There’s No Timetable to Reopen N.J.
Whether you like that or not,’ Gov. Murphy says. A fired-up Gov. Phil Murphy insisted Tuesday that more progress needs to be made in New Jersey’s battle against the coronavirus pandemic before the state lifts additional restrictions and reopens nonessential businesses, regardless of those lobbying for a faster plan as Memorial Day nears. “I’m sorry we can’t give you more definitive guidance yet,” Murphy said during his daily coronavirus press briefing in Trenton. “We still have people getting sick, going to the hospitals, and sadly more than 300 we’re reporting (today) have died. So with all due respect, this is the fight of our lives.”
Osprey Nightclub Not Opening This Summer
Due to coronavirus outbreaks. The landmark Osprey Nightclub in Manasquan has announced that it will not open in 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak. “Due to the expected reduction in capacity and the restrictions already in place as to ‘social distancing,’ it is with much regret that the Osprey will not open for the 2020 summer season,” stated the club on its Facebook page. “Again, this is heartbreaking for all, but with a positive thought … we will be back to normal in 2021 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Osprey!” The club, 201 First Ave., normally has lines around the block on summer Friday and Saturday nights for cover bands and the deejay “Boom Boom” room.
In One Week, NJ Small Businesses Receive $7.4B
In PPP loans. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), a total of 77,364 New Jersey small businesses have received $7.4 billion in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans since last Monday. SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin today issued the following statement on the success of the program. The PPP is providing critical support to millions of small businesses and tens of millions of hardworking Americans. Since Round 2 of PPP loan processing began on April 27, 2.2 million loans have been made to small businesses which surpasses the number of all loans made in PPP Round 1. The total value of these 2.2 million loans is over $175 billion. Notably, the average loan size in Round 2 is $79,000, yet another indicator that the program is broadly based and assisting the smallest of small businesses.
As Restaurants Mull Reopening
Many see risk as too great. These are no longer normal times, particularly for the hard-hit restaurant industry that, according to the National Restaurant Association, was projected to ring up a record $881 billion in sales by the end of 2020. The estimations, of course, were made before the novel coronavirus pandemic swept the world, and a favorite U.S. pastime of going out to eat vanished in a wash of coronavirus stay-at-home orders imposed across the country. As the latest data shows, the rate of deaths, new infections and hospitalizations appear to be slowing in some parts of the country and most states are making plans on how to restart their economies, leaving restaurant owners, in particular, with a tough choice: Open at the risk of a resurgence of the invisible contagion formally known as COVID-19, or wait until the scientists reach a consensus that it’s safe.
Marriott Gets $920 Million
In card deals with AmEx, Chase. Marriott International Inc. raised $920 million in cash through deals with co-branded credit card companies as it rides out the pause in travel due to the coronavirus. Marriott, the world’s largest hotel company, will get $570 million from JPMorgan Chase & Co. in the form of prepayment of future revenues and the early payment of a previously agreed to signing bonus. The company is also getting $350 million from American Express in a pre-purchase of loyalty points through Marriott’s Bonvoy program Both deals include extensions of existing co-branding agreements, according to a statement on Tuesday.
Did You Know?
Here’s when every state plans to lift COVID-19 restrictions. Over a month ago, California became the first state to implement a statewide stay-at-home order. The order banned residents from leaving their home for nonessential reasons in an effort to halt the spread of COVID-19. Since then, 41 other states have followed suit, imposing their own orders and restrictions, ultimately putting more than 300 million Americans under stay-at-home or shelter-in-place orders. Now, as medical experts believe the numbers of new daily cases of the virus are peaking across much of the country, states are beginning to lift these orders and ease restrictions and slowly restart their economies. As of April 29, nine states have begun lifting stay-at-home orders and other restrictions, and more than a dozen other states will soon join their ranks.
Quarantine fatigue is real—Here’s how to keep up social distancing. On March 11, the World Health Organization officially declared COVID-19 a pandemic, and just days later, the US government launched a campaign to slow the spread of COVID-19 by urging all non-essential workers to stay home and maintain social distancing rules. For the most part, people in the US have been compliant with the recommendations set forth by the government and health organizations—staying indoors, wearing face masks, maintaining a six-foot distance from everyone outside of immediate family—but in recent weeks expert have noticed a disturbing regression dubbed “quarantine fatigue,” in which people, regardless of what their local government says, have been slipping back into pre-pandemic social habits.
Employee Tip
Should I wait until July to file my taxes? In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the IRS announced relief for taxpayers, including extending the federal tax deadline to July 15, 2020. Although the extended tax deadline, as well as the deferral of 2019 federal tax payments, applies to all taxpayers, there are many reasons to file your taxes as soon as possible and not wait until the July 15 deadline. The biggest reason to file now is you could have a tax refund waiting, especially since the majority of taxpayers receive a tax refund. According to statistics from the IRS, about 72% of taxpayers received a tax refund of close to $3,000 last tax season. If you file soon, you could be that much closer to your refund, which could help your finances right now. The IRS still expects to issue 9 out of 10 tax refunds within 21 days or less of acceptance with e-file and direct deposit.
Bielat Santore & Company – Restaurant Industry Daily Alerts
New restaurant industry survey. Beginning next Wednesday, May 6th, Bielat Santore & Company will conduct a survey of restaurant owners and operators throughout the NY-NJ-PA metropolitan area, emphasizing the challenges the industry is facing during COVID-19 pandemic.
The firm will donate $1 dollar for every valid survey response it receives to the Independent Restaurant Coalition (IRC). The Independent Restaurant Coalition was formed to save the local restaurants affected by COVID-19. “Our firm is committed to working with the active community of restauranteurs and hospitality operators, many of whom are our clients, to help with the rescue and reopening of their industry,” states Richard Santore, Partner in Bielat Santore & Company.
Look for the survey to appear in next Wednesday’s Restaurant Industry Daily Alert, as well as on the company’s website at www.njrestaurantsforsale.com/news/ and Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/123BSC/ In addition to the company’s monetary donation, if enough survey responses are submitted, Bielat Santore & Company will publish a comprehensive report compiling the results of the survey for distribution.
A voice for our industry. If you are finding these daily bulletins informative and beneficial during this pandemic, we kindly ask that you write a brief Google review providing a vote of your appreciation. Simply Google “Bielat Santore & Company” and when the company name appears click the button on the right to write your review or; if you don’t use Gmail, go to Google Maps, type “Bielat Santore & Company” – Allenhurst, NJ into Google Maps; scroll down and you will see an option to leave a review.
Thank you and remember all of the “Restaurant Industry Alerts” and “Thursday Restaurant Rap” interviews can be found at www.njrestaurantsforsale.com/news/. We intend to continue to keep you informed as we all look for an end to this crisis.