“When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.” –
— Hunter S. Thompson –

The Big Picture –
By Glynn Wilson –

PENSACOLA, Fla. — On the last Saturday afternoon in March, the Pensacola Bay Bridge should be jammed with Spring Break traffic headed to the beach. But Highway 98 was almost without traffic this week, the toll booth on the way to Gulf Breeze shut down with a hand written sign that simply said, “Move On.”

The novel coronavirus pandemic and mandatory business and beach closures have virtually canceled the annual sojourn of college students and taken it’s toll on local restaurants and bars like Shaggy’s Bar and Grill, one place to catch the sunset over Little Sabine Bay.

The place was busy when we checked in on Facebook on Thursday March 12, one day before President Donald Trump declared a national state of emergency and governors in some coastal states began closing businesses and beaches.

Coronavirus Hits Gulf Coast Just In Time for Spring Break

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held off for a few more days, giving the state one week of Spring Break before shutting everything down, bringing down on him a barrage of criticism on social media for helping to spread the virus.

“The (Republican) Governor of Florida allowed the beaches to remain open when the virus was getting a foothold in America, and NOW that he made sure to get every dime he could from the Spring Breakers, he is suddenly very concerned,” said one commenter on Facebook.

Some who work in the restaurant-bar business in Pensacola have a different view.

“We usually have six weeks of Spring Break,” said one of the managers at Shaggy’s, sitting bored under an umbrella on a table in the parking lot, waiting for takeout customers to trickle in. “This year we got one week.”

While restaurants can’t serve customers sitting down inside, we ordered grilled oysters and Royal Red shrimp from the takeout table in front and snuck out back to a picnic table on the beach to eat and catch the sunset. The manager said the cops don’t care, as long as there are no large gatherings of people causing trouble.

While this is a problem for local businesses, it is a bit of a boon for locals. This time of year it’s nearly impossible to get around due to the Spring Break traffic. Now you can get anywhere easy, including riverfront parks in places like Milton along the Blackwater River, where locals are taking advantage of the absence of tourists to enjoy uncrowded walking and biking trails and boat launches.

On the drive out to East Cervantes Street to take the back way along Escambia Bay to our spring hideout, the empty streets made me think of that time in Atlanta, Georgia on opening night of the Summer Olympics in 1996 right after that Eric Rudolph bomb went off in Centennial Park. I was traveling with a student intern at the time and we were planning to drive into Atlanta from the south about midnight for the official opening of the House of Blues in an old Baptist church downtown. When we pulled onto I-20, there was not a car on the road, I kid you not. We parked right by Centennial Park, which was deserted by then, and walked to the House of Blues and hung out with Charles Barkley and the Dream Team.

This is different. Officials are comparing the economic fallout from COVID-19 to the aftermath of September 11, 2001, and the Bush Great Recession in 2008. The Coronavirus Pandemic Depression threatens to be far worse than anything since the Great Depression of 1929 and the Spanish Flu in 1918.

The American Hotel and Lodging Association is projecting 3.9 million job losses with the current pace of occupancy decline.

“The economic impact on the hotel industry is already more severe than the 9/11 and 2008 recessions, combined,” officials said. “The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on our 33,000 small business owners who operate 66 percent of hotel properties across the country has been extremely severe with many considering shuttering and closing their doors for good within days if they haven’t closed already.”

Small and family-owned businesses are becoming increasingly at risk as consumerism slows and travel subsides. The association predicts 33,000 small businesses will grind to a virtual halt across the country.

The $2.2 trillion coronavirus economic relief and stimulus bill passed by Congress this week and signed by the president could help some.

Congress to Pass Record $2.2 Trillion Coronavirus Economic Relief and Stimulus Package

Florida Senator Marco Rubio this week announced a plan to supplement small businesses to help financially through the pandemic.

“I think there is broad general agreement that small business in the country will not be able to survive and will require extraordinary assistance,” Rubio said. “The idea behind the proposal that we are finalizing now is how can we transfer money as quickly as possible to help small businesses meet payroll and operating obligations for a period of time roughly equivalent to six weeks.”

The coronavirus is hitting the economy in Florida hard, with several counties missing out on millions due to conventions and events being canceled. Orange County officials said the county has lost more than $280 million due to conventions being canceled amid fears of the coronavirus, and it could lose even more.

“Because we are highly reliant on tourism and leisure, we could see a (major) financial slowdown in Florida,” said Dale Crossley, a financial adviser. “The scope and magnitude will be dependent on how long it takes to peak and level out. We are already seeing the effects with the closure of theme parks, cruises, flights, professional sports.”

Disney World and Universal Orlando closed the theme parks for rest of March due to coronavirus concerns.

Throughout its nearly 50-year history, Walt Disney World has closed briefly a handful of times because of looming hurricanes and the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but late Thursday, the company announced it will shut down for nearly two weeks starting Sunday because of the coronavirus pandemic — an “unprecedented move,” according to a local newspaper. “The announcement had a sweeping effect. About 30 minutes after Disney gave the update, Universal said its theme parks are shutting down Sunday through most likely through the end of the month too.”

Florida Senator Rick Scott, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez and Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez placed themselves in quarantine after they may have been in contact with the communications director for Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who tested positive for the new coronavirus after traveling to South Florida.

Now that basketball’s March Madness is gone, and even the baseball season is in doubt as major league sports suspends virtually all operations, state universities are shifting to online classes, while owners and mangers at bars and restaurants are wondering when or if there will be a summer tourist season at all this year.

The impact is also being felt in neighboring Alabama, although data is harder to come by.

While we are taking all precautions to avoid getting sick due to the mutating virus ourselves, that will not stop us from getting out there from time to time to report the news. Stay safe and stay in touch on Facebook.

Coronavirus Spreads: Florida Sets Up Checkpoints, Alabama Closes Non-Essential Businesses