As businesses prepare to reopen, Nashville officials are considering what that would look like for the bars in the Lower Broadway tourism district.
Nashville Mayor John Cooper said Friday he wants to make sure bars return to business in a safe manner.
He told reporters it will be dependent on whether the early stages of a phased-in approach works.
“I think our successful reopening on Broadway is hinged on doing early phases right so that we can move on,” Cooper said. “We don’t want any backsliding if at all possible.”
But Cooper warned that, once businesses open, it won’t necessarily be business as usual. He said they will be expected to practice newly-adopted social distancing guidelines, which includes taking temperatures every day.
“We are going to rely on our public health department in partnership with employers to provide a safe working environment for staff and a safe place for customers,” Cooper said.
Meanwhile, Metro Board of Health Chairman Alex Jahangir said he hopes Nashvillians will be able to congregate in places— such as concerts or New Year’s Eve celebrations — sometime within the next 18 months. But that will depend on reaching a key milestone.
“Yes, one day we hope to do that,” Jahangir said. “And that day is when we have a vaccine.”
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