In Newsday Live webinar, county execs talk about schools, restaurants and still-closed businesses

Long Island businesses are expected to see the economic impacts of COVID linger for years, though the hardship won’t last forever, local elected officials said Tuesday.

While most industries have reopened locally at some percentage of their previous capacity, many businesses, such as entertainment centers, movie theaters and event venues remain shuttered, despite concerted efforts and investments to make them safe.

"It’s really important that we advocate for all our businesses to come back," Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said during a Newsday Live webinar on COVID’s business impact. The event, which also included Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone and was moderated by Newsday's Joye Brown, was co-sponsored by the Long Island Association business group.

"There’s still a significant amount of economic anxiety and a number of businesses that cannot open," Bellone said. "These businesses are suffering."

One of the frustrations the county executives said they hear from business owners is why certain operations, like casinos and bowling alleys, have been allowed to reopen while other indoor operations have remained closed for six months.

"I hear it all the time; if this, why not that?" Curran said. "It’s that arbitrariness that I think is really frustrating for business owners."

Curran said she will advocate for any business that can open in a safe way, pointing to the investments in safety that many still-closed firms have made, such as air filtration systems, sanitizing foggers and thermal scanners.

Additionally, she said the county’s Industrial Development Agency has a donation system in place for mom-and-pop businesses in need of personal protective equipment, such as masks and hand sanitizer, and has business loans available for those who may need it. For more information, go to boostnassau.net.

Bellone said Suffolk’s IDA, too, is able to work with small businesses in search of potential aid. The county's One-Stop Employment Center, nwsdy.li/suffemp, continues to organize event. Suffolk is also encouraging still-closed industries to work with local officials to come up with local guidances that can be taken to Albany to spur state action.

Both executives said getting long-closed operations up and running again is a major concern, but the reopening of schools remains a top priority that has economic implications if not rolled out safely.

"The school issue has taken up a ton of bandwidth," Bellone said. "As we get over that hump now and show that this has been done safely … that is now going to allow the state and everybody to focus our attention on these last remaining [businesses]."

Curran agreed, saying that "everyone is sort of holding their breath and waiting to see what happens with schools."

As winter draws closer, the executives said they support the continuance of outdoor dining and have made efforts to streamline permitting processes for restaurant owners. Despite that, eventually weather conditions will make that impractical for many operators, underscoring the importance of federal intervention.

"It does speak to the importance of the federal government providing subsidies and disaster insurance," Bellone said. "The recovery from this is going to take years. We want these businesses to survive this crisis and then be in a situation to thrive once again."

Despite the many challenges facing industry, both county leaders said Long Islanders are resilient and will come out on the other side of the crisis.

"There is a lot of uncertainty that is making a lot of people, rightly so, anxious," Curran said. "We will find our balance again."