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Gov. Lamont announced restrictions would be eased starting March 19. Author: Shara Taylor (FOX61) Updated: 4:17 PM EST March 5, 2021
HARTFORD, Conn. For some businesses around the state, Gov. Ned Lamont’s announcement Thursday that some COVID-19 restrictions would be rolled back was a sense of relief.
It’s been almost a year since the pandemic broke out in the Nutmeg State, forcing a near-standstill of normal life. However, in just two weeks, travel requirements and capacity limits for some businesses will ease, opening the door for more people.
“It’s looking like the light at the end of the tunnel here,” said Red Rock Tavern Manager Chelsey Mancini told FOX61 News on Friday.
Red Rock Tavern in Hartford is one of six restaurants that have benefited early on from a small-business relief fund set up by Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy.
Portnoy established The Barstool Fund on Dec. 17 with an initial donation of $500,000. The fund is supporting small businesses struggling with declining revenues amid COVID-19-related regulations with little government support.
The six businesses that have so far benefited are all restaurants, but the fund is open to all struggling small businesses. As of Wednesday morning the fund had raised more than $2.5 million.
Chelsey Mancini, the daughter of the Red Rock s owner, said in a post on the fund’s website that the family restaurant has been in “survival mode.