A gym in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, has joined a long list of businesses that have chosen to either remain open, or re-open in defiance of Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s three-week ban on indoor dining and gatherings, The Times Tribune reported.
Browns Gym re-opened on Monday in defiance of Gov. Wolf’s latest partial three week lockdown, The Times Tribune reported. As part of the partial lockdown, gyms and fitness centers are prohibited from remaining open, while restaurants and bars are prohibited from continuing indoor dining. The governor’s lockdown is in effect from Dec. 12 until Jan 4.
A Clarks Summit gym reopened Monday in defiance of Gov. Tom Wolf’s Dec. 10 partial lock down order that closed fitness centers and placed restrictions on several other types of businesses effective Dec. 12 to Jan. 4. https://t.co/niVpEkNTA7
— The Times-Tribune (@timestribune) December 21, 2020
Jim Brown, the owner and founder of Browns Gym explained in an interview with the Daily Caller that, “Both times we were told to shutdown, we did what we were told to do.”
“We’ve tried to follow everything that the governor has told us to do,” Brown said. “We’ve followed all of the CDC standards that they’ve wanted us to do, we’ve followed all of the guidelines for masking up our customers when they told us to do that.”
Prior to the governors Dec. 10 announcement, gyms and fitness centers had been allowed to resume indoor operations as long as they ensured that patrons were socially distanced and wearing masks during workouts.
“They still shut us down again the second time, even though we followed everything,” Brown added.
Brown explained that after he and his wife had talks with their bank, landlord and state representatives, they made the difficult decision to re-open their gym.
“The bank was more pliable on helping us withhold payments for a couple of months, if we needed to,” he told the Caller. “The landlord is in a situation where he can’t help at all,” Brown continued.
“He’s in the same s**t mess as the rest of us are, he’s in a tough spot.”
Many business owners across the nation are in a similar spot. Many have been faced with having to either permanently or temporarily close their doors, are also faced with navigating the unknown. Many are finding themselves behind on bills, and unable to pay their rent. (RELATED: New Jersey Gym Owner Fined $1.2 Million For Defying COVID-19 Lockdowns Vows Not To Pay)
“By Monday afternoon we realized that there’s no help coming, and we’re on our own and we’re closed,” Brown explained. “The landlord expects full payment on Jan. 1, and there’s rent increases in it.”
“Our only answer is to open or go bankrupt.”