WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y. — As concerns continue to grow over the increasing number of COVID-19 cases, local businesses have had to make drastic adjustments.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently announced that restaurants would only be able to serve takeout and non-essential businesses would have to close.
Chris Townsell is the general manager of the Buffalo Brewpub. While standing in the empty parking lot of his restaurant, he told 2 On Your Side's Karys Belger how abnormal his current operations were.
"Our business has dropped off roughly 90 percent, and then what we’re doing now is something that we’ve never done before. We’re operating through a window in the front of the building doing takeout service," he said.
Townsell has also had to lay off most of his staff. He tells me he would normally have 48 people on the payroll; now he’s down to 12. His normally bustling dining room only has empty booths and tables.
"It’s sad, I don’t really know any other word for it," he said.
Restaurants like his have been suffering since Governor Cuomo issued an executive order stating restaurants could only do take out service and all other non-essential businesses would have to close.
He told 2 On Your Side that despite the hardships, he's seen an increase in takeout orders, and he hopes they will continue so he can keep going until things get better.
Anne Pilarski and Carolynn Slawek don’t have that option. Their small salon was is only a year old, and they say they were just beginning to build a steady clientele when the first cases were reported in Western New York.
Slawek told 2 On Your Side this time of year is typically filled with appointments. Normally their spa would be filled with people getting manicures, pedicures, and massages.
"This is a busy time of year, people going on vacations, spring break," Slawek said.
Slawek and Pilarski closed their salon a few days ago as a precaution, but Cuomo’s executive order means they won’t be open for quite some time. This means Pilarski and Slawek don’t have any money coming in.
"As small business owners we cannot collect unemployment, we have zero income," Pilarski told 2 On Your Side.
Pilarski says customers have bought gift cards which helped a little, but she is hoping soon they will be back in business.