Spicer considers reopening businesses

This article was published in the Lakes Area Review on May 9, 2020

In one of its most consequential decisions in recent history, the city of Spicer is considering a resolution to defy Gov. Tim Walz’s COVID-19 stay-at-home order and reopen the city for business.

Following a seemingly impromptu conversation about the state of Spicer’s local businesses during Tuesday’s City Council meeting, the council unanimously voted to recess the meeting until Monday to vote on a resolution to forcibly reopen the city for business.

“I’m trying to balance off health [and] economy,” Spicer Mayor Denny Baker told the council. “Some people say that’s not a fair thing, but it is. Some of us are going to die either way.”

Spicer is considering opening up its economy following a similar move by the city of Lakefield, which passed a resolution on Monday to defy the governor’s orders and reopen bars, restaurants and other places of public accommodation.

The details of the resolution that will be voted on by the Spicer City Council are still murky, and the extent of which the resolution will defy the governor’s Executive Order is unknown. Whether the city of Spicer will be reopened immediately following passage of the resolution, or if the city will be reopened if the governor decides to extend the stay-at-home order beyond its May 18 expiration remains to be seen.

With summer just around the corner, in a typical year Spicer businesses would be gearing up for their busy season – but with people encouraged to stay home and with businesses closed, it could mean a major hit for Spicer’s economy. If the governor chooses to extend his stay-at-home order past May 18, it could mean businesses closures around Green Lake – and even potential closures of Spicer staples such as the Fourth of July parade and block party.

As the state and the nation weigh the financial blows and human casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic, a delicate balance has been struck between the economy and science. However, Baker feels that the government has taken a largely one-sided approach – on the side of public health and virologists – and has largely failed to consider the perspective of the small business owner.

“Have they ever been in a business when nobody walked through the door?” Baker said in a phone interview. “You look at our restaurants, they’re bleeding.” He said that Walz is paying lip service when he says he’s concerned about small businesses. “That’s what bothers me.”

Of course, reopening the city of Spicer for business – especially in the summer months – could signal to weekend cabin goers from across the state that, in spite of the shutdown, Spicer is open for business. However, this increases the likelihood of shuttling the virus from COVID-19 hotspots, like Hennepin County – which on Thursday had 2,962 confirmed cases – to Kandiyohi County, where rural hospitals are significantly less equipped to deal with an outbreak than the metro.

Still, Baker wants to see regular summer traffic in Spicer. He said he wants tourists to come and support local stores and restaurants, and doesn’t feel a pandemic should bring the local economy to a sudden halt. “I think that is just part of life,” he said. “Is it going to happen? Yeah, it’s going to happen.”

There is also the inherent unfairness that big box stores like Menards and Home Depot, with the financial capital to withstand this pandemic, are allowed to remain open for business, but “mom and pop” stores off Lake Avenue are forced into closure, Baker said.

Overall, the council seemed to share Baker’s opinions. “Everyone I’ve talked to, they’ve had enough of this,” said Councilman Troy Block during Tuesday’s meeting. “It’d be totally different if somebody knew somebody who was sick.”

“If we’re not ready to go by the 18th, then I think it’s really going to put us in a bind business wise,” Councilman Jesse Gislason said.

“Maybe I’m too fatalistic,” Councilwoman Robin deCathelineau said. “If we’re going to get it, we’re going to get it.”

“We don’t shut down everything for people who are suffering from cancer, we don’t shut down for people who have diabetes,” she added.

“Us opening up, and having distancing and that type of stuff, I don’t think it would be a wrong thing to do,” Councilwoman Shelly Munyon said.

When asked if they intended to vote for the resolution on Monday, both Block and Gislason said they intended to vote for it, but to varying degrees. Munyon said she was still undecided and deCathelineau could not be reached before press time.

Both Baker and the City Council indicated that they’ve heard from numerous small businesses that said they are ready to reopen.

Scott West, the owner of the Westwood Cafe, said his restaurant has taken a huge financial hit since the governor mandated the stay-at-home order.

“I just can’t keep losing money, or in another month or two I’ll have to close down and see what to do,” West said. “The bills don’t stop coming.”

Currently, the Westwood Cafe is subsisting on curbside carry-out, but according to West, that alone is not enough to cover the bills.

Even if the governor lifts the stay-at-home restrictions, and the Westwood Cafe is allowed to reopen on May 18, West is not sure if he will be able to do so in time while complying with all the new safety standards.

Still, despite his financial hardships, West said he has reservations about reopening too soon. “I’m really hesitant to just open up,” he said. “I don’t want to get any of the employees sick ... I fear that if somebody is going to be sick and deathly ill, that kind of falls on your lap.”

If the city of Spicer passes this resolution, there is still the question of whether Spicer and its businesses have the autonomy to openly defy the governor’s Executive Order.

Detailed in the Executive Order, a worker who willfully violates the order can be fined up to $1,000 and jailed for up to 90 days. Business owners who require or encourage their employees to work face a gross misdemeanor and a fine of up to $3,000. They could also face up to a year in jail.

Although the situation remains in uncharted territory and the consequences of defying the Executive Order are unclear, Baker is skeptical of the state’s ability to prosecute businesses that choose to remain open. “Can somebody actually shut us down?” he said. “Does that government really have that power to shut our businesses off, just because we don’t abide by their stay-at-home [order]?”

Legally, County Sheriff Eric Holien said he is unsure what his department would do if a municipality within the county decided to shun the governor’s directive. He said if that were the case, he would contact the Minnesota Department of Public Safety and follow what they instruct him to do.

Though Spicer businesses are hurting, public health still needs to be considered. Kandiyohi County is seeing its worst weeks of the pandemic yet, and it’s only getting worse. If Spicer chooses to reopen, especially if it continues to attract visitors from out of town, it could only exacerbate the situation.

Kandiyohi County could be sitting on a potential cluster of COVID-19 cases following the outbreak at Jennie-O processing plant in Willmar. As of Thursday, when the Lakes Area Review went to press, there were 238 confirmed cases and one death. With the exception of Stearns County, Kandiyohi County has more cases than all of its neighboring counties combined. To stop the spread, Kandiyohi County Public Health is urging residents to continue to stay home.

“Even though there haven’t been any additional deaths from COVID-19 in our county, surges in deaths are typically over a week later than surges in cases,” said Dr. Ken Flowe, an emergency physician with Carris Health, in a Thursday news release by Kandiyohi County Public Health. “Kandiyohi County businesses draw both employees and customers regionally. The six county graph of COVID-19 cases and deaths shows that our extended community is in the beginning stages of regional spread of the virus. We don’t believe the peak in cases has been reached and there is no confidence that the case count is slowing down.”

Ahead of Monday’s discussion about Spicer’s proposed resolution, many questions remain unanswered. If Spicer does reopen, with no precedent from the state, what safety regulations will businesses have to follow? Will safety precautions be at their own discretion? Or if businesses do reopen, will vulnerable employees no longer qualify for unemployment or money from the coronavirus relief bill that was passed by the U.S. Congress and then be forced to return to their jobs?

In a symbolic gesture, the Spicer City Council will abandon the video-conferencing app Zoom and hold Monday’s City Council meeting in-person.