The Summit County Public Health Department just announced possibly moving to level yellow — an increase to 50% capacity for restaurants, personal services and gyms/fitness facilities.

In reality, this is just hype. It does nothing for restaurants because the 6-foot rule still applies. We can’t expand the walls to add more tables, and outdoor dining is very cold at this time of year.

Does the county have enough data and information to answer the following question: Is there any concrete and verifiable evidence that someone who dined in a Summit County restaurant tested positive for COVID-19 and was either hospitalized or died?

The only logical answer is to let five-star certified restaurants go back to regular, full dining service and get rid of the 6-foot table restrictions. Our customers are angry with us — not the health departments.