Top Stories

Allegheny Co. restaurant task force visits 385 businesses in first week, most without violations

ALLEGHENY CO., Pa. — Allegheny County health officials released updated data Wednesday on the new coronavirus task force tasked with alerting the health department of businesses who aren’t complying with safety guidelines.

Dr. Debra Bogen, director of the Allegheny County Health Department, said the COVID-19 Field Response Team visited 377 businesses in its first week. Most of the bars and restaurants (87%) passed all seven requirements.

Have questions about the spread of the coronavirus? We have an entire section dedicated to coverage of the outbreak. CLICK HERE for more.

However, about 49 businesses had at least one violation. The most common “unsatisfactory assessment” was staff not wearing masks properly, or at all, followed by the business not adhering to the 25% occupancy limit.

SEE THE FULL LIST OF RESTAURANTS/BARS AND REPORTS HERE

Some restaurants and bar owners are frustrated by the task force, saying people won’t read the report to see what the violations actually are and will just assume the business is unsafe.

Channel 11 spoke with the owner of The Fudge Farm in the South Side about this issue last week, who said they are abiding by county health regulations with signs reminding people to social distance and glass barriers. Still, the business now has an “unsatisfactory” mark because members of the task force said tables were not far enough apart.