Late-night business owners frustrated with “last resort” closure call

PRINCE GEORGE — Late-night business owners frustrated with the closure call of clubs and bars, along with banquet halls. In a statement written to CKPG, Linda Wolf, Owner of Lambda Cabaret, wrote, “Either shut it down with strict rules for two weeks or open up everything. Obviously what the provincial government is doing is not working.”

Meanwhile, Bernie Schneider, who co-owns a few local late-night establishments, said he spent $7,000 to make their spaces COVID-safe. But explained the rug has once again pulled out from under them.

“We are required to contact trace. So, of course, if there are cases you’re going to hear about them from bars and restaurants because of that requirement. That’s the frustration,” he vented. “But you can walk into a big box store right now, sick, there’s no requirement for contact tracing. The same people walking into a bar or restaurant have probably been in a grocery store or big box store where there’s no contact tracing available.

“So here we are now as a small business in Prince George that hires close to 30 people and all of those people are unemployed, the business is making no money, and [the Province] is putting small businesses in this province at great risk.”