‘Running out of air.’ Tri-Cities commissioners beg Inslee to ease business restrictions

Shutting down still struggling businesses at this time will be the death knell for many of them, Benton and Franklin county commissioners said in a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee.

And the new state order to slow the spread of COVID-19 is not striking at what has been largely reported to be reason for surging cases, said the two-page letter.

The letter signed by board chairmen Bob Koch in Franklin County and Jim Beaver in Benton County urged the governor to ease restrictions put in place last week until Dec. 14.

“Many are on a life raft that is quickly running out of air and any rescue plan may be too late,” they wrote. “They need the state to be helping them and they need that help now. We are pleading with you to allow them to continue to operate within their successfully proven safety protocols and to let them save themselves!”

Commissioners on both sides of the Columbia River called for sending Inslee a letter objecting to the latest round of restrictions put in place because of surging COVID-19 infections. Kennewick, Richland, Pasco and West Richland also sent a letter to the governor about their concerns.

The rate of new cases has more than doubled, a larger percentage of the population is testing positive and more people are being hospitalized than a month ago, according to the Benton Franklin Health District.

The state Department of Health has justified the closures by pointing to studies and guidance showing that bars, movie theaters, gyms and indoor dining are higher risk activities because of transmission through the air.

The Washington Hospitality Association, a trade group representing restaurants and hotels, argues data shows indoor dining factored into less than 1 percent of the cases in Pierce, Clark and Walla Walla counties.

Locally, the health district has put the blame for the increase on people gathering in private rather than in restaurants and stores, though details have not been released.

The recent restrictions have led to a new round of protests, including some bars and restaurants refusing to restrict themselves to takeout only.

“It is true that there was some resistance to previous mandates from Olympia earlier in the year, and that our region was slow to embrace these measures,” the commissioners admitted. “Over the past few months, however, we have seen increased cooperation in the attitudes and behaviors in our region.”

The commissioners said the new mandate feels like a “punishment and a betrayal” after all of the work the community and businesses did to make it safer for the community.

They said they understand the push to limit social gatherings, and that the counties, cities and others have been putting significant effort into spreading the message.

“While we are not suggesting or asking that legitimate public health considerations be ignored, we believe that working with our local health officials, we can properly and fairly manage those considerations while rebuilding our critical economic vitality,” the letter said.

Struggling businesses

The commissioners said the tightened restrictions are coming at a critical time for businesses because they depend on the normally busy holiday season to buoy them.

This shutdown will cause businesses to close and people to lose their jobs and leave a trail of mental health issues throughout the community, they wrote.

Even with the announcement of additional money being provided by the state, the commissioners said it’s not enough.

Between the two counties, they have worked with Tri-Cities Economic Development Council and Pasco Chamber of Commerce to distribute $8 million into the community.

“This was a drop in the bucket,” they said. “We know that there are around 6,000 businesses in Benton County alone, and it was a heavy lift to get grants out to just about 300 of them.”

Also they have heard that future relief will come as loans, which businesses are not in a position to pay back.