A group of small business owners are calling on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors to take control over reopening San Diego's economy.
San Diego County's case rate entered purple-tier territory on California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s color-coded COVID-19 monitoring system last week and while it could mean a rollback of business reopenings for the region, we won't know for certain until Tuesday.
One of the owners of Cowboy Star Restaurant and Butcher Shop in East Village, tells NBC 7 if the county does move to the most restrictive tier, she fears she’ll have to make the difficult decision to defy public health order or lose her business.
“This is our lives here. We’ve put everything into this. I just, it’s very hard to imagine losing it," said Angie Weber, who opened Cowboy Star Restaurant and Butcher Shop 12 years ago.
She is now fighting to stay afloat as the county moves closer to the state’s purple tier, which would require many businesses, including restaurants, to operate outdoors only, again.
“You can’t keep trying to move the goal post on us and expect us not to go under," she said.
Thursday the Board of Supervisors discussed possible legal action against governor Gavin Newsom – that discussion continues Monday evening and Weber says she and a new small business coalition called “We Mean Business” will be rallying outside the County Administration Building.
“Asking the county board to step away from the states metrics and create a safe reopening plan that works for San Diego," Weber said.
Last week, Supervisor Jim Desmond proposed a plan giving individual businesses the option to ignore the state’s reopening plan. He did not receive support from the rest of the board.
"I really hope the county does take control this week and we can start working our way forward," Weber said.
The county is expected to receive a new assessment on where San Diego stands on the tier on Tuesday.
Regardless of its findings, Weber says Cowboy Star is staying open.
“You have to ask yourself, if you’re about to lose everything, it’s the worst thing I can imagine. What are the other consequences?”
