Penticton’s Government St. Liquor Store is shutting its doors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The store’s owner, Jeff Leonard, said making the decision to close indefinitely was hard but he believes it was the right call.
“We’ve been struggling with the decision for the last week. There’s a lot of anxiety for the kids working that job with everything going on. We felt it was the right decision, as the government recommended today that all non-essential businesses should shut down and I don’t believe we’re essential,” said Leonard.
Leonard added he didn’t feel comfortable putting his employees in a potentially dangerous situation.
“About 80 per cent of our customers have been great, but for whatever reason there’s about 20 per cent that don’t believe it or just don’t get it and won’t adhere to six-foot (social distancing) rules.
“I don’t have the right to put my staff in that situation.”
Like many other businesses across the country, the shop will be closed for the foreseeable future.
All other liquor stores in the city — both government and private — remain open as of Monday afternoon.
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