With new COVID-19 cases surging in Oregon, governor Kate Brown announced a mandatory 2 week pause on activities in 10 counties that begins today, Wednesday November 11th. Fresh off of a new one-day record of infections, Oregon hospital beds are filling up and the dark and cold winter season is only just beginning. Taproom owners are worried that we are headed for another shutdown which could mean another wave of permanent closures.

There is some debate on how safe bars are during COVID. In a recent survey, epidemiologists ranked bars as one of the riskiest places for COVID-19 transmission. That risk factor is based on the number of interactions in a closed space over longer periods of time. Outdoor spaces with more airflow, distance and less people are considerably safer. Like any space, it can be as safe or dangerous as the management makes it.

On Monday Nov. 9th, Multnomah County Deputy Health Officer Jennifer Vines joined OPB’s Think Out Loud program and said most of the new infections come from home gatherings related to COVID fatigue, not on bars and restaurants.

“We have conveyed to businesses that if they put certain things in place, they are probably safe, and they are probably safer than people just getting together in somebodies living room or basement to socialize…I think limiting restaurant parties to 6 or fewer the same as a general mandate in a restaurant, and I would say that carry out and curbside pickup is going to be even lower risk,” said Vines.

With cases rising and concerns of a possible new shutdown or stricter regulations coming down the pipeline, we wanted to hear what Portland taproom owners had to say.

Geoff Phillips, owner of Bailey’s Taproom and co-founder of Level Beer thinks that the new restrictions are warranted:

“They seem mild enough, I can't think of too many local businesses that had capacities larger than 50 people under the current guidelines. I personally wasn't thrilled when groups of 10 would meet up, so reducing that number to six seems fine. The only thing I can see with that, is if your family size is larger than six, but that seems few and far between.”

Phillips was recently forced to shutter his beer bar Bailey’s Taproom for the forseeable future. Luckily Level Beer is far more conducive to the pandemic with it’s large open and covered outdoor spaces. He is prepared for more restrictions at Level Beer if they come.

“I think bars and restaurants need to decide for themselves what is best for their business within the guidelines the government has set. Patrons need to understand the government's guidelines and pay attention to what additional rules a bar or restaurant has put in place.”

Colin Patrick Rath of Migration Brewing oversees a Northeast Portland and Gresham pub location, Migration also opened an outdoor rooftop taproom this summer which recently closed for the season. Acknowledging the rising case count, Rath is skeptical that bars are the problem:

“I do not envy Kate Brown's position in having to make these calls. I think with the OHA continually commenting that COVID case loads are not a result of individuals visiting bars and restaurants this is not going to assist in solving the problem. I believe bars and restaurants are the place people feel comfortable going outside their homes since we have all been following OHA's protocols so closely as their sweep showed in July. I think by limiting the ability to go to bars and restaurants people are more likely to visit each other's homes where masks will rarely be worn and distance is much harder to maintain. The most worrisome part of people not being in a controlled space like a bar and restaurant and instead gathering in homes is these are the exact places OHA is saying COVID cases are stemming from. Lastly if people can still gather in houses of worship in groups of 100+ people controlling this situation is going to be extremely tough.

We will follow these new protocols and do what we have done since the beginning of COVID, take the situation very seriously. We feel very confident that our systems and protocols in place will keep people safe and would like to continue to give them a 3rd space away from home where all of us are spending so much time.”

Orion Landau of Wayfinder Beer has had to recently shut their taproom numerous times over the inclement weather, the brewpub has chosen not to reopen dining indoors since the shutdown in March. Recently Wayfinder has adjusted service for rain with new outdoor canopies.

“Its so hard to weigh in on what the best path forward is for Oregon. Cases are skyrocketing, but without and further stimulus from the government breweries are really stuck in a challenging, to say the least, situation. From the beginning we have only offered outdoor seating because we felt that it was the safest thing to do for our employees and patrons but we are also fortunate enough to have a spacious patio unlike a lot of other places. Its going to be a rough Winter for everyone. Thank god for beer....”

Old Town Brewing was forced to close their original location in downtown Portland and has worked to expand streetside seating at their MLK Blvd brewpub in northeast Portland. Owner Adam Milne has become accustomed to the pivot:

“I am not surprised to see the two week pause. Cases are up and we need to keep our community safe. While I see restaurants and bars doing all we can to making dining safe, we also need to prepare for a big dip in revenue if there’s a shutdown. Our only hope if a shutdown happens is if our elected officials quit arguing and come up with a rescue plan. In 2008 the focus was on Wall Street, national corporations, the auto and airline industry. The pandemic has hit the hospitality industry hardest and it is the local ecosystem of small business that should be prioritized.”

Matt Swihart of Hood River based Double Mountain Brewery & Cidery operates a restaurant and pub in inner southeast Portland’s family centric Woodstock neighborhood and is fully behind the guidelines:

“We strongly support the Governor’s actions to try to control the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. The state is making decisions based on the best science available and know that restrictions may and are needed to help control the spread as we move into cooler weather. Our Portland pub will be restricting inside dining numbers for this two weeks and in Hood River, as a smaller case load exists, no current further restrictions are being called for, but we will increase our training and sanitization efforts to make sure we are doing the right activities to keep our staff and customers safe.

Our hope is this 2 week pause will show efficacy and will help Oregon stem the rising case load we all see happening.”

Sean Campbell is the owner of one of Portland’s most famous beer bars and bottleshops in The Beermongers. With a small indoor space, Campbell has worked to build temporary outdoor seating options for patrons and recently completed constructing a tent in their parking lot.

“My personal belief is that we need to try to do everything we can to get the numbers down. I don’t know enough about the contact tracing going on to know how these new cases are spreading. Many people say it is at homes and social gatherings. I suspect some must be bars and restaurants. If we shut everything down in March and the numbers were low for many months maybe we should do that again. It was devastating to many businesses but it worked.

(I would not prefer a full shutdown but it does seem effective.)

We have not had indoor drinking and have no plans to allow it in the near future regardless of the state rules. We will continue to allow customers to drink on premises but only outdoors. I believe the government should follow expert advice based on tracing the infections and where they occur. The government also needs to do something to help bars and restaurants if there is another shutdown.”

Travis Preece of Gorges Beer Co. was ahead of the trend, turning his taprooms at Gorges and Ankeny Tap & Table into an outdoor promenade that attracted neighbors and the media. While it has remained a popular destination for beer and food, the Ankeny Promenade now has to grapple with the cold and rain in a huge space that’s impossible to fully insulate.

“I do think the measures are warranted.  Unfortunately the blanket approach is harmful to those of us who were already creating safe environments for guests.  I expect this is going to lead to another wave of business closures.”

As each business owner approaches the pandemic differently, they all are forced to thread the line between health and financial prosperity. Is it better or worse to keep their taprooms and restaurants open during the height of the pandemic or are there ways to accomplish both? Safe seating options, increased take out and greater enforcement of the safety protocols will hopefully help slow the spread of the virus and keep these businesses alive until we have a vaccine.