DENVER — Colorado restaurants that are typically licensed to sell alcohol to dine-in customers can now also sell it in take-out and delivery orders, Gov. Jared Polis said Friday.
The measure was one of several announced in a press conference Friday morning.
“This will help them remain afloat in these trying times,” Gov. Polis said.
FOX21 spoke with a few local restaurant owners who said this is a great step for them in the midst of the coronavirus.
“It helps a lot of people take the edge off and get through it. It helps them have any type of normalcy,” Aaron Posey, Assistant General Manage at Odyssey Gastropub, said.
Posey said they are selling bottles of wine, cans of beer, and different cocktails to go. He said when things are normal; bar sales are over half of their income.
“Nothing is going to hurt at this point. Anything we can do to increase sales and bring staff in will help us and the community,” Posey said.
Martin Troy, the General Manager of Jack Quinn’s Irish Pub and Restaurant, said they are also excited about the Governor’s announcement.
“It’s a supplemental income. Its beer that would just be sitting instead of doing nothing now we can move it,” Troy said.
He said his bar would be focusing on six-packs of beer and bottles of wine. When FOX21 went to the restaurant for the interview, his phone was ringing “off the hook” with to-go orders.
“This is uncharted water for most of us,” Troy said.
Odyssey Gastropub has offered a free roll of toilet paper with every order.
“Obviously, serving the public, we have a decent stock of toilet paper, and with how hard its been to find it, we decided we wanted to help. It’s the least we could do; we’re not going to use it,” Posey said.
If you would like to support local business and order food to-go or for pickup, you can get a list of places open by clicking here.
Watch the full press conference:
Tax deadline extended
Also Friday, Polis extended Colorado’s state tax payment deadline to July 15, 2020. The extension applies to all filers, both individuals and businesses.
Earlier Friday morning, the Internal Revenue Service moved the federal tax filing deadline to July 15.
Unemployment website overloaded
Polis said some users have been unable to apply for unemployment benefits through the state website. He said the government is working to increase the number of transactions that can happen simultaneously on the website.
Meanwhile, he encouraged users to try early in the morning, such as between the hours of 6 and 7 a.m. or late at night, between 10 and 11 p.m.
Earlier actions
The state is holding a special health insurance open enrollment period for people who are currently out of work, and therefore currently uninsured. Open enrollment starts Friday and runs through April 3. Insurance coverage will begin on April 1. To enroll in an individual plan, visit connectforhealthco.com, or call 855-PLANS-4-YOU (855-752-6749).
On Thursday, Polis issued an executive order closing salon, spas, and tattoo parlors statewide. The order also extended the closure of other types of businesses, including in-house service in bars and restaurants, until April 30.
Also on Thursday, Polis suspended elective, non-essential medical procedures, for both humans and pets, through April 14.
>> Watch the Friday briefing from the White House coronavirus task force
