Dane County issues new order limiting gatherings, bar and restaurant activity

“For the past week, Dane County has seen a sustained, high number of cases. After consultation with our contact tracing team, gatherings and visits to bars and restaurants continue to be implicated in interviews with cases,” said Janel Heinrich, Director of Public Health Madison & Dane County, in a statement. “We are acting now to immediately curb this increase in cases and protect the health and safety of our community.”

These are some of the items that have changed with this order related to gatherings, bars, and restaurants:

• All indoor gatherings are permitted with 10 individuals or fewer not including employees. Individuals must maintain physical distancing. (Section 2.a.)
• All outdoor gatherings are permitted with 25 individuals or fewer not including employees. Individuals must maintain physical distancing.  (Section 2.b.)
• At restaurants (defined in order), indoor dining capacity reduced to 25% of approved seating capacity levels. (Section 5.b)
• Bars (defined in order) may provide takeout (no indoor dining). (Section 5.b)
• Bars and restaurants are permitted to provide outdoor seating, with physical distancing. (Section 5.b)

“Our community is at a critical juncture in our fight against COVID-19. Too many people have ignored public health guidelines regarding social distancing,” said Dane County Executive Joe Parisi in a statement. “This, in turn, has resulted in the rapid spread of the virus throughout the county. We need everyone to take this seriously and adhere to the guidelines and recommendations that are proven to reduce the spread of COVID-19 or we will face the very real possibility of having to resort to even stricter guidelines.”