Restaurants sue Minneapolis over requirement that customers have COVID-19 vaccine or negative test – Minnesota Reformer

Seven businesses filed suit against the city of Minneapolis and Mayor Jacob Frey on Thursday over a new rule requiring customers to show proof they have received a full series of a COVID-19 vaccine or tested negative for the virus within 72 hours before entering bars and restaurants.

The rule went into effect on Wednesday in Minneapolis and applies to all businesses that serve food and beverages that are consumed on-site including restaurants, bars and concert venues. St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter issued an identical mandate.

The lawsuit was filed by owners of the Gay 90s, Sneaky Petes, Smack Shack, Urban Forage, Wild Gregs Saloon, a Jimmy Johns franchisee and Bunkers Music Bar & Grill, who say the requirement is a misuse of mayoral power and puts an unfair burden on them.

Minneapolis bars and restaurants are being used as pawns to further Mayor Freys agenda of pushing for and convincing the public to get vaccinated, the complaint reads. Whether the end being sought is noble, the scheme is forcing restaurants and bars to lose additional patrons and business.

The mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul said they needed to implement the requirement to deal with a surge in COVID-19 cases driven by the highly contagious omicron variant. But the business owners argue there is currently no emergency that warrants such a requirement.

They point to the fact that Gov. Tim Walz allowed a statewide peacetime emergency to expire in July 2021.

COVID-19 has been a pandemic for over nearly [sic] two years, and while certainly tragic in its effects upon society during that time, developments have occurred reducing its emergent nature, the complaint reads.

The business owners are asking the court to declare the mandate invalid and prohibit the city from enforcing it.

Other cities across the country, including New York, San Francisco and Chicago, have implemented similar mandates despite also facing legal challenges.

Some Twin Cities businesses have already been requiring patrons to show their vaccination cards or a negative COVID-19 test, including First Avenue, the Guthrie, Fair State Brewing and others.

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Restaurants sue Minneapolis over requirement that customers have COVID-19 vaccine or negative test - Minnesota Reformer