Nation Club Plaza bar and cafe sues Kansas City mayor about COVID-19 limitations
Feb. 2—O’Dowd’s Gastrobar on the Place Club Plaza is suing Kansas Town Mayor Quinton Lucas, in search of to overturn COVID-19 constraints on bars and eating places.

The accommodate was submitted Thursday in the Circuit Court docket of Jackson County by Kansas Metropolis attorney Michael Gunter, who formerly submitted another COVID-19 accommodate versus the town.
The owners of O’Dowd’s, at 4742 Pennsylvania Ave., claimed they are effectively informed that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused demise and pain to hundreds of thousands and will continue to do so, but it also is creating a “extensive economic reduction of wonderful proportions.”
Less than the mayor’s newest limitations on bars and dining places, O’Dowd’s claimed it has been forced to close temporarily for the reason that it are unable to develop sufficient income to spend lease and utilities, distributors, employees and other running fees.
In the lawsuit, O’Dowd’s suggests big firms, these types of as casinos, have not experienced the similar limitations. They also have entry to more capital than little, regionally owned firms. O’Dowd’s argues that other Kansas Metropolis functions are authorized to stay open up afterwards to serve food stuff and drink, this sort of as comfort shops. And it says the mayor will not have the legal authority to concern the orders.
O’Dowd’s is 1 of KC Hopps Ltd.’s cafe concepts. In a statement, Ed Nelson of KC Hopps said: “We sense the lawsuit speaks for by itself. We want because of system as expected by the legislation and we want the policies to be good for all firms, even these small kinds like us that don’t have thousands and thousands of pounds to fork out lobbyists and lawyers.”
In a assertion, Lucas reported Kansas Town has created its COVID guidelines dependent on “information-driven advice from health and scientific leaders from the White Property and CDC down to our Health and fitness Department.”
“The O’Dowd’s lawsuit is devoid of benefit underneath Missouri legislation just like the suits submitted towards us in advance of,” Lucas reported. “As it has been due to the fact the onset of this pandemic, our key goal is to conserve lives.”
Lucas stated the city’s regulations and individual actions — together with sporting masks, averting crowds and washing palms — have resulted in a drop in situations. The intention, he claimed, is to keep lowering circumstances and acquiring a lot more citizens vaccinated.
New COVID-19 scenarios in the Kansas City metropolitan space recently dropped to less than 300 for the initial time in extra than three months. The seven-working day regular for day by day new instances dropped to 464. Just one 7 days back, the average sat at 580, and two weeks ago it was 698, in accordance to data managed by The Star.
Following an Oct. 24 inspection, the Kansas Town Wellbeing Department briefly suspended the O’Dowd’s license for “more than 50% ability and lack of mask use.” The entrepreneurs submitted a corrective action strategy to the office and mentioned they had been operating with the city on a system to reopen and function securely for their prospects and staff members.
But they shortly posted a signal on the door of the cafe, saying with the new restrictions they planned to close until finally spring.
“Please request your senator and consultant to move one more spherical of PPP loans and prolonged unemployment rewards to enable the thousands of enterprises and team irreparably harmed due to no fault of their possess,” O’Dowd’s stated.
The Blue Line, a hockey-themed bar in the city’s River Market neighborhood, sued in November, proclaiming a 10 p.m. curfew Kansas City had in place at the time was unlawful. The bar’s proprietors preferred the town to permit them to open for ordinary hrs all through the getaway period, arguing the small business will make 40% of its revenue in between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m.
“Places to eat this sort of as plaintiff’s have struggled through several of the orders and the COVID-19 epidemic in standard with staying questioned to close totally, to then staying allowed to reopen by means of seating constraints, triggering reduction of earnings to not only the organization but revenue to plaintiff’s staff,” the Blue Line petition claims. Gunter also filed that lawsuit.
On Monday, the mayor explained he “normally takes no pleasure in imposing mandates,” but the town is in an “remarkable” circumstance.
“And we guaranteed as hell aren’t backing down or switching system thanks to concern of a lawsuit filed by the very same lawyer who couldn’t hassle to spell my title correct in the previous lawsuit he filed from me more than our COVID guidelines,” Lucas stated.
The functions canceled a listening to on a temporary restraining buy the Blue Line requested, hoping to quickly undo Lucas’ curfew. But the lawsuit is even now pending.
That 10 p.m. curfew went into influence in mid-November, and Lucas argued it was essential to continue to keep significant late-night crowds from spreading COVID-19 in the course of the holiday seasons. But the town has because calm that curfew to midnight.
Bars and dining places in Kansas Metropolis are even now confined to serving 50% of their normal capability and functions of no additional than 10 individuals. Personnel and patrons are needed to wear masks at all situations until actively consuming or ingesting.
