North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision to keep the state in Phase 2 of reopening has been met with mixed reviews. | Facebook
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision to keep the state in Phase 2 of reopening has been met with mixed reviews. | Facebook
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper's continuance of the Phase 2 reopening plans has some business owners feeling left behind.
Despite the negative reviews about not progressing from Phase 2 by critics, Cooper and supporters believe that delaying the next level is the best option given the state's current COVID-19 numbers.
“Other states that have lifted restrictions quickly have had to go backward," Cooper told WFMY 2 News for an Aug. 5 report, "as their hospital capacity ran dangerously low and their cases jumped higher. We will not make that mistake in North Carolina.”
Felicia Brown, owner of A to Zen Massage Wellness Spa in Greensboro said she could have opened in the second phase, but didn't want to risk anyone's health and supports Cooper's decision.
"I felt a responsibility to my team and clients," Brown told WFMY News 2. "We didn't feel it was the proper timing. We know our industry more than a governor, president or any elected official."
But Blake Stewart, owner of Fair Witness, a cocktail bar in Winston-Salem, isn't a fan of Cooper's decision to extend Phase 2.
“I understand but I am resentful with the irrational way that taverns and bars have been treated. I've had to fire my staff or let them go twice. People I care about. People with families," he told WFMY News 2. "I’m really upset with how bars and taverns in North Carolina have been cast aside in favor of their brethren. The only difference is they serve food, which has nothing to do with infection factors.”
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