Masks on, masks off

On a cold Wednesday night, in downtown Coeur d’Alene, few seemed interested in recent actions by the City Council or the state’s governor.

It was, really, life as usual, even on a day when the Panhandle Health District reported 141 new cases of the coronavirus, which tied its single-day record. The PHD now has a total of 5,325 cases, with 74 deaths and 41 hospitalizations.

Whether at the Moose Lounge, the Beacon, the Iron Horse Bar & Grill, the Bier Haus, the 1210 Tavern, the Collective Kitchen, Taphouse Unchained or The Eagles Lodge on Sherman, it was pretty much the same story.

People sat at tables and chatted. They ate. They drink. They joked. They watched TV. They were having a good time like normal people do when going out.

As it was a slow night, there was plenty of space between customers. People weren’t seated at tables next to each other.

A few bellied up to the bars, which seems to be against the rules per Gov. Brad Little moving Idaho back to Stage 3 on Monday, which includes a restriction of seating only at bars and restaurants. But some questioned whether “seating only” meant you can’t sit at the bar or must be sitting at a table. The Stage 3 states, in part: There will be seating only at bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. Nightclubs can only operate as bars.”

Perhaps the rules need to be better outlined, and perhaps it is too soon to expect everyone to be aware of the latest changes by the council and the governor to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

Bars, restaurants and nightclubs were closed in late March because of COVID-19, but allowed to reopen May 30 under the governor's "Idaho Rebounds" reopening program. Some parts of Idaho later ordered bars closed again, which owners said was devastating to their business.

With the latest rise in cases, bars have again come under fire by some who say those gathering in them are not adhering to health safety standards at this critical time.

And while the City Council on Monday passed, by a 4-2 vote, a 90-day mask mandate that requires the wearing of masks in public places when unable to social distance, no customers, at least in the casual observance of this Press reporter, put on a mask if someone came too close.

And by the city officials' own wishes expressed Monday, they want education before citation, which is a $100 civil fine. So police aren’t looking to cite anyone, anyway, and it’s not like they have time to conduct mask checkpoints or run around with a 6-foot ruler to be sure people are far enough apart. At least not yet.

And there are exceptions to the city’s mask requirement, one of which states: “Persons who are eating or drinking at a restaurant or other establishment that offers food or beverage service, so long as the person is able to maintain a distance of 6 feet away from persons who are not members of the same household or party as they person.”

At some of the bars, everyone seemed to be friends and part of one big party. In general, different parties sat far enough apart to satisfy pro-mask people.

The Crown & Thistle on Fourth Street has been one of the few downtown businesses that has required customers to wear masks. Wednesday night, the bartender was wearing a mask. One customer drinking a beer was not, and neither were two others seated together, but again there’s the exception for those eating and drinking.

One Sherman Avenue bartender, when asked about the wearing of masks, said he usually wears one, but forgot it in the car.