FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — Governor Andy Beshear says curfews at state bars and restaurants will end on May 28. Bar seating will also be allowed.
May 28 is the same day all events held indoors and outdoors that are under 1,000 people can be held at 75% capacity. This also includes businesses that host under 1,000 people.
The owner of Bluegrass Tavern, Sean Ebbitt, took a shot of Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year to celebrate the announcement.
"Now we finally have an end date and I think that's very important for us to be able to run our businesses going forward," Ebbitt said.
The curfew has had a major impact on his business, he said, because downtown customers have had less time to grab drinks after dinner or to bar hop.
He plans to switch back to a 3 a.m. closing time on May 28.
The next big step, he said, will be for the governor to increase capacity to 100 percent, something he believes the industry is ready for.
"We've had several weeks where anyone could get the vaccination so it's your choice to get it, so I feel like that burden of what we have to watch for is greatly reduced," he said.
Governor Beshear said Monday he may be able to announce a timeline for lifting capacity limits for gatherings of 1,000 people or fewer after the Pfizer vaccine is approved for 12-15-year-olds.
The FDA approved the vaccines for emergency use for that age group on Monday.
A CDC panel will make a decision on whether or not to move forward with the authorization Wednesday.
COVID-19 Update:
As of Monday, there are 167 new cases of COVID-19. The state's positivity rate is 3.25%. Nine more Kentuckians have died from the virus. There will also two additional COVID-19 deaths after an audit.
The governor says COVID cases and the positivity rate both decreased last week. He believes Kentucky remains in a plateau pic.twitter.com/obGWN0DVq4
— Katherine Collins (@KCollinsWLEX) May 10, 2021
Governor Beshear says 1,875,554 Kentuckians have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine so far.
