Loose-knit group of about 160 businesses committed to reopening early.
An executive order issued last month by Gov. Tim Walz closing bars and restaurants and other businesses to slow the spread of COVID-19 is set to expire Friday.
But a loose-knit group of businesses doesn’t plan to wait to reopen their doors.
ReOpen Minnesota Coalition, which claims support from roughly 160 statewide businesses ranging from bars to fitness studios, plans to defy the governor by encouraging members to reopen Wednesday, the same day Walz is expected to extend or modify his executive order or let it expire. Their livelihoods — and their constitutional rights — are at stake, said Lisa Monet Zarza, a coalition member who owns Alibi Drinkery in Lakeville. Continue reading.