Published on 25/05/2020 by Any Business.Com.Au

COVID affected cafes, restaurants begin long road back

States around Australia have begun lifting restrictions as part of the country's three-step process to resume 'regular' activities throughout Australia by July.

Among the latest due to come into affect on June 1 (dates and implementation vary state to state) is the re-opening of cafes and restaurants to the public.

In what is sure to be a huge day for battling hospitality businesses across the country, coffee and food hot spots will be able to welcome customers to dine in.

While it's a start for struggling business owners, strict distancing guidelines will still have to be adhered to and numbers of patrons will be capped according to state recommendations.

So as a cafe/restaurant, or any shopfront small business owner for that matter, what does this mean for you? With states and territories able to adhere to their own timelines for the plan, we decided to try and clear up the somewhat confusing restriction easing timeframe state by state.

Victoria

From June 1:

  • Cafes, restaurants and pubs may serve meals to up to 20 people.
  • Overnight stays will be allowed in both private residences and hotels.
  • Beauty therapy, tanning, waxing, nail salons, spas, tattoo parlours and massage parlours may reopen with up to 20 patrons.
  • Galleries, museums, zoos, historic sites, arcades, drive-in cinemas and outdoor amusement parks will reopen with up to 20 patrons per space.
  • Weddings will be allowed up to 20 people, plus the celebrant and couple.
  • Funerals can increase to 50 people (indoors and outdoors).
  • Bootcamps can increase to 20 people, plus an instructor.
  • Auction houses, real estate auctions and open house inspections can increase to 20 people.
  • Libraries, youth centres and other community facilities allowed to reopen with no more than 20 people in a single area, plus those needed to operate the space.

Tasmania

From June 15:

• Up to 20 people will be allowed to gather in both indoor and outdoor areas including restaurants, cinemas and museums;

• Funerals of up to 50 people will be allowed;

• Restrictions on people staying in hotels and caravan parks will be lifted so people will be able to move around the state and stay overnight;

• Open homes and auctions with up to 20 people allowed;

• Gyms and bootcamps will be allowed for up to 20 people;

• Beauty services including tattoo, nails, waxing, facials and tanning will be able to open;

• Outdoor community sports will be able to resume with 20 athletes or personnel involved;

• Indoor sports, including pools, will be allowed for up to 20 people but with no spectators.

From July 13:

• Bars, nightclubs, casinos and gaming to return;

• Markets and food courts to re-open; and

• Border controls to remain

Western Australia

Phase 3: is expected to be implemented about four weeks from the start of Phase 2 and is expected to increase the number of people allowed at gatherings, further relaxation of regional travel restrictions, restrictions further relaxed for gyms and to allow contact community sport, beauty therapy and personal care, real estate auctions and the re-opening of public playgrounds, galleries, cinemas and outdoor gym equipment.

Phase 4: will be announced at a later time, however the government has flagged that Western Australia's interstate border is expected to be the final restriction lifted.

South Australia

Currently/June 5:

• Outdoor dining for restaurants and cafes up to a maximum of 10 people;

• Community and youth centres will be open for up to 10 people indoors;

• RSLs open but not for meals and bar service;

• Auctions and open inspections for up to 10 people;

• Local government libraries open for up to 10 visitors, plus the staff at work in those libraries.

• Non-contact sport training in groups of up to 10 people;

• Funerals of up to 20 people indoors and 30 people outdoors will be allowed, plus those who are officiating;

• Churches to reopen for small ceremonies including weddings or private worship for up to 10 people, plus those who are officiating; and

  • Re-opening of public pools for up to 10 people, especially for lap swimming.

New South Wales

Restrictions that have already been eased include:

• Pubs and clubs will be able to open for dining;

• Bars and gaming facilities will remain closed but table service for alcohol with a meal will be allowed so long as businesses adhere to social distancing requirements and stick to a limit of 10 patrons.

• Outdoor gatherings of up to 10 people;

• Cafes and restaurants can seat 10 patrons at any one time;

• Up to 5 visitors to a household at any one time;

• Weddings up to 10 guests;

• Indoor funerals up to 20 mourners, outdoor funerals up to 30;

• Religious gatherings/places of worship up to 10 worshippers;

• Use of outdoor equipment including gyms and playgrounds with caution, people encouraged to wipe down equipment;

• Outdoor pools open with restrictions;

  • Property inspections and on-site auctions were allowed to resume on May 9, long as social distancing rules were followed
  • NSW students began attending school in stages from May 11.

Queensland

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk began step one of easing restrictions on Saturday, May 16.

This allowed:

• Gatherings in homes with a maximum of five people;

• Up to 10 people to gather in public spaces;

• Some beauty therapies including nail salons to re-open catering to a maximum of 10 people by appointment;

• Recreational travel up to 150km from your home for day trips;

• Reopening of libraries, playground equipment, skate parks, outdoor gyms with a maximum of 10 people at a time;

• Wedding guests to increase to 10 people;

• Funerals to increase to 20 people indoors, 30 people outdoors

• Up to 10 people at open homes and auctions;

• Reopening of public pools and lagoons (must have an approved plan for numbers greater than 10); and

  • Non-contact community sport for a maximum of 10 people.

Stages 2 and 3

  • Stages two and three will be aimed at gradually increasing travel distances and the opening of businesses in time for the June school holidays but plans will be reviewed at the end of each month.
  • Shopping for non-essential items is allowed and up to five members of a single household will are already allowed to visit other homes.
  • In terms of schools, Queensland kindergarten, prep, grade 1 and year 11 and 12 students returned to classrooms full time on May 11 with schools expected to be fully operational by the end of May.

Australian Capital Territory

The national capital has been at the forefront of easing restrictions with ACT residents already allowed to:

  • Have a maximum of 10 people, which includes children at indoor and outdoor gatherings. It's also OK if two households come together to exceed this number.
  • Up to 10 people can attend a wedding, plus those conducting the ceremony.
  • Up to 20 people can attend an indoor funeral, and this increases to 30 if it's held outdoors, not including those conducting the service.
  • Open houses and auctions can go ahead with up to 10 people and (non-contact) outdoor fitness training and boot camps of up to 10 people are allowed.
  • Students are returning to school in stages between May 18 and June 2.

Northern Territory

The Northern Territory announced the lifting of many restrictions as part of its own two-stage plan.

  • Northern Territorians are allowed to gather with as many as 10 people, as long as they keep a distance of 1.5m.
  • Visiting parks and camping, outdoor gatherings, non-contact outdoor sports and exercising and training outdoors are all allowed again.
  • The state has relaxed restrictions on parks, golf, fishing and swimming.

The NT has also allowed many businesses to re-open but activities are limited to two hours:

• Restaurants, cafes, bars and RSL club to reopen as long as people purchase food;

• Food can be served in shopping centre food courts;

• Non-contact sports can resume, with indoor activities allowed under a two-hour time limit;

• Beauty salons, gyms, libraries and places of religious worship can open their doors;

• Art galleries, museums, public memorials, public historic sites, zoos and wildlife facilities allowed to reopen.

  • The third and final stage on June 5 will remove the two-hour limit on indoor activities, allow the operation of bars and clubs without food being compulsory, and allow the return of entertainment venues and cinemas.
  • Team sports such as football and netball will also be permitted.
  • The internal border controls restricting access to areas that include indigenous communities under the Commonwealth Biosecurity Act will remain in place until June 18 and possibly longer.
  • The NT's border closures with other states will also remain in force.

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AnyBusiness.com.au

Curtis is a leading expert in the business-for-sale industry, serving as a senior content creator at anybusiness.com.au.

With a career spanning over fifteen years, Curtis has accumulated extensive knowledge in the domain of business sales, acquisitions, and valuations. His deep understanding of market dynamics and his ability to translate complex industry jargon into accessible insights make him a trusted resource for entrepreneurs and business owners looking to buy or sell businesses.

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