Bars, nightclubs take another big hit as Labor Day approaches and doors remain shut

“Normally on a Friday afternoon, we would have quite a few people. And here is my untypical Friday, I have no one here.”

A new group of guests is taking over Hawgz and Dawgz in Punta Gorda

The only money that will be in Susan Filkins’ bar over Labor Day weekend will be the dollar bills on the walls.

The infamous bike stop closed for nearly six months ago, with the exception of a three-week stint in June.

Filkins is worried that “it’s not so much that we are being forgotten about, but we’re being disregarded”

And without revenue, she said they may not be able to last more than two more months.

Governor Ron DeSantis hinted that closed signs may be able to flip to open soon,.

But, DeSantis has still been tight-lipped on when we could see a reopening order from the DBPR’s secretary, only saying, “We will get to yes.”

“I’ve told him I want every business in Florida operating,” DeSantis said during a roundtable meeting with bar owners on Thursday. “We pretty much have 99%, you guys are kind of the last ones. Everyone else is up and running.”

That leaves with bar owners like Filkins begging for the state to base reopening decisions on county data and, “capacity, just base it on something and let us re-open.”

Customers can drink alcohol at bars and breweries that also have food licenses, but if the vendor does not have a food license, like some bars and nightclubs, you must drink the alcohol off-site.