DELAWARE COUNTY, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Indoor and outdoor crowd size and capacity limits are being lifted across Pennsylvania on Monday, except for Philadelphia, where those restrictions stay in effect until Wednesday.
The lifting of these restrictions is welcome news for many workers whose livelihood depends on serving those crowds. Others, however, look at it with some trepidation.
The last year has been a tough one for Heather, a bartender at O'Hagan's Tavern in Collingdale, Delaware County.
She said, like many other places, they've seen a sharp decline in business since COVID-19 restrictions kept people away.
"It's quite different than what it used to be, and we don't get as many customers as we were getting," said Heather, who declined to give her full name.
With Pennsylvania allowing restaurants, bars, gyms, barbershops and theaters to operate at full capacity, Heather hopes it means more green to their bottom line.
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"I'm actually a little excited about it," she said. "Hopefully it boosts business, and we get a little more come-and-go traffic in here."
Now, she says she is looking forward to the state dropping its mask mandate, which officials say will happen by the end of June.
"The mask requirements are hard, especially when you're a bartender and you have jukeboxes going, TVs playing. It's a little bit noisy in here. It's hard to hear the customers' orders, or it's hard for them to hear you over everything," she said.
Even with capacity limits removed, Heather said they'll still encourage people to distance as much as possible.
Other businesses, such as salons and barbershops, are taking things a little slower.
"It really doesn't matter how much money I bring in, just staying safe. I got a family. Staying safe is the main thing," said Brandon McDaniel, a barber at Truth, in Yeadon.
He said the capacity limits imposed at his shop, as well as other restrictions on businesses, have limited his clientele. But he said he has grown used to seeing fewer customers, and he is fine with the restrictions.
Even with state capacity limits being lifted, McDaniel said the shop is still keeping some of their pandemic guidelines.
"It's still appointment-only. I try to keep it as tight as it can. I can't see everything opening to 100%," he said.
McDaniel said they plan on keeping their mandates in effect until they feel comfortable and safe to bring more people in at once.