LANSING, Mich. — Governor Gretchen Whitmer's Executive Order will affect how things work both in Lansing and across the state.
Local restaurants, hotels, and sports venues are expecting to take a big hit financially as long as the coronavirus is around.
"This has changed so rapidly," said Justin Winslow, President and CEO of the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association.
"Over the past 24 hours or so there's been a cancellation or postponement of about 21 events," said Mike Price, Executive Director of the Greater Lansing Sports Authority.
The spread of coronavirus is more alarming than most expected, with fears that it could get worse.
"I think that's part of the problem..is the unknown right now," said Price.
Governor Whitmer chose to be safe rather than sorry, announcing the banning of large gatherings of more than 250 people in the state of Michigan.
That move was not ideal for restaurant and hotel workers.
"It's a unique time, it's a challenging time," said Winslow.
It's the same for those at the Greater Lansing Sports Authority, who are now scrambling to figure out what needs to be done.
"We're dealing with information that's changing in real time," said Price. "By the time you start to enact a decision, you have new information and those decisions need to be adjusted and changed on the fly."
Many local complexes are closed for the time being, but hospitality in Lansing is still abundant and available.
"Restaurants are open, hotels are open," said Winslow. "Although the place is probably cleaner than most places you'd come into contact with, they're going above and beyond to make sure that the public knows it's safe to be there."
Winslow says it's only a matter of time before things get better, but right now, it's wait and see.
"We're unsure of what the immediate future looks like but we're going to get past this. The restaurants and hotels will be here and they'll be waiting for you."
But they're asking the government for help.
"The impact of the entire state economy will be tremendous if we all aren't working together to make things easier and better for them over the next few weeks."
Winslow says the restaurant and hotel industry brings in $40 million a year, and that Whitmer's executive order could affect more than 600,000 workers.
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