Politics & Government
Maple Grove Businesses Share Thoughts on State Shutdown
So far, the Minnesota state government shutdown has cause minimal disturbances for several Maple Grove local businesses. But, they are bracing for a potential impact.
The Minnesota state government has been shutdown for over a week. As some Minnesotans are brace for potential impact in their personal finances and lives, some businesses statewide are doing the same.
There are nearly 164,000 businesses in Minnesota. Tom Hesse, an executive at the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, predicted that most of those businesses will feel only a minimal impact from a short-term shutdown. But as consecutive calendar days pass, it may no longer be business as usual for Minnesotan companies.
Brandon Hlavka, co-owner of the in Maple Grove, says the Tavern has not seen any immediate effects from the shut down. But then again, they were prepared for it.
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“We’re up to date on all of our licensing, therefore we’re not really looking to the state for anything right now,” Hlavka said. “But we do hope this shutdown gets done with quickly so we don’t run into snags.”
Liquor and food distribution licensing is only a small fraction of services the state provides for local business. According to the Minnesota Department of Health, now that the shutdown has occurred they are operating at only 13 percent of the agency’s total workforce. Therefore the agency is focusing on a handful of its critical services. It is providing regulatory duties such as licensing and permitting services to businesses on a limited basis.
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Hlavka also stated that if the government was shut down for eight months it would certainly be a problem for the Maple Tavern’s licensing, but until then he is not predicting and problems.
As a business owner, Mike Kinnan from the in Maple Grove also expressed his concern regarding the state government shutdown.
“It’s going to effect a lot of people’s income and over time that would be detrimental,” Kinnan said. “But as of right now it doesn’t seem to be a problem for us.”
Kinnan also said The Lookout was fortunate enough to get all of their licensing up to date before the shutdown occurred. “I know there is a lot of restaurants out there that don’t have their buyers cards up to date. And if they run out of product to sell they are going to be in trouble because they can’t buy anymore without a license.”
For more information regarding the services the Minnesota Department of Health is currently providing visit www.health.state.mn.us/.
