By R.V. Baugus

Last Friday we here in Texas were granted permission for our restaurants to open to no more than 25 percent capacity. It came as Phase 1 as the state slowly reopens businesses and hopefully the economy.

Being the investigative journalist that I am, I considered it my job — nay, my obligation and duty — to frequent for lunch on that day a drive to a local El Fenix Restaurant (est: 1918 by the Martinez family) to sample the finest in Tex-Mex fare and get the temperature (so to speak) of the establishment on the first day back in dining-room business after a shutdown of several weeks.

Mind you, there are a number of El Fenix Restaurants across the Dallas/Fort Worth area, but only a handful reopened their dining rooms, which meant the closest to me was a drive halfway across Dallas. Hey, a guy’s gotta do what a guy’s gotta do.

To avoid wasting a drive and the $1.19 per gallon of gas (there are some advantages in the midst of all this!), I called the restaurant to be sure I would not be stuck in some crazy line of people who like me were having Mexican food withdrawals and could not wait to bust through the restaurant’s doors. The friendly lady on the phone assured me that my planned arrival around 3 pm should allow me fast seating. That was good news in light of the fact I had heard stories from coworkers about how some other restaurants in nearby cities that opened earlier by local proclamation before the governor’s order eventually superceded local ruling endured long waiting lines to enter.

I arrived on time and indeed there were some cars parked outside the restaurant. The curbside and takeout options enjoyed brisk business with people loading up on tacos, enchiladas, and salsa. The first thing I noticed upon entering El Fenix was distinctive arrow markings on the floor to show ingress and egress. I was seated in a small seating area and noticed a couple of tables with “closed” signs on them, all to maintain social distancing. Hand sanitizing stations were also very evident.

My waiter, Javier, took my order from a very scaled down and disposable menu, a good move to avoid reusing menus and the many hands touching them. Javier, of course, wore a mask, as did I upon entering the restaurant.

I don’t have to tell you how a tear nearly came to my eye when the fresh plate of chips and hot sauce arrived. Never mind, I just did.

I brought a magazine along for some reading and catching up and was pretty much glued to it while waiting for my food to arrive. After a few minutes I looked up and could not help but notice that, hey, I don’t see anyone else in here, save for the four or five waiters and waitresses just standing around all wearing their masks.

Suffice to say not only did I have my own personal waiter, but it turned out I had my own personal restaurant for the hour that I ate. Cars continued pulling up to pick up food orders, but I did not see one other customer enter in the time I was there.

The entire dining experience felt surreal. As this past week has sped by, I have noticed that other restaurants near us have opened, but the parking lots are not full as a part of me thought they might be.

Moral: this is going to take some time, folks, for people to feel comfortable and want to go to restaurants, for the most part. It could be that, or due to so many people out of work the money is not there to go out and spend. Or it could be a combination.

I read a story recently about habits. For weeks now, we have transitioned to new habits, mainly stay safe, stay home. Once in those routines and dining in the comfort of one’s home, it takes some time to return to the habits of yore. So maybe factor in habits as a third reason.

How this will transition to our industry and the habits of people going to events of mass gatherings is yet unknown. As many have said about the many states who are reopening businesses, this is not like a light switch you just flip on and people storm down the doors. This takes time. How much? Who knows, but it will take time. Jobs need to be gained, comfort levels have to be met, and habits have to be retrained.

As for me, I would not have minded a few more customers and hearing their voices inside El Fenix. Plus, it would have kept Javier busier with other tables and made it not so easy for me to ask for that second bowl of chips and hot sauce from him.

By Steven Wolff

As we look forward, we must reimagine how we connect with people (artists, employees, board members, partners, audiences and communities), redesign programs and services, and reinvent business models. Along the way we must also reframe our place in community, serve as anchor institutions, and shift perspectives from beneficiary of recovery to partner in recovery.

In just a few short weeks, the COVID-19 health crisis has had an unprecedented impact on our world-wide economy and social environment. In this paper, we describe a five-stage framework: focusing on resilience, readiness, reimagination, recapitalization, and return.

Because arts venues were the first to close and may be among the last to re-open, a myriad of issues may emerge; from the time and conditions required to restart ‘the art’ to customer willingness to be in large venues; from the economic impact of closure to the necessary resources (leadership, human and financial) to return.

There will be much change in the arts and culture space in the coming months. It is a real opportunity for anchor cultural institutions to evolve and step into more significant community development and public value roles.

Over the next weeks and months, AMS will continue to document and share examples of this evolution. We welcome your stories about innovative and creative examples of the public value of our sector and look forward to continuing the conversation. Look for future updates.

Steven Wolff is a Principal with AMS Planning & Research.

By R.V. Baugus

The Berry Center in Cypress, Texas, under the leadership of Beth Wade, CVE, transformed into a neighborhood super site food distribution location to get more food into the local community. The venue began in the role on April 29 under the auspices of the Houston Food Bank.

Two previous distribution efforts in the area were held at Cypress Premium Outlets with a goal of serving 5,000

vehicles, while more than 7,000 has been distributed at the Berry Center. Items included approximately 100 pounds of food per car, with a mixture of fresh produce, frozen meat, dairy, and non-perishables.

As cars lined up to receive food, volunteers helped load the car trunks with food while National Guard volunteers assisted with food distribution.

The effort is also just one of many for the Houston Food Bank, whose mission is to provide food for better lives. Last year the food bank we provided access to 104 million nutritious meals in 18 counties in southeast Texas through its 1,500 community partners which includes food pantries, soup kitchens, social service providers, and schools, with an emphasis on healthy foods and fresh produce.

In addition to distributing food, the food bank provides services and connections to programs that address the root causes of hunger and are aimed at helping families achieve long-term stability, including nutrition education, job training, health management, and help with securing state-funded assistance.

The food bank is also a resource for individuals and families in times of hardship and a solution to food waste, working with grocery stores and growers to rescue food before it reaches landfills. In collaboration with the community, the food bank advocates for policy change and promote dialogue on ways to increase access to food and to improve the lives of those we serve. Houston Food Bank works alongside partner food banks in Montgomery County, Galveston Country, and Brazos Valley, and is a certified member of Feeding America, the nation’s food bank network, with a four-star rating from Charity Navigator.

By Charzie Abendanio

Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment’s meal donation program will reach 100,000 meals produced later this week, and to accommodate the overwhelming support and donations to date, the program has been expanded to include the use of BMO Field, and the addition of BMO as a lead partner, to maximize its impact in the community. With the additional resources, the “Bringing Toronto Back To Its Feet” program, designed to thank and support Toronto’s front-line health workers, their families, and local community agencies, will be able to expand beyond their original production goal of 10,000 meals per day to now produce up to 13,000 meals per day.

“MLSE and our teams are always proud to represent Toronto, inspire our citizens, and serve our community, but that is especially true in challenging times,” said Larry Tanenbaum, Chairman of MLSE. “We are extremely proud of our organization and our employees who had a hand in bringing this program to life and grateful to the many partners who were so quick to lend their support. We all look forward to the day when we can return to hosting and entertaining our fans, but until then, we are focused on doing everything we can to help our community recover from this difficult period.”

MLSE will use BMO Field’s numerous food preparation facilities to prepare and assemble the additional meal packages. MLSE’s chefs and food and beverage staff, along with employees from different departments within the company, have been working together on this program as the company’s sports and entertainment operations are halted due to the pandemic.

“We’re extremely proud to help expand this successful program to support front-line health workers and Second Harvest, who provide meals to the most vulnerable members of our community,” said Darryl White, CEO, BMO Financial Group. “BMO is here to boldly grow the good in business and life, and that inspires the actions we’re taking to fight this pandemic. We’ll continue to look for opportunities like this with our partners to grow the good in our communities.”

BMO Field’s facilities are a valuable addition to the program and its aim to reach a new goal of producing up to 13,000 meals per day. BMO joins the previously announced founding partners of the community outreach effort in MLSE, Scotiabank, Tangerine Bank, Bell Canada, and Rogers Communications.

“There has been an outpouring of support in response to this initiative and it has further demonstrated the united and generous spirit of Toronto,” said Michael Friisdahl, President and CEO of MLSE. “The addition of the facilities at BMO Field, and the support of BMO as a partner, will help us grow this program beyond what we had first envisioned and provide even more support to the community where and when it is needed most. We are very appreciative to everyone who has played a role in making this program possible, but we are especially grateful for the generosity of MLSE’s ownership, the commitment of our employees, and the support of our corporate and community partners. This is an example of Toronto at its best.”

“I want to thank BMO for joining MLSE’s food donation program, which will help feed families across our city. The
expansion of this program to include BMO Field shows this truly is a growing team effort to support people during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mayor John Tory. “Businesses in Toronto have stepped up throughout this crisis to help the community – it’s the Toronto way – and I want to thank MLSE, and all of its corporate partners for demonstrating that Toronto spirit through their involvement in this impactful initiative.”

Since the announcement of the program, MLSE has also received more donations than anticipated from the community
to support with logistics, including delivery, food or financial donations, and assistance from volunteers. MLSE and all of the partners involved with the program are thankful to Mackie Movers, Pinnacle Caterers, Nestlé Canada, McCormick Canada, Smucker’s, Pizza Pizza and Diageo Canada for providing extra support and welcome the generosity of the many others inquiring about how they can assist the program.

In the first two weeks of operation, the MLSE culinary team’s meal production has included almost 25,000 pounds of chicken, 15,000 pounds of potatoes, 10,000 pounds of mixed vegetables and 8,000 pounds of pasta.

Second Harvest, the largest food rescue organization in Canada, along with a network of local suppliers and sponsors, are supplying fresh ingredients daily to the MLSE team. The chefs are then turning those food supplies, along with other food purchased or donated to the program, into fresh, nutritious, ready-to-heat single-serving meals suitable for a variety of dietary needs. Meals are then labelled before being readied for delivery five days a week. The program is expected to prepare and deliver hundreds of thousands of meals over the coming weeks for a growing network of hospitals and community agencies.

“To limit the spread of COVID-19 while maintaining social distancing, it’s essential that community food programs now provide takeaway meals to an increasing number of people in need. Unfortunately, many of the organizations Second Harvest supports do not have the kitchens or money necessary to do that– and that gap puts thousands of vulnerable people at risk,” said Lori Nikkel, CEO of Second Harvest. “We are incredibly grateful to MLSE and its partners for helping us close that gap by mobilizing its world-class venue and chefs, and for the generosity of so many food donors that are enabling us to provide thousands of meals every week. We are determined that no one be left behind.”

MLSE worked with food hygiene experts and Toronto Public Health during the development of the program to ensure the safety of the meals and of the people who are working to prepare them.

Charzie Abendanio is Manager, Corporate Communications for Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment in Toronto.

By R.V. Baugus

Many venues — let’s say most — are and have been working diligently to balance the need to assist in their communities with the need to plan for the many steps necessary in reopening, whenever that may be.

An article written by Aaron Wilson in the Houston Chronicle caught our eye about how the NFL Houston Texans plan to become what is thought to be the first professional sports team looking to hire a full-time hygiene coordinator to oversee that aspect of operations at the team’s practice facility and NRG Stadium. The obvious goal is to provide and protect sanitary conditions at the 72,220-seat venue to keep players, workers, and fans safe.

The venue is owned by Harris County and as a result such a hire would also handle the myriad of other major events at the stadium including the Texas Bowl and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, among others. The hire will oversee the team’s custodial staff provided by F&B provider Aramark and work in tandem with Harris County infrastructures to coordinate the cleanliness of NRG Stadium as well.

We will be reporting more on this particular situation as well as if this will become a hiring trend as more venues return to normal operations.

Photo by Visit Houston.