Two downtown Auburn bars voluntarily shut down due to COVID-19 concerns
Josh Vitale
AUBURN — Two of the most popular bars in downtown Auburn are closed for business, at least temporarily, because of concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Southeastern and 17-16, both owned by Jon Hyink, announced in identical statements that, "While the debate on the virus's impact on the student population continues, we have decided to take the proactive step of voluntarily shutting down our business out of an abundance of caution while we monitor the impact of Auburn University's reopening on campus-activities."
"This decision does not come lightly," the statement continues, "but we we feel that at this time it is the right thing to do for the health, safety and welfare of our customers and employees, who we value so much."
Auburn's City Council will hold a specially called meeting "to discuss additional measures that may be taken to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus" on Tuesday at 2 p.m. CT.
Southeastern, located on Magnolia Ave. just across the street from Toomer's Oaks, is the site of many of the images of packed bars that were shared on social media through the first week-and-a-half of Auburn University's fall semester.
Alabama's ABC Board passed an order in July that mandated all bars stop serving alcohol at 11 p.m, but that hasn't slowed the number of students crowding through the doors — Gov. Kay Ivey's "Safer At Home" order does not limit capacity of bars or restaurants, though the Auburn Police Division did cite some downtown bars for not obeying mask and social distancing mandates, according to the Opelika-Auburn News.
The bars' decision to close comes two days after Auburn University announced that 202 students and five faculty members tested positive for COVID-19 during the first week of classes, from Aug. 15-21. That's more than five times as many as the week prior (41).
In all, 217 out of 901 people tested at the Auburn University Medical Clinic tested positive, which is a rate of 24.1%. During the summer, it was closer to 5-10%.
On Tuesday, senior vice president for student affairs Bobby Woodard sent an email out to all students announcing that all in-person gatherings should be limited to no more than 50 people through Oct. 10 and warning them their actions could determine whether Auburn is able to finish the fall semester on campus.
That order does not apply to athletics — Auburn's football team has had back-to-back weeks with zero new COVID-19 cases and continues to practice for its Sept. 26 opener against Kentucky. The university announced last week that Jordan-Hare Stadium will operate at 20% capacity for that game, or approximately 17,500 fans.
"COVID is truly a situation in which every individual's actions count," Woodard wrote. "If we are going to preserve on-campus education, we have to be all-in, both on and off campus. One night of fun at a bar or house party is not worth the potential consequences the entire campus will face if the virus continues to spread in our community."
The Depot, a restaurant in downtown Auburn, also announced a temporary closure Wednesday after a part-time staff member tested positive for COVID-19.
Josh Vitale is the Auburn beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. You can follow him on Twitter at @JoshVitale. To reach him by email, click here. If you enjoy Josh's coverage, consider a digital subscription that will give you access to all of it.