Enforcing new restrictions that include private residences to combat the spread of COVID-19 in New York state is a tall order to ask. And Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel is questioning how local governments are supposed to take on the responsibility with little or no direction from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office.

Beginning Friday at 10 p.m., bars, restaurants and gyms with a state liquor license will be required to close from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily. Restaurants will still be allowed to provide curbside, food-only pick-up or delivery after 10 p.m. but will not be allowed to serve alcohol to-go.

The governor also announced that indoor and outdoor gatherings at private residences will be limited to no more than 10 people. The restriction, Cuomo said during a press briefing, is due to the “recent prevalence of COVID spread” resulting from small gatherings, with Halloween parties used as an example.

“If you look at where the cases are coming from, if you do the contact tracing, you’ll see they’re coming from three main areas: establishments where alcohol is served, gyms, and indoor gatherings at private homes,” Cuomo said. “The reason we have been successful in reducing the spread in New York is we have been a step ahead of COVID. You know where it’s going; stop it before it gets there. And you know where it’s going by following the science. This is the calibration that we’ve talked about: increase economic activity, watch the positivity rate — if the positivity rate starts to go up, back off on the economic activity. It was never binary — economic activity or public health. It was always both.”

The problem, Wendel said, is that local governments are being charged with enforcing the new restrictions in regard to private residences with no guidance from the state.

“We talked at great length about this,” Wendel said. “The enforcement is the most difficult piece. There was no definitive answer as to who will enforce this.”

The county executive noted that it’s one thing for law enforcement to be called to an outdoor party with 10 to 20 people in attendance. However, he questioned the legality of enforcement for gatherings inside a home.

“There’s no clear-cut answer how it will be enforced,” said Wendel, also questioning which entity — from the county Health Department, code enforcement or local police — will be in charge of enforcement.

“The local health departments are not going into homes,” he continued. “Is it code enforcement? Locally, there is no answer, and that’s the challenging part. Is the health department or the county going to be driving by homes to check on the number of cars? There are a lot of concerns.”

In his announcement of the new restrictions, Cuomo said it would be up to localities to handle the new rules. “The rules are only as good as the enforcement,” he said. “Local governments are in charge of enforcement. There are only two fundamental truths in this situation: it’s individual discipline and it’s government enforcement. Period. End of sentence. I need the local governments to enforce this.”

IMPACT ON GYMS

Erica Dix, who co-owns Anytime Fitness in West Ellicott, is worried what reducing hours for gyms and fitness centers statewide will mean for business. She said over the past 10 days, nine people on average have visited Anytime Fitness between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., and closing during that time will result in a loss of about $360 each night.

Dix questioned Cuomo’s assertion that gyms and fitness centers — which are permitted to operate at 33% capacity — are one of the culprits for the recent increase in COVID-19 cases.

At Anytime Fitness alone, 397 members have checked in 6,398 times since Aug. 24 with no known positive cases, Dix said.

“I can’t even put into words how frustrating it is, not just for me but small business owners,” she said. “It’s almost like he thinks COVID doesn’t come out at night — between 10 to 5 COVID doesn’t exist. I just don’t understand it.”

She added, “We want (Cuomo) to show us the science that shows gyms are responsible for spreading COVID. We have the data showing that we aren’t. We have the ability to do contract tracing. We know who’s coming in, when and how long they are staying. … At the end of the day, it’s not just about our business. You have to think about the member’s well-being, and you’re going to take that away.”

40 NEW CASES

The Chautauqua County Department of Health on Thursday reported 40 new cases of COVID-19. That makes 63 new cases in the last two days, with 20 coming from Fredonia, seven in Dunkirk, 11 in Jamestown, three in Bemus Point, eight in Silver Creek, six in Forestville, two in Mayville, two in Portland, and one each in Sheridan, Frewsburg, Gerry and Lakewood.

There remains 161 active cases in addition to 1,101 recoveries, 15 deaths and 1,277 total confirmed cases. Ten people with COVID-19 remain hospitalized as of Wednesday.

The county Health Department is currently monitoring a cluster linked to social clubs in the northern end of the county. There are currently 12 active cases linked to the Beaver Club in Fredonia. In addition to the Beaver Club, there have been 22 cases linked to other social clubs; 19 cases have recovered, and three cases are currently active.