BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - The 10 p.m. curfew for bars and restaurants has been lifted after Judge Timothy Walker ruled in favor of the 91 establishments in Erie and Monroe Counties that sued the state.
"Since Judge Nowak (ended the ban on indoor dining), the state positivity rate has been going down, down, down, down, down," said attorney Corey Hogan of HoganWillig.
As of now, only the bars and restaurants that joined the lawsuit are allowed to keep their doors open past 10 p.m. However, when indoor dining restrictions for these 91 establishments back in January, Erie County announced that the Department of Health would not enforce indoor dining restrictions for any restaurants in the county. There's hope that a similar path will be followed in this case as well.
"Each time that the courts reduce the restrictions and get people out into fresh air, people seem to be getting healthier, so it's our hope that perhaps the governor is going to see the numbers improving each time people are allowed out of their houses," said attorney Steve Cohen. "Maybe the governor will voluntarily will relieve us of these imposed restrictions."
Of course, the restaurants and owners that have been struggling for nearly a year now due to the pandemic are happy to see more and more of these restrictions eased.
Greg Duell of the Eastern Hills Duff's location noted that the stop and go nature of the pandemic's restrictions have made it very difficult to make business decisions. With the guarantee of being open and open past 10 p.m. for at least the foreseeable future, Duell said that will allow owners to temporarily regroup.
"I think now we can make solid business decisions, knowing that we're open and knowing that we can be open past 10 p.m., knowing that we don't have to kick everybody out at 10 p.m.," said Duell. "It's safer at our restaurants than going to your friend's house. It just is - the science shows that, the numbers show that, so anybody who's planning a Super Bowl party this weekend at their house, please come to our restaurants."
As the ruling came down, Cuomo said he was holding firm on the 10pm curfew for restaurants elsewhere in New York. “The curfew, like everything else this past year, is complicated. In this state we don’t have different licenses for restaurants and bars,” Cuomo explained. “If we could separate the two, then you could argue for different times at a restaurant and a bar.”