haven and statewide, city Mayor Justin Elicker said Monday he has told Gov. Ned Lamont that the state should tighten restrictions to reduce the virus’ spread.
Elicker commented on his views during a Zoom meeting with members of the media on Monday evening.
“I have relayed our belief to the governor that we should tighten up more than we already are to reduce people’s opportunities to interact,” Elicker said.
New Haven alone has had 4,130 coronavirus cases, with 119 fatalities, city officials said. Lamont’s office reported Monday that there have been 93,284 cases statewide, with 757 current hospitalizations and 4,759 deaths.
“We are continuing to see cases increase, and we are likely to continue on that trajectory for quite some time,” Elicker said. “We feel pretty strongly that we should be doing more to – I don’t want to use the word ‘lockdown’ – but to make sure we are reducing people’s opportunities to interact.”
Elicker said he has made it clear to the governor’s team that he would like to move back to some form of Phase I, which had prohibited indoor dining. Currently, the state is subject to Phase 2.1 restrictions.
According to Elicker, the state and nearby states should act in partnership, as one city or state acting alone won’t make a difference. “We are not an island – as is clear with the spread of the virus.”
“I think the state needs to tighten things up, particularly in areas where we have seen a lot of the spread,” Elicker said. “We don’t have control over people’s private gatherings. But we do have control over restaurants and indoor dining and things like that.”
Elicker favors reverting to restaurants being open for takeout and delivery, rather than indoor dining, for example.
“I hate to say it because of our businesses, but I think we need to be really smart and focus on the long term and making sure we can open up,” Elicker said. “I would discourage people from going anywhere where they are maskless and interact with other people, and that would include indoor dining.”
Elicker noted the state saw some success at controlling virus cases over the summer because of early restrictions, which he asserted ultimately helped businesses in the warm months.
“I think we need to do the same thing now, to be very proactive so we can help our businesses in the long run,” Elicker said. “I know this is not easy for businesses. But if we keep going business as usual, we will have way more cases.”
When asked if he has gotten any feedback on his opinion from Lamont’s office, Elicker said he talks regularly with the governor.
“He is in a tough spot – not every community feels the same way,” Elicker said.
The business community has expressed frustration with rollbacks, due to the negative economic impact.
Scott Dolch, executive director with the Connecticut Restaurant Association, said the restaurant industry was hit first and hardest by the pandemic.
“Throughout the year our members have gone above and beyond to keep customers safe,” Dolch said. “And they’ve been successful: restaurants began operating indoors June 17, and for more than 4 months they did so while Connecticut continued to keep daily positive tests rate at around 1 percent.”
“The bottom line is that restaurants have been good partners in Connecticut’s efforts to fight the pandemic and shutting down indoor dining will only lead to additional gatherings in homes and unregulated spaces, which has proven to be an unsafe solution in dealing with the virus,” Dolch added.
Garrett Sheehan, president and CEO of the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce, called the mayor’s comments “very disappointing.”
“As we all work to stop the spread of the virus, I’m concerned that the focus is being put on business activity,” Sheehan said. “We had an entire summer of businesses reopening, including indoor dining, where we did not see case counts rise. Our businesses have led the way in being safe. They follow the protocols. They have invested in making their businesses safe for employees and customers. They are doing the right things even when it costs them money.”
Sheehan said now is the time businesses need support.
“They should not be constantly living under threats from elected officials of more shutdowns,” Sheehan said. “Many businesses have already gone out of business, many more are barely hanging on. I ask the Mayor and others to please not use business to send a message to everyone else. Again, we all want to stop the spread and protect public health, and the trends are extremely concerning, but let’s do this together and not on the backs of small businesses.”
Connecticut began its Phase 3 reopening in October, but Lamont’s office has since imposed additional restrictions, with a rollback to Phase 2.1. Earlier this month, his office outlined rules for outdoor dining structures.
Elicker and city officials also encouraged city residents to make use of a smartphone app that alerts users if they have been within six feet of an infected person.
Contact Michelle Tuccitto Sullo at msullo@newhavenbiz.com.
