The following letter was submitted by the City of Elmhurst. It is the full text of the letter from Mayor Steve Morley to Governor JB Pritzker
Dear Governor Pritzker,
First and foremost, I would like to extend my appreciation to you and your staff for your hard work as we navigate through these difficult times. You have stated on numerous occasions that you are open to input and new ideas as we move forward. I hope you will read this letter with that in mind. It is important we remain flexible and open to input as we continue to learn more about this pandemic. I am writing to you on behalf of all small businesses in Elmhurst, many of whom will not survive with the newly implemented restrictions.
I understand your primary mission is keeping Illinoisans safe during this time. I share this mission in providing for the safety and welfare of the residents of Elmhurst. As public leaders, we are tasked with making decisions on behalf of our constituents and have committed to make these decisions based on data and understanding of calculated risks.
I am asking you to reconsider your recent restrictions on local businesses. You mentioned in your October 20th COVID update that the top 3 places outbreaks occur statewide are in the workplace, schools, bars and restaurants. To date we have not been provided with data showing that restaurants are the cause of the rise in positivity rates. In DuPage County, the total number of tracked outbreak cases directly linked to indoor dining is less than 1% according to DuPage County Health Department data. While this number cannot account for all COVID-19 cases or outbreaks, it is an indication that the recent rise in positivity is not strongly linked to our restaurants which have had indoor dining since June. The progress made in COVID-19 treatments and recovery rates should also be taken into consideration. I have spoken directly to medical professionals who have stated that they are having greater success in treating individuals who have contracted COVID-19.
The livelihood of these businesses, their owners and their employees rely on your ability to modify this order. Elmhurst businesses have spent hundreds of thousands dollar to create a safe environment for their customers. Eliminating indoor dining during our cold weather season will be FATAL to many restaurants in my hometown of Elmhurst and to many across our great state. I hope you are open to compromise. Let’s work together to give small business owners a fighting chance.
Again, I am urging you to modify these restrictions on small businesses and create a path to allow indoor dining. If not, the damage inflicted on our community will be permanent.
I would like to invite you to visit our community to further discuss this matter. I am confident that together we can create a plan that is safe, acceptable and reasonable, all while providing a chance for our small businesses to survive this pandemic.
Finally, I would like to reiterate that the safety of the residents of Elmhurst is my number one priority. We will continue to do our part to educate the public and business owners on the risks, restrictions, and preventative safety measures to combat the spread of the virus. We take the safety of our community seriously, as well as the responsibility we have to our business community.
Sincerely,
Steve Morley
Mayor of the City of Elmhurst
