The Hall County Board of Commissioners has adopted a resolution to close all in-person dining and patio dining at bars and restaurants located in unincorporated Hall County beginning 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 25 in an effort to protect the health and wellness of Hall County citizens in the midst of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.
"The health and safety of the Hall County community remains at the forefront of our minds," Hall County Commission Chairman Richard Higgins said. "We are doing everything we can within our power to minimize the spread of this virus and to protect the public from its reach."
The resolution was adopted during a special called meeting Tuesday afternoon.
While the resolution does mandate the closure of in-person dining, it does not apply to any retail establishment selling groceries, but it would require such a store to close any in-store dining areas. In addition, the resolution also allows for takeout or to-go orders and allows any business with an alcohol license to allow customers to take bottled beer and/or bottled wine off the premises with takeout meals.
Cafeterias in hospitals and nursing homes are exempt from the requirements.
"We also want to continue to urge citizens to practice social distancing, good hygiene techniques and other guidelines outlined by the CDC and the directives of the President of the United states," said Higgins.
Those guidelines, along with a number of other resources regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and proactive steps Hall County has taken to date, can be found at ready.hallcounty.org.
The resolution is in effect for 72 hours from its effective date unless extended by order of the chairman of the Board of Commissioners.
A recording of Tuesday’s special called meeting can be found on Hall County’s website, www.hallcounty.org.
As a reminder, citizens can find a multitude of options online for conducting County business, such as vehicle registration renewals, the payment of insurance fines, etc. via the "Online Payments" button on Hall County’s website, www.hallcounty.org. That’s also where citizens can pay their property tax, renew their business license, and more.