ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — From craft store chains to tanning salons in Chesterfield to a pub in Florissant, to a Mexican restaurant in Kirkwood, St. Louis County officials have warned businesses all over the county to close.
5 On Your side obtained a list of 42 businesses that the county counselor's office sent letters to this week, saying they violated the county's stay-at-home order.
The list included 14 Michaels, Hobby Lobby and JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts stores throughout the county.
Business owners who received a letter can write an appeal. Businesses that continue to operate could be charged with a misdemeanor. The county could also seek a temporary restraining order, which would force a business to close, the release said.
But the owner of at least one of those businesses, Club Taco, in Kirkwood says the county never contacted him before concluding that his restaurant was in violation of the order.
He wants to know how county officials concluded the businesses on the list were in violation, and says the letter he received threatens a $2,000 fine, up to one year in prison and exclusion from any potential financial benefits for businesses that the government offers to those impacted by coronavirus restrictions.
See below for the full list.
The businesses that do not comply with the warnings "risk losing their designation as a business in good standing and access to potential grants from the CARES Act, the $2 trillion relief package approved by Congress last week," St. Louis County Executive Sam Page said in a press release.
The county said residents can report non-compliant businesses by sending an email to countycounselorcovid19@stlouisco.com or going to the county's coronavirus website.
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