Some in St. Mary hoped for more from governor

Some St. Mary Parish businesses and places of worship may have moved a step closer to a return to normalcy as Gov. John Bel Edwards announced Monday that both the stay-at-home order will be lifted and Phase 1 of reopening will begin Friday, but some businesses and government leaders weren’t satisfied completely.
Parish President David Hanagriff said that while it is a positive step, he was hoping the governor would have allowed more businesses to open and at a higher capacity. He said he would have liked to see Louisiana open at 50% capacity like some states have been doing instead of the 25% limit that is being allowed. He noted that businesses now have to wait until at least June 5 for any possible changes.
“That’s three more weeks of limited capacity,” he said.
Hanagriff said he didn’t like the restrictions that limited bars reopening to only those who are licensed to serve food, either.
“There are a lot of bars out there that are capable of being open that don’t necessarily serve food,” he said. “Who’s going to help them?”
Carlos Izaguirre, owner of The Galley restaurant in Morgan City, said that he only has 16 tables, so a 25% opening capacity will only mean he can seat about four tables, spread 10 feet apart.
“That’s like asking somebody who wants to go swimming ‘Oh, you can only put your leg in and enjoy yourself,’” he said. “I don’t know if you can do it.”
Izaguirre said he would remain with curbside service until more of his restaurant can be open, noting when a customer comes inside a restaurant, they want the typical experience they would get prior to the pandemic. He said it’s something that can’t be offered right now.
Izaguirre also said he has been dealing with labor problems as he said he is in competition with unemployment benefits to get employees back to work. He said he has a Paycheck Protection Program loan to pay his employees for 40 hours of work per week for eight weeks, but they are making more money on unemployment.
“It’s hard to wean the employee off the benefits and have them return to work, so we are having a labor shortage, which isn’t helping at all,” Izaguirre said.
He said it is something the government needs to correct.
At Champion’s Health Club in Patterson, owner Ed Jones said customer safety is priority.
“My thing is the customers, the clients are the ones that’s trying to work out, so I’m more concerned with the safety issue,” he said.
However, Jones said that if the government feels it’s safe to operate right now, they will do so using the proper measures to help stop the virus’ spread.
Jones said he likely would open Monday with normal business hours, and he looks forward to seeing his customers again.
At Lighthouse Community Church in Berwick, services have been held via social media, and the Rev. Mo Seneca said he is happy to worship in person again starting Sunday.
“It’s kind of like going to Grandma’s house,” he said. “We’re just excited about getting back together, and of course, I know it’s going to be a new normal and we’re going to not be able to hug or shake hands or some of those things, but you know what? We’re going to be able to see each other’s face, and that’s going to mean a lot.”
Seneca said church leaders will be passing on guidance to their congregation to ensure the church stays in line with the governor’s orders.
As citizens slowly begin to ease back into normalcy, Hanagriff said residents still need to continue practicing social distancing and other measures they have been utilized during the pandemic.
“Let’s try to still maintain our social distancing, use common sense practices, so that we can up this percentage sooner than later and start getting the results we’re hoping to achieve right now,” Hanagriff said.
He encouraged citizens to support local businesses.
“These businesses are in desperate need of money,” Hanagriff said. “They need their servers, so please try to shop St. Mary Parish.”