PROVIDENCE – It did not take too long for small businesses to see consumer confidence return after Rhode Island’s statewide mask mandate for businesses expired Feb. 11.
Multiple local restaurants and bars within Providence, including Murphy’s Deli & Bar and Trinity Brewhouse on Fountain Street, as well as the Black Sheep, Providence Coal Fired Pizza and The Malted Barley all on Westminster Street, were full of patrons taking in drinks and bites to eat during the late afternoon hours on Feb. 12, with some places having hour-plus waits for seating. One restaurant advocate said once Gov. Daniel J. McKee on Feb. 9 called for the two-monthlong mandate requiring either masks or vaccination proof indoors to end, restaurants immediately began preparing for crowds to come their way.
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Rick Simone, founder of the Ocean State Coalition and executive director of the Federal Hill Commerce Association, told Providence Business News Monday that the “vast majority” of establishments dropped their masking regulations as soon as the state’s mandate ended Feb. 11. Simone said there are about three to four establishments he’s aware of that are keeping “some form” of mask requirements in place for a couple additional weeks to help ease their staff through the changes.
Restaurants, as a result, received “massive jumps” in reservations for the weekend on top of the high number of reservations they expected for Valentine’s Day, Simone said. Some restaurants, Simone said, saw between 40% and 45% increases in reservations from before the state announced the end of the mask mandate to after.
“It’s what the industry needed right now,” Simone said. “It needed a solid, good weekend of business. In this first quarter it’s been really rough, but [from] all the reports I’ve gotten, it’s been extremely positive.”
There is also now a sense of relief at both the Dunkin’ Donuts Center and the R.I. Convention Center with the mandate being lifted, R.I. Convention Center Authority Executive Director Daniel P. McConaghy said Tuesday. McConaghy acknowledged that the winter COVID-19 surge that plagued the Ocean State for close to two months impacted attendance at convention center-hosted events “a bit.” He also said other factors, such as recent winter storms, hindered attendance.
McConaghy said convention center officials saw an improvement over the weekend, with people being more relaxed inside the venues attending events.
“Everybody is saying, ‘Thank goodness we don’t have to wear the masks anymore,’ ” McConaghy said. “It’s more of an attitudinal thing. People are pleased that it is beyond us right now.”
McConaghy also said families are now more confident to bring their children to events, particularly to Providence Bruins games. The P-Bruins, which had been averaging around 6,500 fans in attendance in January, saw 7,659 people attend the Feb. 11 game. Only opening night on Oct. 16, 2021, drew more fans (8,040) to see the P-Bruins live.
“The P-Bruins do a really good job reaching out and engaging [fans] to keep things interesting. It’s just, now there’s no COVID-related block for them,” McConaghy said.
The ongoing success of the No. 8-ranked Providence College men’s basketball team has also helped attendance at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. The Friars, 21-2 overall and 11-1 in Big East play, drew 12,810 fans on Feb. 12, second only to the PC-University of Rhode Island game (12,947) on Dec. 4, 2021. Tuesday’s PC home game against No. 10-ranked Villanova University is sold out, McConaghy said.
Upcoming youth sporting events across Rhode Island are also expected to “go off without a hitch” with the mask mandates lifted, according to Kristen Adamo, CEO and president of the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau. She said the mask mandate being dropped sends “a positive message” to groups coming in for large events that are slated to take place between now and March. Adamo said less restrictions makes event planning much easier.
Adamo also said the state will have several large events in both Providence and Warwick, most of them youth cheerleading and volleyball tournaments, including the 2022 USA Volleyball SpikeFest coming Feb. 17-20 at the R.I. Convention Center.
These events are expected to bring in strong direct spending to Rhode Island. Adamo said the state is expected to receive a $12 million direct-spend impact on these events between now and March. Attendance won’t be an issue at the youth events, unlike in meetings and other conventions, Adamo said, because youth events are sometimes national qualifiers.
“If you’re a kid in a tournament and this has to do with being in a championship or going onto a higher level, attendance is more important,” Adamo said. “We’re seeing those events come in pretty well. That’s going to be extremely helpful through the rest of the cold months.”
Simone is now eyeing March 4, which is when the state’s school mask mandate expires, as the next target point. He feels families will be more confident taking children out for dinner when schools will no longer be required by the state to be masked in class, resulting in more patrons taking in a dinner in town.
“Once it’s lifted for the children, it gives them another reason to feel OK,” he said. “The kids are not wearing them in school. The numbers are doing better; the metrics look good and we can go out as a family doing events again.”
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
